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Artwork copyright (c) 1987 ABC Television
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2004 James Southall
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AMERIKA Fine
music for miniseries comes highly recommended A review by JAMES SOUTHALL There are many great pities with the modern world of film
music, but the greatest of all is the large number of A-grade composers who work
on major projects very rarely, projects which are instead scored by composers of
far less ability. It could make one dizzy considering the number of
massive films which have lousy scores, which could instead have been scored by
Bruce Broughton or Cliff Eidelman or Basil Poledouris. The latter has
scored more big projects than the others, but seems to have disappeared into
doing not much of anything these days (if reports are to be believed, this is a
self-enforced absence, so we can only hope that he returns before too long). The lack of new Poledouris scores makes releases of older ones
all the more welcome, especially when they're as good as Amerika.
It was a tv miniseries, quite popular apparently, in a fictional 1997 America
which has been ruled by the nasty Soviets for a decade, centering around the way
the American spirit has survived even under an oppressive occupying
regime. Poledouris went on to achieve widespread plaudits for his work on
another miniseries, Lonesome Dove, which is arguably his finest work, but
Amerika cannot live far behind. Just like the story itself, the
music focuses on the American spirit, with Poledouris clearly drawing some
inspiration from the music of Aaron Copland, as seems natural, but injecting it
with his own unmistakable flair and some beautiful original melodies. There is some powerhouse emotional music here, truly beautiful
stuff. "Ancestors' Strength" is one of the strongest cues, a
harrowing emotional journey but one filled with hope and an indomitable sense of
great spirit. "Dieter's View" showcases a gorgeous cello theme
which sticks long in the memory and shows not only what a gifted melodist
Poledouris is, but also what a good musical dramatist. While these
stirring - if slightly restrained - pieces form the backbone of the score, it is
no surprise that there are a few moments of more upfront material, none moreso
than in the opening title, a powerful, anthemic piece, the closest the composer
got to matching the machismo of his earlier music for Red Dawn, a movie
with a remarkably similar premise (though entirely different in its
execution). "The Homeless's March" is another stirring piece,
ending with one of those unmistakable brass flourishes Poledouris does so marvelously.
There are also slightly lighter moments, such as the lovely (despite what the
track title may imply) "Ride to Brothel" and almost Michael Nyman-like
"Ceremony Montage". For all this quality, nothing quite contends
with the pure anguish of "Burial", a poignant and moving piece of
music. Amerika has been released by the Prometheus CD Club and
is one of its best releases so far. This is a fine package with not only a
fine piece of music but interesting liner notes (by Chris Landry, with a note
from writer/director Donald Wrye as well) and fine sound. Poledouris fans
can't go wrong, and neither can fans of fine orchestral music. Treat
yourself. Buy
this CD from buysoundtrax.com by clicking here! Tracks |