| The Rocketeer |
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Composed by James Horner |
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Orchestrated by John Neufeld and Elliot Kaplan Conducted by James Horner Produced by James Horner Release Date: 1991 |
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It's been such a long time since I've seen this film that I really didn't know what to expect from James Horner's score. I had heard that it was a good one, and being a fan of Horner's more swashbuckling scores (of which Krull is still my favorite) I had no fear as I set down to listen to this one. Ultimately, The Rocketeer is just what one would expect from Horner, self rip-offs and all, but at the same time it is a very fulfilling adventure score that, for those who can get past the myriad of quotes that Horner imbues at every turn, becomes very entertaining. Rather than list the references that this score derives a lot of its power from, I prefer to focus on what makes it work here. Continuing on the theory I put forth in my review of Aliens, I feel that Horner's self-referencing tendencies only tend to bring out the worst in everyone when it just doesn't work well in context of the score. The Mask of Zorro is not the most original score Horner has ever put out, but most people find it to be a wonderful piece of work (as do I), and I feel strongly that the reason behind this is that the pieces Horner pulls from his previous scores fit in well with the style of the music that he is creating for the film. Where Enemy at the Gates primarily failed was in Horner's use of several inappropriate motifs that just didn't fit in well, even though the score worked pretty well otherwise. What makes The Rocketeer work is that since the primary usage of Horner's previous musical creations are all geared towards the swashbuckling vein, everything just fits well here. Thankfully, the main theme is as original as far as I can tell, having not experienced it in any other Horner score I've heard up to this point. It's your typical heroic main theme, but the romantic sensibilities and lushness that Horner brings to his music helps to set it above the vast collection of other heroic themes. As the Rocketeer himself takes to the skies, so the theme builds itself on air, thanks to the beautiful string work that has always been one of the things I've enjoyed about Horner's work. His theme for the heroine, which makes its first appearance in the third track, is at once recognizable as a descendent of the original rip-off for Battle Beyond the Stars of Ilia's Theme from Star Trek: The Motion Picture. It's at once recognizable, but suffers from degradation, having gone through countless variations through the years. The result is a bit bland here, though it's still a nice theme. It just doesn't come off as strong as the main theme, or appear quite as often. The action scoring is where Horner really blows the listener away. While his music has always been marked by performances that seem to teeter on being impossible to pull off, this stands proudly among the his other notable scores of the same nature. The action cues are breathtaking and move along at a rapid pace. One wonders just how much the musicians could take of this, but thankfully they keep up the pace and the action cues make for some of the best stuff on the CD. While quite an oldie, it's still very much a goodie, and thankfully is not all that hard to find. If you're a big fan of Horner's adventure scores, be sure to check this one at as it's simply one of those scores that is just sheer fun all around. **** |
| Track Listing - Total Running Time: 57:16 | |
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