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BACK TO THE FUTURE
Much-lauded Silvestri score boasts magnificent theme, disappointing underscore
A review by JAMES SOUTHALL

Music composed by
ALAN SILVESTRI

Rating
* * *



Performed by
UNNAMED ORCHESTRA
conducted by
ALAN SILVESTRI

Orchestration
JAMES CAMPBELL

Engineered by
DENNIS SANDS
Music Editor
KENNETH KARMAN
Produced by
ALAN SILVESTRI

Album running time
44:10

Released by
DELOREAN RECORDS
Catalog number
85.5591

Album cover copyright (c) 1985 Universal Studios; review copyright (c) 2006 James Southall

The supremely-entertaining Back to the Future, Robert Zemeckis's 1985 smash hit, remains one of the finest pieces of family entertainment so far, one of the few close rivals to Steven Spielberg's various mega-hits (and Spielberg executive produced this).  Its uncomplicated manner (even with its contrived plot) which saw Michael J. Fox returned to the 1950s, battling to make his way back to the future, was a truly winning one, with just the right blend of humour and drama.  Zemeckis has never done better, even in the similarly-entertaining (though never quite so satisfying) sequels, filmed back-to-back.

Zemeckis had only worked with composer Alan Silvestri once before, on the entertaining Romancing the Stone (with an horrendous synth score) but their relationship has continued unbroken ever since, with Silvestri scoring each of the director's films.  Back to the Future is easily the composer's most iconic score, and the popularity of its theme continues unabated (it's become one of the very few film themes likely to elicit instant recognition from members of the public).

The score opens with the eight-minute "Overture" which summarises all of the important material - it's fantastic, as Silvestri gradually builds and builds towards his main theme, but withholds from offering it in all its glory until the concert arrangement called "Main Theme".  It's such a fantastic piece, effortlessly conveying a sense of fun and adventure, and fully deserves its unabated popularity.  With two tracks down, this score is shaping up to be one of the all-time-classics...

...but then, sadly, come the other fifteen tracks.  With utilitarian action scoring, ill-advised synthesised embellishment and mostly very short cues, it is unbelievably frustrating and ultimately completely forgettable.  There are only three tracks of particular length - "The Libyans" is a terribly clichéd portrait of the bad guys, leading into action music which flits all over the place as if it's from a cartoon; "The Clock Tower" is basically a reprise of some of the material from the Overture, followed by some headache-inducing non-musical crashes and bangs which are extremely irritating; and "It's Been Real Educational!" is more of the cartoon style stuff, interspersed with a few bars of the main theme here and there.  Some of the shorter cues in between are OK on certain levels, others pass by without incident, still others seem to be a plain affront to decent taste, such as the unbelievable "The Kiss".  There's a lovely pastoral theme which Silvestri works through some tracks ("The Letter", most notably) but even that's heard in full in the Overture, so you don't need the rest of the score to hear it. 

Back to the Future is probably the highest-grossing film which has a proper score, but doesn't have a proper score release - and unsurprisingly, particularly because of the quality of the main theme, fans have been positively clamouring for its release for many years.  The actual soundtrack album released by MCA does feature both the Overture and the Main Theme - and if truth be told, they're the only tracks worth having.  I'm sure that any release would sell faster than hot cakes, but after you get past the first two tracks, all you get is loads of bitty action music and the occasional burst of the main theme.  It's a score which veers from the sublime to the ridiculous like no other I can remember, veering from some damn fine film music by anyone's standards to some moments which are incredible in their awfulness - Silvestri's done far better.

Tracks

  1. Overture (8:16)
  2. Main Theme (3:16)
  3. The DeLorean Revealed (:45)
  4. Einstein Disintegrates (1:21)
  5. 1.21 Gigawatts (1:42)
  6. The Libyans (4:43)
  7. The DeLorean Ditched (1:48)
  8. The Town Square (1:21)
  9. The Skateboard Chase (1:50)
  10. The Kiss (:42)
  11. The Letter (1:24)
  12. Doc Returns (1:19)
  13. The DeLorean Retrieved (1:20)
  14. The Clock Tower (5:02)
  15. It's Been Real Educational (5:01)
  16. What an Adventure! (:59)
  17. End Title (3:21)
    18.