• Composed by Mark Thomas
• MovieScore Media MMS-10008 / 2010 / 35:15

A sequel to the 2006 Flicka movie (and not the 1943 one), this family film sees a teenager relocate from the big city to a small ranch in Wyoming, where she develops a strong bond with a horse.  The 1943 film was scored by someone called Alfred Newman; 2006’s by Aaron Zigman.  For this sequel, director Michael Damian turned for the third time to Welsh composer Mark Thomas, probably best-known for the British films Twin Town and Dog Soldiers and his television work, including the glorious children’s show Shaun the Sheep.  His music has been championed by the MovieScore Media label – this is their fourth release of his music.

It’s a lovely score, full of rich Americana from start to end.  It’s played by the City of Prague Philharmonic augmented with guitars and subtle synths, and they create a consistently pleasant atmosphere.  The main theme is a winner, sounding exactly like one might expect the theme for a film like this to sound; a secondary theme is much more full of sadness and gets more airings as the score moves on.  There’s one fantastic set-piece, “Stampede”, when the score goes into action territory for the only time.  It is true that some people might find it all a little predictable – but to be honest, film music like this (so warm and melodic and uncynical) is fairly rare these days, so I think that would be a little churlish.  I enjoy it a great deal.  *** 1/2

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