GODS AND MONSTERS

CARTER BURWELL

Rating:

Original Review: Some people adore Carter Burwell and his music. Personally, I can't see what all the fuss is about. I always find that, although they are certainly interesting in terms of construction and orchestration, his scores generally leave me unmoved and totally indifferent - the only exception to date being the excellent Fargo. Take Gods and Monsters, for instance. It was written for the film about the life story of James Whale (superbly played by Ian McKellen), the openly gay film director of the thirties and forties who made such classic horror films as Frankenstein, The Old Dark House, The Invisible Man and The Bride of Frankenstein, and has been praised by all and sundry as being one of the most original and inventive of 1998. I just have one question: why? Admittedly, the first cue - 'Arise Clay' - is a belter. Building from a series of mesmerising piano rhythms, it slowly emerges into a dark and haunting march combing a string orchestra with a low, sonorous bassoon solo and surreal-sounding sleigh bells. Sadly, it is its only appearance. The third cue, 'Ashes', introduces a cleverly mutated waltz theme which acts as the single recurring, binding element holding the score together (it reappears in fragmented forms in several of the later cues, most notably 'Return to the Trenches' and 'Barnett on the Wire' which, at just over four minutes, is one of the longest on the album). However, as good as these cues are, the majority of the rest of the score is completely nondescript. Many of the tracks are far too short to make any kind of impression or contain any kind of musical development anyway - 'The Bride' is 26 seconds for heaven's sake! - and where the cues do last long enough to present an identifiable melody, the themes are unfortunately totally unmemorable. In fact, the only one of these middle-album cues to makes any kind of real statement is the terrific 'Frankenwhale', in which Burwell allows his orchestra to generate some power and noise in a nostalgic tribute to the late, great Franz Waxman. Instead, the small orchestra employed by Burwell seems to content to simply present a series of bland string lines with a piano accompaniment, all of which are quite morose in tone, and none of which are particularly interesting. In fact, listening to Gods and Monsters is a quite depressing experience, for throughout the score there are very few cues that are traditionally "attractive" or enjoyable, with the possible exception of the final cue, 'Friend?', which sounds almost joyous when compared to its predecessors. The thing which redeems the score, though, is the fact that it fits the film perfectly. In the liner notes, the film's director Bill Condon sums it up by saying that Burwell's music is "almost a dirge for a European culture destroyed by World War I which connects Whale's childhood and wartime experiences with his later cinematic creations." In truth, this is a film score's primary concern - that it works on-screen - and any enjoyment (or lack thereof) outside the cinema setting is purely secondary.

Track Listing: Running Time: 33 minutes 44 seconds

RCA Victor 09026-63356-2 (1998)

Music composed and conducted by Carter Burwell. Orchestrations by Carter Burwell and Sonny Kompaneck. Recorded and mixed by Michael Farrow. Edited by Adam Smalley and Brian Richards. Mastered by Ramón Breton. Album produced by Carter Burwell and Spencer Proffer.


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