Overview of 2013 Scores Part 3 of 3

For reference, I don’t think there’s actually that much difference in quality among scores #10-#2. They’re all within a hair of being superb.

10. Saving Mr. Banks (Thomas Newman)

The score for Saving Mr. Banks is Thomas Newman squarely in his comfort zone, but what a comfort zone it is. He combines his always-unique and distinctive instrumentation with lush orchestral themes, recalling some of his best scores: Shawshank Redemption, Meet Joe Black, Lemony Snickett’s A Series of Unfortunate Events, and Angels in America. While not quite as superlative as these stellar works, this score is still ripe with signature Newman moments. “Travers Goff” opens the score with an expansive string melody, but Newman’s characteristically driving piano soon enters. This melody is reprised in “Beverly Hills Hotel” and expanded upon in “Ginty My Love.” “Walking Bus” contains colorful instrumentation, recalling A Series of Unfortunate Events in particular, while “Jollification” takes this quirkiness further, becoming American Beauty-esque. “Leisurely Stroll” brings wonderful string swells to the forefront, reminiscent of Finding Nemo. Repeated piano notes propel “Whiskey” and Newman twists his style into a quasi-jazz cue for “Mrs. P.L. Travers.”  “Mr. Disney” is Newman’s idiosyncratic take on a fanfare, with a more majestic take in “The Magic Kingdom.” Finally, “Saving Mr. Banks (End Title)” closes the score with an eloquent orchestral melody. The score is not quite the perfection Newman has achieved with other scores, but it’s close.

9. Oz: The Great and Powerful (Danny Elfman)

Sure, the main theme bears an uncanny resemblance to “O Canada!” and the witches’ theme is straight out of Elfman’s tried-and-true toolbox. But the composer still manages to concoct a delicious fantasy score with indelible moments, from the majestic “Main Titles” and the dynamic “Preparation Montage” (Elfman is ever the master of the montage) to the wondrous “Bubble Voyage” and the heartbreakingly tender “China Town.” The playful composer even contributes a wacky “Munchkin Welcome Song,” recalling a similarly titled opus from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Unfortunately, much of the final battle music is not on the CD. But the frenetic, almost impossibly frenzied final 45 seconds of the penultimate track, “Time for Gifts,” is pure film music pleasure of the highest order, almost like a condensed version of the “Main Titles” from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (sans electronics). I for one am glad that Elfman and director Sam Raimi made up (though Christopher Young would probably have done a good job as well). Coming up for Elfman (pun very much intended) is Fifty Shades of Grey, which should be…interesting.

8. Iron Man 3 (Brian Tyler)

I wrote a bit about the score to Iron Man 3 here; more than half a year after that post, I can now say that Tyler wrote probably my favorite theme of the year for this film. It’s an unabashedly muscular, heroic, robust anthem, the kind that Man of Steel should have had (in terms of memorability, effectiveness, and grandeur, not necessarily in terms of musical style). Plus, it’s pliable enough to play morosely in “Isolation” and funky in the rocking throwback end title track “Can You Dig It?” Much of the score before the lengthy finale is actually rather subdued and doesn’t use the main theme much. That’s primarily why this score isn’t placed higher. But once the climax kicks in (comprising the tracks “Dive Bombers,” “Battle Finale,” “Stark,” “Heat and Iron,” and “Hot Pepper”), the score finally comes into its own as a massive action opus. One of my favorite moments is the build-up from 1:20-1:27 in “Stark.” Like the entire score, it’s simple, yet stunningly compelling.

7. The Book Thief (John Williams)

The Book Thief was a surprise assignment for the world’s reigning maestro, but certainly a welcome one. Far from Star Wars and Indiana Jones in nearly every aspect but quality, the score still retains Williams’s peerless compositional voice. While he doesn’t embark on any new avenues, his painstakingly precise writing is as sublime as ever. Choice moments are legion: The tender introduction of the main theme in “One Small Fact” preceding a surging restatement of the same, the rich string writing in “The Train Station,” the emotionally overwhelming simplicity of the oboe tune in “Max and Liesel,” and the effortlessly flowing recapitulation of the theme in “Learning to Read.” By the time the “Finale” and the suite “The Book Thief” roll around, Williams has more than proven his mastery—as if he needed to at this point. Even more than Lincoln, however, this score requires attention and patience to appreciate the subtleties of its craft. Less engaging passages do exist, and there isn’t quite the sense of freshness of War Horse or The Adventures of Tintin, and these reasons are why this score isn’t higher up on my list. But John Williams is still the man.

