OSCAR AND LUCINDA
Rating: 
Original Review: At one point during last year, Oscar and Lucinda was being confidently tipped to be one of the major players at the 1998 Academy Awards, and many were saying that Thomas Newman was likely to gain a fourth nomination for his score. As it turned out, the awards were dominated by a film about a very large boat, Oscar and Lucinda got one nomination for Costume Design and Thomas Newman got absolutely nothing. But it's very easy to see why this score had such a buzz surrounding it, for it is undoubtedly an excellent composition. I haven't seen the film - it's based on the Peter Carey novel and is about two compulsive gamblers who fall in love in turn of the century Australia - but I would hazard a guess at saying that Thomas Newman's unusual yet stylish score suited it perfectly. Newman's penchant for of incorporating unusual rhythms and quirky orchestrations into his music is again very much in evidence (I heard brief passages for didgeridoos and penny whistles in there somewhere), as is his beautifully unique, pastoral style. Parts of this score remind me of his work on The Shawshank Redemption - my own personal favourite Newman work - especially in his use of flutes and strings ('Rumors', 'Floorwashing' and 'Odd Bod', for example, are particularly reminiscent of some of Shawshank's more playful moments), but overall this score tends to have a more ecclesiastical aspect (especially with its inclusion of hymns such as Bruckner's Os Justi and Wesley's Blessed Be the God and Father) and a gentler, more introspective tone. A number of cues really caught my attention when I first listened to the score fully: The main and end titles, 'Prince Rupert's Drop' and 'Oscar and Lucinda', are both lovely lyrical pieces which present full, sumptuous versions of the score's main theme, and are further accentuated by the addition of boy soprano vocals, performed impeccably by Matthew de la Peņa and the Paulist Boy Choristers of California. 'Sydney Harbour' swells to a gorgeous, full orchestra rendition of the film's main theme; 'Six Rivers to Cross', 'The Murder of the Blacks' and 'Leviathan' are much more vibrant and dominant, with prominent trumpets in both; but my favourite cue on the album is 'The Church of Glass' where, after a few moments of steady build-up, the beautiful main theme rises to grand new proportions and the inclusion of boy's voices and chiming bells makes all the hair on the back of your neck stand on end. The only niggle I have is the fact that, again, many of Newman's cues are far too short and don't allow room for any musical development during the running time - they simply stop after a minute or so having provided a single rendition of a single theme. Other than this small gripe, though, I thoroughly enjoyed Oscar and Lucinda and anyone who has any kind of fondness for Thomas Newman's music is likely to feel the same.
Track Listing:
- Prince Rupert's Drop (Main Title) (2:37)
- Throwing Lots (0:48)
- Dutch Hazards (0:50)
- Sydney Harbour (1:57)
- Rumours (1:26)
- The High Downs and the Sea (1:52)
- Forgive Me (1:02)
- Os Justi (written by Anton Bruckner, performed by La Chapelle Royale and Collegium Vocale) (4:39)
- Six Rivers to Cross (1:14)
- Two Gamblers (2:22)
- The Murder of the Blacks (1:42)
- Never Never (1:16)
- Floorwashing (0:40)
- Cards and Dogs (1:02)
- One Obsessive (1:09)
- The Church of Glass (3:50)
- Letters on the Mantel (1:25)
- Odd Bod (1:05)
- Prayer Wounds (2:11)
- Leviathan (1:08)
- Magic Boxes (White Man's Dreaming) (1:49)
- The Other Compulsive (1:02)
- A Broken Thing (0:59)
- The Seduction of Mrs. Chadwick (2:31)
- Blessed Be Thy God and Father (written by Samuel Wesley) (1:19)
- Aqua (4:10)
- The Caul (1:22)
- Oscar and Lucinda (End Title) (2:49)
- Excerpt from the Random House Audio Book (read by Ralph Fiennes) (5:10)
Running Time: 55 minutes 45 seconds
Sony Classical SK-60088 (1997)
Music composed and conducted by Thomas Newman. Orchestrations by Tom Pasatieri. Featured musical soloists Steve Kujala and Jon Clarke. Chorus performed by The Paulist Boy Choristers of California. Special vocal performances by Matthew de la Peņa. Choir Director Dana T. Marsh. Recorded and mixed by Tom Winslow and Shawn Murphy. Edited by Bill Bernstein. Album produced by Thomas Newman and Bill Bernstein.
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These web pages were designed and maintained by Jonathan Broxton copyright 1998. All opinions and views expressed on these pages are my own and are in no way intended to reflect those of my employer, the Trent Institute for Health Services Research, or those of the University of Sheffield.