ANIMAL FARM

RICHARD HARVEY

Rating:

Original Review: I love it when a score comes out of nowhere, bowls you over with its brilliance, and restores your faith in the genre as a whole. Animal Farm, the latest movie in the continually excellent Hallmark Hall of Fame series for American TV, has done just that, by emerging from the shadow of more popular and well-regarded works such as Merlin, Durango, Moby Dick and the Emmy-winning Alice In Wonderland to take its place as the series' musical pinnacle.

Animal Farm is based, of course, on the classic George Orwell novel, which candidly illustrates the corruptive nature of absolute power and charts the terrible rise of fascism in the microcosm of a farmyard barn. The story, for those who are unfamiliar with the tale, follows a restless pig named Napoleon who, unsatisfied with the current balance of power between the animals, mounts a kind of coup, overthrowing what he sees to be the unfairness of the regime. However, it soon becomes apparent that, having had the responsibility passed on to him, Napoleon is no more objective than those he removed from office. With a voice cast including Kelsey Grammar, Ian Holm, Patrick Stewart, Julia Ormond, Pete Postlethwaite, Peter Ustinov and Paul Scofield bringing Jim Henson's eye-popping animatronic livestock to life, this is arguably the best movie of the entire series to date.

The score is by composer Richard Harvey, about whom I admit I know very little. I know he is British, was born in 1953, worked with Stanley Myers in the early 80s, and now frequently writes for British TV. I know he contributed excellent scores to programmes such as First Among Equals, Alan Bleasdale's Jake's Progress and GBH (with Elvis Costello and Rupert Gregson-Williams), and the recent movies Jane Eyre and Captain Jack. But I didn't know he was this good. Animal Farm is my first experience of Harvey's work on disc, and if this is anything to go by, I guarantee I will be adding more of his titles to my collection very shortly.

Harvey's main theme is large, grand, and surprisingly moving. Performed principally on brass with string, choral and percussion accompaniment, it is one of those magnificent works which ends on an unresolved minor key, leaving you desperate to hear more. There is a little hint of a Trevor Jones epic in there somewhere, and faint echoes of The Last of the Mohicans and Cliffhanger abound, but this does not distract from the score's effectiveness in any way. In fact, it is to Harvey's credit that the theme does yield such lofty comparisons, and it is equally creditable that the theme is so adaptable. It is used frequently throughout the score, but with many clever and subtle variations: tinged with nostalgia in 'At Last We Were Free', beautifully triumphant in 'Long Live Animal Farm', laced with heavy tragedy in 'Boxer's Fate', with power and energy in 'We Were Never Free' and with heavenly rapture in the 'End Titles'.

The other highly surprising, but very pleasing element in Animal Farm are the action cues, which sound as though they would be more at home in a sprawling adventure epic rather than tucked round the back of a haystack. Nevertheless, 'The Battle of the Barn' and 'The Big Battle' are truly huge in scale, reverberating to triumphant brass performances of the main theme and accompanied by a loud and dominant set of drums. Similarly, cues such as 'The Harvest and the Flag' are lofty and regal, endowed with a sense of pageantry and grandeur, while the grotesquely tragic 'Snowball Banished' quickly dismisses any preconceptions you may have drawn from the cue title with a series of vicious, unforgiving horn and percussion blasts.

The only parts that don't work quite as well are some of the vocal tracks, such 'Beasts of the World', 'We Can Help Ourselves' and 'Glorious Leader Napoleon'. Although the lyrics satirically intelligent and the orchestral backing is undeniably impressive, there is just something about them that doesn't quite pay off. I can't quite put my finger on the problem, but there is just this little niggle in the back of my mind that never settles down when the animals are singing. On the other hand, the cues which make use of the Budapest Radio Choir are just spectacular, and lend the music a distinct sense of weight and gravitas.

It is not inconceivable that potential purchasers of Animal Farm might be put off by the seemingly childish nature. Any such preconceptions would be wholly misguided: although there are animatronics and talking animals, this particular tale is about as far removed from Babe and Paulie as it is possible to be. Animal Farm is an intelligent, beautiful, highly enjoyable work which bears a certain touch of class and orchestral ingenuity rarely found in scores written for television, and I recommend it wholeheartedly and without reservation.

Track Listing: Running Time: 66 minutes 23 seconds

Varèse Sarabande VSD-6082 (1999)

Music composed and conducted by Richard Harvey. Orchestrations by Richard Harvey, Daryl Griffith, Simon Chamberlain and Bill Connor. Special vocal performances by Nicole Tibbels, Tim Whitnall, Brian Gulland, Hannah King, Timothy Murton-Laight, Charlotte Murton-Laight and Simon Chamberlain. Recorded and mixed by Austin Ince. Edited and mastered by Robin Morrison. Album produced by Richard Harvey.

Cinemusic Online
Filmtracks
Movie Wave
Score!
Scorelogue: Review by Vance Brawley (***)


Home Page | Reviews A-M | Reviews N-Z | Composers | Links

Movie Music U.K is designed and maintained by Jonathan Broxton (c) 2000. All opinions and views expressed on these pages are my own and are in no way intended to reflect those the University of Sheffield. All photos and album artwork used on Movie Music U.K. are only for the non-profit making promotional purposes and no copyright infringement is intended.