6. The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug (Howard Shore)

Howard Shore’s middle score to the most drawn-out trilogy in history improves upon its predecessor, but still lags behind the scores for The Lord of the Rings. The main problem is the shortness, obscurity, and relative un-memorability of Shore’s new themes. They certainly aren’t lacking in quantity: we have several Bilbo themes, a Gandalf the Grey theme, a handful of Erebor/Thorin themes, themes for Mirkwood, the Wood Elves, Tauriel, Bard, Laketown, Smaug, and more. The jaunty tune for Laketown is neat, and I like the mesmerizing instrumentation and percussion of Smaug’s primary theme (apparently he has more than one theme), even if I can’t recall the actual melody. My two favorite themes are the ones having to do with Tauriel, the female version of Link for those uninitiated with Peter Jackson’s version of Middle-Earth. Her fluttering theme works great as an action fanfare in “The Forest River,” a track that proves that Shore has improved his action writing since The Lord of the Rings. The theme for her relationship with Kili (Aragorn Jr.) is simple yet enchanting. Time will tell if There and Back Again will allow Shore to return to the heights of the Original Trilogy. (Mr. Williams welcomes you to the club, Mr. Shore.)

5. Thor: The Dark World (Brian Tyler)

Brian Tyler’s main theme for the second Thor film isn’t as original or good, frankly, as Patrick Doyle’s themes for the original or Tyler’s own theme for Iron Man 3. But somehow, Tyler uses this basic theme to craft the most entertaining, solid start-to-finish score for a Marvel Studios film. The main theme is an almost overblown, epic fantasy tune complete with furiously chanting choir and simple harmonies. Yet Tyler includes orchestral flourishes and clever motifs to keep the tune from becoming yet another Remote Control remnant. The theme actually has three distinct parts; the second part is often used as a love theme and the third (girded by a gliding electronic tone) is used for traveling to Asgard and especially heroic moments. “Into Eternity” includes a heartfelt, tragic rendition of the first part of the theme, and “Asgard” features yet another theme that isn’t really used in the film itself (it plays in the credits right after the first bonus scene). Loki’s sinuous, serpentine theme underscores his obviously deceitful nature, but also plays in a heroic action setting in “Convergence.” And Tyler’s incorporation of Alan Silvestri’s Captain America theme in “An Unlikely Alliance” makes for one of the most delightful film music moments of the year. The entire score almost never lets up, enthralling fantasy-action moments filling it up to the brim. Now, if only Marvel could get Brian Tyler to score Guardians of the Galaxy instead of that other Tyler….

4. Planes (Mark Mancina)

Mark Mancina hadn’t scored a major film since “Imagine That” in 2009, and Planes marked a very welcome return. The film allows Mancina to write plenty of action, an area where he has always excelled. Cues such as “Start Your Engines,” “Running on Fumes,” “Get Above the Storm,” and “Skipper to the Rescue” certainly reveal Mancina’s musical history as one of the earliest of Hans Zimmer’s protégés. But his command of the orchestra is stronger than many of those from the Zimmer school, and the music is slightly reminiscent of Mancina’s rollicking action cues for Tarzan. “Dusty & Ishani” uses Indian instrumentation that is almost certainly not authentic, but is nevertheless extremely attractive and well written. The theme for Skipper is a noble anthem that Mancina transforms into an outright chorale in the moving “Skipper’s Theme (Volo Pro Veritas).” However, it is the stirring main theme that serves as the score’s highlight; Mancina can add another notch to his belt for great themes. The noble, soaring trumpet melody has five phrases; the third and fourth are my favorite, as they seem to convey a sense of yearning as-yet unrequited. The drums and guitar add an appropriate sense of energy without going over the top. Best heard in “Dusty Soars,” “First Place,” and “Planes,” this is my second favorite theme of the year (behind Iron Man 3).

