The Missing

Track Listing

01 - New Mexico, 1885 (2:26)
02 - The Stranger (3:51)
03 - Dawn to Dusk; The Riderless Horse (4:22)
04 - A Dark and Restless Wind (3:18)
05 - The Search Begins (2:15)
06 - Lilly's Fate is in These Hands (6:43)
07 - The Brujo's Storm -

A Loss of Innocence (8:30)

08 - Setting the Trap -

Staying One Step Ahead (3:55)
09 - A Curse of Ghosts (4:43)
10 - A Rescue is Planned (6:18)
11 - Kayitah's Death - The Soaring Hawk (4:24)
12 - Rescue and Breakout (3:23)
13 - Profound Loss (3:22)
14 - An Insurmountable Hurdle (3:45)
15 - The Long Ride Home (16:12)

Orchestrated by James Horner, J.A.C. Redford, and

Randy Kerber

Conducted by James Horner

Produced by Simon Rhodes and James Horner

Released by Sony Classical Records on November 18th, 2003

Total Running Time: 77:35

Ron Howard’s deliberately paced western, The Missing teams Howard with his Beautiful Mind composer James Horner. For this outing, Horner does what he does best, incorporating plenty of “where-have-I-heard-that-before-moments” with some interesting stylistic additions that are rarely heard in Western scores. The resulting blend, coupled with the slow pacing, make this score one that is both delightful and frustrating at the same time.

One thing I’ll say about a James Horner score. Even now, you know what you’re getting when you pop in the disc. He’s been in a creative rut ever since the late 80s, and while there have been some notable scores (Mask of Zorro, A Beautiful Mind) most of his work follows the same formula one-right-after the other. The Missing falls into this trend whole-heartedly, but at the same time Horner’s usage of Native American chanting within sections of his score adds a whole new dimension to the tired genre of the Western. Of course, The Missing is not your typical Western film, and any score attempting to counter that would ultimately fail. However, given that the only real creative development within the score is the chanting (which Horner uses in spots where other scores would see a typical chorus…a nice touch) there isn’t much here that hasn’t found its way in some form or another in other works. Horner’s beloved shakuhachi instrument is once again found in this score, but its usage here is different from what is normally experienced, enough to make it seem fresh even during its typical Horner placements.

With plenty of low, driving strings, bass rumblings, and the occasional distant thunder of percussion, this is a score that builds its tension slowly over time. There are no grandiose pastoral themes, moments of sheer beauty, or even a terrorizing assault on the senses. Everything flows, but on a deliberate pacing that many will find aggravating before too long. But as things pick up in the last half, the plodding along changes into a full run, revealing the arena where Horner’s unique composing shines the brightest.

Of less exciting Horner variety, The Missing is a score with great potential which is more often realized than not, but for those without the desire to dredge through the long track running times and the lowly tension building that goes on for most of this score, The Missing is one that will probably go missing from most collections.