CD Reviews: Joe Versus the Volcano and Human Nature
Joe Versus the Volcano **** 1/2
GEORGES DELERUE
Varèse Sarabande SRS 2014
21 tracks - 48:07
Joe versus the Volcano is the first pairing of super-couple Tom
Hanks and Meg Ryan, and ironically, their only flop (triply bad for Ryan,
who plays three different roles in the movie). Directed by John Patrick
Shanley (the Oscar winning screenwriter of Moonstruck), the movie's
tone is all over the map. The story concerns a hypochondriac (Hanks) who
is diagnosed with a terminal illness and then offered the chance to live
the rest of his (short) life as a real "man," before sacrificing himself
to the God Big Woo. Even though the movie failed at the box office, Joe
has since gained a cult following, thanks mainly to quirky dialogue, an
original plot, and exciting art direction. And I like to think that it
even has something to do with Georges Delerue's gorgeous score.
The "Love Theme" is one of Delerue's best -- it never fails to lighten
the heart. On other fronts, "The Storm and The Rescue," (underscore for
two of the most dramatic scenes in the film), is noteworthy because it
features the kind of overt action scoring seldom found in the Delerue canon.
Especially exciting is "The Storm" portion of the extended cue, where it
crescendos into a powerful reading of the love theme.
The biggest surprise of the album is the inclusion of unused music that
was ultimately replaced by source cues. Four such tracks are here, and
while I may be biased, these score cues seem like better alternatives.
I love Ray Charles as much as the next guy, but Delerue's heartbreaking
"Brain Cloud" works more magic than Ray Charles' overused "Old Man River."
Thankfully, producer Robert Townson, a huge Delerue fan, was able to preserve
these deleted cues on this album.
The "End Credits," which I've appropriately saved for last, comprise
my favorite six minutes of the movie. That may seem a little strange, but
while I was thoroughly bored with the film, the end credits gave me a chance
to enjoy the best part of the film -- the score -- unhindered. Although
there's a song inserted in the middle, it's written by Delerue and Shanley,
so it fits organically. The cue ends with a music-box melody, a device
Delerue has employed many times before (my favorite version is in Crimes
of the Heart), before giving way to a big orchestral finish.
As part of Varèse Sarabande's Master Film Music series, this
is a limited edition CD release that stands for everything these albums
should. It's a lovingly produced release with extras, and a lost masterpiece
from a fan favorite composer. -- Cary Wong
Human Nature **
GRAEME REVELL, VARIOUS
Pleximusic PLXM-001
27 tracks - 52:18
A comedy about civilizing a "feral" man, Human Nature flopped
commercially and received critical pans for being farcical and not funny.
Likewise, the music often strives for cleverness without achieving it.
Consider "Hair Everywhere," a song performed by Patricia Arquette. Above
strings and winds that sound like they're skipping across the street, the
film's female lead babbles: "I once thought God a creature diabolical/He
gives a nod to each one of my follicles/and to my baby toe." Elsewhere,
pseudo-funk songs like "The Heights of Culture" and "My Name is Puff" pop
up out of nowhere, showcasing the smug voice of Rhys Ifans, the film's
homme sauvage.
Though he's given credit for the score, Graeme Revell did not write
these excruciating fluff pieces -- Charlie Kaufman did. And in this context,
Revell's less than exciting instrumentals are almost pleasant. Nowhere
is this more so than on "Puff Bolts," an Elfmanesque suite that creates
tension with layers of gliding strings, which is then destroyed with jabbing
horns. Unfortunately, the composer's material can never develop its own
momentum; as soon as it starts to, the "funny songs" inevitably sweep in.
The result is an album that begs you to hit the skip button quickly and
often. -- Stephen Armstrong
MailBag@filmscoremonthly.com
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