THE SECRET OF NIMH 2: TIMMY TO THE RESCUE

LEE HOLDRIDGE

Rating:

Original Review: A straight-to-video sequel to the 1982 animated feature, The Secret of NIMH 2 takes everything that the original did so right and re-does most of it completely wrong. Of course, with a composer of Lee Holdridge's calibre wielding the baton, the orchestral underscore was never going to be completely unlistenable, but the songs, for the most part, are wide of the mark. Whereas Jerry Goldsmith's score was restrained, mature, and had moments of great depth and poignancy, Holdridge has gone down the "bigger-is-better" route and composed a score which, while superficially more impressive, lacks the true emotional quality of its predecessor. The best parts of the score are undoubtedly the purely orchestral tracks. Holdridge is a past master at creating an attractive melody, and the performances by The Philharmonic Orchestra of London are impeccable throughout. The opening track, 'Prologue/Timmy and Martin', is admittedly rather good, presenting short snippets of a multitude of minor themes, all of which could have been excellent but, because of the style Holdridge adopted, only last a few seconds before heading off down a completely different musical alley. The epitome of Mickey Mouse scoring. As the album progresses, very few cues jump out and grab you at all, except for the impressive, but all too brief action music in cues like 'The Snake', 'Killer the Attack Dog' and 'The Escape', and the big recapitulations of the main theme in tracks such as 'Another Escape', 'Breakout' and 'Escape from NIMH'. Similarly, the songs are generally sub-par. Lyricist Richard Sparks, who recently collaborated with Holdridge on an original non-soundtrack operatic work entitled "Journey to Cordoba", has taken Holdridge's massive-scale underscore and grafted on a series of occasionally inventive and fun, but mainly bland and uninspired words which only conspire to remind you how good the showstopping songs by Stephen Schwarz, Howard Ashman, Will Jennings, Cynthia Weil and the rest are. Of the entire selection, only 'Come Make The Most Of Your Life" and 'Magic Mystery Show' come close to being successful. This is mainly due to the inventive way the chorus in the former is performed with an unusual echoing effect, and the way in which the latter adopts an unexpectedly energetic calypso beat. Even more bizarre than the lyrics is the unusual bunch of actors chosen to perform them. The eclectic group includes former Monty Python star Eric Idle (who does a good impression of a raving loony in 'Just Say Yes'), character actor William H. Macy (best known for his role in Fargo), and former child star Ralph Macchio, who sings for the eponymous Timmy. On this evidence, though, Mr. Macchio should cease his budding Broadway career here and now, and return to being the Karate Kid, at which he was far more successful. Similarly, the children employed to add a touch of "cuteness" cannot sing to save their lives, yet are given major parts to perform in two of the important songs ('Come Make The Most Of Your Life' and 'I Will Show The World'). As ever, Sonic Images have spent valuable time and money presenting the world with a high quality presentation package which, unfortunately, has the same cumulative effect as gift-wrapping an empty box. In the end, the gulf between the original Secret of NIMH and its sequel it almost immeasurable. Without wanting to be unkind to Mr. Holdridge, listening to the two scores gives a perfect indication of why Jerry Goldsmith is one of the most respected composers in Hollywood and why, conversely, Lee Holdridge is best known as the regular composer of the made-for-TV Danielle Steele adaptations.

Track Listing: Running Time: 62 minutes 26 seconds

Sonic Images SID-8820 (1998)

Voice cast: Ralph Macchio, Hynden Walsh, Eric Idle, Dom DeLuise, Meshach Taylor, Arthur Malet, William H. Macy, Andrew Ducote, Alex Strange, Beth Anderson, Susan Boyd, Amick Byram, Alvin Chea, Jon Joyce and Vanessa Vandergriff.

Music composed and conducted by Lee Holdridge. Performed by The Philharmonia Orchestra of London and The Philharmonia Chorus. Lyrics by Richard Sparks. Orchestrations by Lee Holdridge, Ira Hearshen, Larry Kenton, Frank Bennett and James Sale. Recorded and mixed by Mike Ross-Trevor and John Richards. Edited by Stan Jones and Marc S. Perlman. Mastered by Ron McMaster. Album produced by Lee Holdridge and Richard Kaufman.


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