3. Escape from Tomorrow (Abel Korzeniowski)

There are two weaknesses to this score: first, it’s too short at 20 minutes. Second, two of the tracks consist of meandering electronic textures. But Korzeniowski composed 15 minutes of singular elegance for this offbeat film about a family’s breakdown at the Disney parks. And indeed, the music would be perfect as background music for the parks themselves. The end of “Fantasy Girl” has a stately, brassy optimism characteristic of the music played at Epcot. “Gates of Tomorrow” and the two “Magic Kingdom” tracks feature gorgeous themes while “The Grand Finale” closes the score with resplendent, soaring flourishes. “Fireworks” is the kind of crazy track I like. (Yes, there is crazy music I don’t like; see “Martian Mambo” from John Powell’s Mars Needs Moms.) It opens with a complicated string line before expanding into a portentous action track, complete with chimes.  Then, an unsettling children’s choir enters, keening an eerie five-note ostinato. Speaking of children’s choir, they return for a final song, “Imaginate!” lampooning “It’s A Small World” with subtly twisted lyrics and malignantly jaunty woodblock accompaniment. The composer, choir director, or conductor even manages to make the kids sing in a slightly demented tone. One only wishes that Korzeniowski had been allowed to develop his musical ideas further.

2. Kick-Ass 2 (Henry Jackman and Matthew Margeson)

When I saw this movie in the theaters and the Kick-Ass theme started playing under the studio logos, I grinned inside (I admit to being on the phlegmatic side outwardly). Henry Jackman’s reaching, heroic melody for the wannabe superhero has become one of my favorite themes, and the best parts of this sequel score use this theme. Margeson appears to have actually written most of this score, and I honestly think his new themes for Hit-Girl and the Motherf*cker (the former Red Mist) are just okay. At least he keeps them both in same musical ballpark as the themes from the first film; the first two notes of Hit-Girl’s theme are the same as the first two of Big Daddy’s, and the Motherf*cker’s theme is backed by an electric guitar line that is also a more simplified version of Big Daddy’s theme. “Mindy’s First Date” display’s Hit-Girl’s theme in its emotional guise, while “Dave’s Field Test” uses it heroically. “Cemetery Attack/Hit-Girl is Back” and “Warehouse Showdown” are the best action tracks, often using a persistent electronic beat under the Kick-Ass and Motherf*cker themes. “Hit-Girl’s Farewell” recalls the sublime blend of grandeur, triumph, and coolness of “Flying Home” from the first film, but the orchestral arrangement sounds thinner. “Justice Forever” is a highlight (it’s the track that plays under the Blu-ray/DVD menu), electric guitar and electronics building to a brassy fanfare of the Kick-Ass theme, moving on to a full orchestral statement of the theme that precedes an eruption of drums and a stirring string line. “Main Titles,” which plays under the logos, starts out with a soft orchestral statement of the theme as a bass pulse grows and grows, becoming massive as more bubbling electronics enter and the theme transitions to synthesizer. It’s pure musical heaven. Another one of my favorite tracks is the sadly unused “Last Resort,” in which a gargantuan statement of the Kick-Ass theme starts on electric guitar before exploding into orchestra and choir as the theme ascends to its zenith. As a whole, this score is more cohesive than the original, but with fewer highlights. However, it’s still the most flat-out fun, consistently entertaining score I heard this year.

1. Romeo and Juliet* (Abel Korzeniowski)

Korzeniowski was a last-minute replacement for the famed James Horner on this score. But unlike the score for Ender’s Game (where Horner was replaced by Steve Jablonsky), the score for Romeo and Juliet likely exceeds what Horner would have done based on his recent track record. Korzeniowski’s simple themes are bolstered by exquisite orchestrations and opulent bursts of heavenly beauty. Although it is a close companion to the composer’s score for W.E. with its lush strings, piano, and semi-minimalistic writing, a sense of inevitable tragedy permeates the score and provides it with its own character. “Forbidden Love” starts with a tender build-up laden with anticipation before the celestial main theme pours out from the strings. The end of “First Kiss” is rapturous in its emotional intensity, while “A Thousand Times Good Night” explores the wondrous main theme further with piano lines that are both pounding and euphoric. Similarly masterful piano writing imbues “Juliet’s Dream” with romantic aching. “Fortune’s Fool” and “From Ancient Grudge” hint at the kind of furious action Korzeniowski excels at (and has sadly only really been able to explore in his score for Battle for Terra) while keeping within the score’s partially minimalistic idiom. The two “Crypt” cues are more subdued until the end, leading into the divine final cue, “Eternal Love.” Here, a solo female voice sings an elegy for the doomed lovers before leading into a final beatific statement of the main theme. Korzeniowski’s sumptuous score is a splendid achievement and my favorite score of the year; it just hits the spot for me.  In fact, while listening to it again for review purposes, I really fell in love with it even more and upgraded it to asterisk status (just below the absolute highest rating of two asterisks). While Korzeniowski excels at these romantic scores, I hope he will be allowed to explore more styles and genres.