Admittedly,
I know nothing about this film. I hadn't even heard of it until now.
In fact, the only Patricia Arquette film I have ever seen is Stigmata.
Still, the plotline of this film sounds intriguing and I'll have to check
this film out one day. Strangely enough, I haven't seen a majority of the
films that Zimmer has worked on.
The score is another vintage
Hans Zimmer from the early nineties. In case you haven't noticed, I have
really been getting into the whole Hans Zimmer/Media Ventures sound and
I've been getting a hold of as many of his classic scores as possible. The
list of must-have Zimmer scores usually includes such titles as
Backdraft,
Gladiator,
The Thin Red Line,
and The Peacemaker. While Beyond
Rangoon has always received pretty favorable reviews, it is a score that
is generally not referenced very often in such lists. This is a real shame
since the score is quite good, and while still firmly set in the typical
Zimmer sound, it is quite a beautiful score.
The main theme, which Zimmer
employs frequently within the score, appears immediately in the first
track. It's performance on the wood flute is absolutely breathtaking,
especially when the orchestral elements come into play behind it. The
flute itself is utilized quite often, although not always in context of
the main theme. Its performances are the highlight of the score and,
along with the ethnic pipes, represents the exotic quality of the score.
It's this quality that makes Beyond Rangoon such a fascinating score.
Without those elements, it would probably just be another average Zimmer
score, but the ethnic sound sends it to a whole other level.
The score mostly consists of
the romantically mysterious ethnic sound, although there are some action
moments scattered around. While they take up very little of the score,
they are well-composed and are some of the more interesting action cues
that I've heard Zimmer compose in a long while.
While the CD only has a
running time of just under 38 minutes, it is still a solid 38 minutes. As
with a typical Zimmer score release, the music is sequenced together and
the track times tend to be rather long. However, again like most Zimmer
releases, the sequencing works very well and the music flows perfectly
from track to track, with the final track bringing a fitting end to the
score.
This is another excellent
Zimmer score that should not be left sitting on the shelf. If you love
exotic scores, this is definitely for you. It is a pleasing listen that
will delight anyone who has found enjoyment from other Zimmer scores.
*****
