| Mission: Impossible |
|
Composed by Danny Elfman |
|
|
Orchestrated by Steve Bartek and Mark McKenzie Conducted by Artie Kane Produced by Danny Elfman Release Date: 1996 |
Purchase this CD at:
|
|
A mixed bag, yet still not overshadowed by Hans Zimmer's decidedly pumped-up score to the sequel film, Elfman's take on the musical signature popularized by Lalo Schifrin stands as one of the better ways to make such an adaptation. While the quirky orchestrations still stand even after six years, this is more conventional than might be considered after an initial listen, and the occasional uses of themes from the original TV show help to anchor the score firmly in the Mission: Impossible vein, even if Elfman generally refrains from the bombastic main theme save for two occasions. Not being the original choice as composer, Elfman came onto the project late in the game, replacing Alan Silvestri. Silvestri's score was more akin to what Zimmer would turn out for the sequel, though without the hardness or electronica style that Zimmer is known for. Since the powers-that-be were unsatisfied with what Silvestri had provided, Elfman's path travels down the road that would become his staple in such scores as Planet of the Apes, and to a lesser extent, Spider-Man. Here is where the experiment in percussion really becomes noticeable, with Elfman utilizing practically everything but the kitchen sink in producing some really offbeat (pun intended) percussion effects. This score is also a perfect glimpse into what Red Dragon could have become had Elfman more closely matched the Bernard Herrmann style that he is capable of doing. The string work here is closely Hermann-esque (take Looking for "Job" for example), and had Elfman realized what he could have done with these portions in tweaking them to fit the atmosphere of Red Dragon, it would have made for a far more interesting score. Given that this is Mission: Impossible, however, these moments work well and build tension without sounding out of place. For the most part, the score builds itself with the slowly developing tension cues, with the mid-disc climax appearing in the beautiful, chorus-haunted track, Betrayal. From this, the score moves to its penultimate cues, Zoom A and Zoom B. The culmination of all the percussion effects experienced beforehand, these tracks will either start your blood pumping or just tick you off, depending on how tolerant you are for chaotic orchestra bits. While these cues seem to be throwing stuff randomly at the listener, the exhilarating appearance at the end of the Mission: Impossible theme shows that, yes, it all had a point and was actually one huge-buildup to the end. If you can appreciate it, it's quite a fitting way to close out the sequence and the score as well. As I stated in the opening of this review, Elfman's Mission: Impossible is a mixed bag. However, after having listened to it dozens of times over, I find that I have grown quite fond of it. There's plenty to like here, especially for Elfman fans. If you have yet to try it out, be sure to give it a spin. There are plenty of copies, new and used alike, and it is one of the better Elfman scores that came out in the later nineties. **** |
| Track Listing - Total Running Time: 52:28 | |
|
|
