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| CD Review: Mulan 2 |
| Posted By: David Coscina on July 3, 2005 - 10:00 PM |
CD Review: Mulan 2
Mulan 2 ***
JOEL MCNEELY, VARIOUS
Walt Disney 61257-7
11 tracks- 31:46
I'm fond of the original Mulan,
both film and film score. When I originally learned that Disney had yet
again sought to capitalize on its feature film's success by churning
out a direct to video sequel, I was repulsed by the obvious financial
whore that the studio has become. However, in a moment of sentimental
weakness, I rented the DVD and hoped for the best. Sadly, the film is
as inane as I had feared. Watered-down characters, simpler yet more
abundant songs and worse, a re-hash of "A Girl Worth Fighting For" with
modified lyrics, capped off by a silly plot-line that conveniently
eschews logic as well as continuity in its final act.
However, the one consistent element from the original is the quality of
underscore. McNeely took over the reins for the sequel and has done an
admirable job, employing instruments such as the erhu and bawa to
effectively conveys the landscape of early China. And like his
predecessor, Jerry Goldsmith, he finds a balance between western
harmonies and eastern melodies, creating a palpable score much that's
more engaging away from its source. Unfortunately, like Goldsmith,
McNeely finds his original underscore underrepresented on the CD. And
worse, the underscore is mixed in and around the incredibly atrocious
songs, making re-programming a necessity.
McNeely's score itself as mentioned employs some similar intervalic
motives from Goldsmith's, in particular the Imperial Chinese motif as
heard on "The Journey Begins" before it gives way to a beautiful
rendition of a new main theme. One of the differences in McNeely's
sequel music is that it is far more reflective of some of the physical
action that is found in the film. Obviously this has been the staple of
animated scoring for the past 50 years, but it's a little
uncharacteristic of the sound established by Goldsmith's original. And
McNeely's choice of piano is an odd one. The instrument is so
identified with domestic westernism that it sounds out of place when
featured here. Luckily, its fleeting appearance on "In Love and In
Trouble" is followed by a clever if not slightly obvious Rambo motif, no doubt another nod
to Goldsmith. And one doesn't have to strain to hear it. I caught the
quote in the film, not on the soundtrack.
Aside from the less-than-attractive sequencing on the CD, my only
complaint is that McNeely, like John Debney, made his career on
sounding like other composers. Yes, he's got compositional chops to
spare. But because many of his formative scoring years were spent
writing these scores, it's hard to get an idea of his own stylistic
voice. It seems as though his reputation preceded him on this project
as it's obvious that the producers wanted a Goldsmith-styled score. To
his credit, McNeely has produced a rousing, exciting and overtly
melodic work. -- David Coscina
We hope you enjoyed this July 4th
review of Mulan 2!
MailBag@filmscoremonthly.com
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Today in Film Score History:
April 26 |
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| Alan Parker begins recording his score for Jaws 3D (1983) |
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| Barry Gray died (1984) |
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| Bronislau Kaper died (1983) |
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| Bruce Broughton begins recording his score The Blue and the Gray (1982) |
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| Carmine Coppola died (1991) |
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| Dave Grusin begins recording his score for The Firm (1993) |
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| David Bell records his score for the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine episode “Tracking Into the Wind” (1999) |
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| Francis Lai born (1932) |
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| Giorgio Moroder born (1940) |
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| Jerry Fielding begins recording his score for Gray Lady Down (1977) |
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| John M. Keane born (1965) |
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| Maurice Jarre begins recording his score for Distant Thunder (1988) |
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| Miklos Rozsa begins recording his score for Green Fire (1954) |
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| Paul Sawtell and Bert Shefter record their score for Kronos (1957) |
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| Reinhardt Wagner born (1956) |
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