xxxxx Cruel Intentions (rejected score - one track co-composed with
Joe Kraemer), plus suites and themes from Fantasy Island,
Incognito (three tracks), Halloween H20, Snow White: A Tale of
Terror, The Cable Guy, Apt Pupil, Lake Placid
Here's irony. This album is billed on the front cover as Music Inspired
by the Film Cruel Intentions, and also, elsewhere on the cover, Suites
and Themes from the Scores of John Ottman. The irony is that, according
to the booklet, "Just after he (Ottman) signed on to score Cruel
Intentions, the producers decided that instead of a classical approach,
the score should be more contemporary, hip-hoppish. Instead of bowing out,
John took the challenge and wrote a strikingly unique, emotionally deep score
with an eccentric blend of beat rhythms, synths, a string trio and female
soloist." Then the producers rejected it, hiring Edward Shearmur, who had
crafted a fine orchestral score for The Wings of the Dove (1997),
which likewise dealt with sexual and emotional manipulation among beautiful
young people, to pen the sort of score they had originally hired Ottman for.
Here for the first time ten tracks from Ottman's rejected score appear on
CD - some of his score can also be heard on the deleted scenes featured on
the Region 1 DVD (and possibly the R2 disc as well).
Ottman's Cruel Intentions is far less radically off-the-wall and different
to his usual work than the booklet description might lead one to believe.
Indeed, this is pure Ottman, the composer's dark, luxuriant melodic style
instantly recognisable, the only thing at odds being the orchestration. Those
fearing a 'dance' score can rest easy; there are electronic beats in most
of the cues, but they are far from the relentless pounding pulses one things
of in regard to 'dance' and 'hip-hop', being used subtly and mixed comparatively
low. The use of rhythm is spare, skeletal in places, minimal, each beat counting
for something in these mid-temp excursions into beautifully appointed alienation.
Ottman builds his melodies using a range of atmospheric keyboard sounds,
the aforementioned string trio and the lovely wordless soprano of Lisa Donahue,
all complimented by piano (which is possibly sampled) and a range of precisely
honed and imaginative tuned percussion samples. If you like John Ottman's
music you have nothing to worry about in Cruel Intentions and I would
love to see the film with this score. On disc it is one of his most enjoyable
releases, as appealing as Incognito or Snow White: A Tale of
Terror. If the disc just contained Cruel Intentions I would be
recommending it, but that is just half of the story. There are nine further
tracks, some of which have not been released before or which are rather hard
to find.
These nine tracks showcase the most melodic side of Ottman's music and make
a wonderful introduction to his world. That three of them are from Incognito
indicates the quality of that virtually unknown score. However, they
are presented here "from the original master, unretouched and exactly as
John had intended." And the reason: "When Incognito was originally
recorded, there were some pops and crackles throughout the recording due
to a defective Dolby card in the control room. Prior to the original soundtrack
album release, the cues were passed through a filtering device to remove
the glitches. As a result the score sounded 'thinner' than was actually
recorded." There are no pops or crackles here, and the music does sound
wonderfully rich.
.
The suite from
Fantasy Island
is lush, busy and playful and it's splendid to have themes from
The Cable Guy
and Apt Pupil
, and a short suite from
Lake Placid
collected together. Particularly striking is Ottman's take on John
Carpenter's iconic
Halloween
theme, given a strong orchestral treatment for the main titles of
Halloween H20 . The result is unmistakably the work of both composers,
with the famed piano riff gradually buried under layers of Ottman's own suspense
writing. Carpenter could never do anything this musically sophisticated,
yet it is his simple melody which still chills the most.
This is a simply splendid album, and one which all Ottman fans will surely
relish. Forget
Urban
Legends Final Cut , this is the composer at the top of his game.
My only grumble is about the cover design: what sort of person seriously
thinks tiny, and I do mean tiny, black print on a dark blue background is
a good idea? I'm 38, with very good eye sight and I can only read it with
difficulty under bright light. There will be many people for whom this is
simply illegible, and that isn't good enough. I'm not the only one to think
so; there is an alternative, and superior design available for download on
John Ottman's website at
http://www.johnottman.com/projects/features/cruelintentions
Gary S. Dalkin
