This rather silly, though very expensive, tv movie about the Loch Ness monster (turned into a Hollywood-style romance, of course) starring a ridiculously-coiffeured Ted Danson and a pre-Nip Tuck Joely Richardson featured one of the most in-demand unreleased scores of the 1990s, by Trevor Jones.  Well, it's no longer one of the most in-demand unreleased scores, because it's been released, by Perseverance Records, as a limited edition release (though I'm not sure exactly how limited it is, given that there's already been one re-pressing when the original sold out - but you're not advised to hang around, if you want it).  The release was greeted with much jubilation amongst Jones fans (which was probably further fuelled by his less-than-prodigious rate of writing new scores these days).  Was it worth his wait?

Well, for devout fans of the composer, of course it was.  For everyone else, I'm not quite so sure.  It's a very pleasant listen which contains the prerequisite Scottish influences (though these are mercifully not particularly dominant) and hints of mysticism - and of course dollops of romance - though it isn't exactly memorable.  The mood is established nicely in the first few tracks.  The main title introduces the sweeping main theme which features the usual Jones ingredients, but somehow doesn't come together quite so well as his most famous creations; and this very much continues in "Dempsey Arrives in Scotland" (without Makepeace, presumably) with Jones conjuring up remarkably nice music which doesn't really leave much of an impression.  "Introducing the Locals" features some source music which is nice enough.

Things go uphill fast when Jones introduces a faster tempo; it's not exactly action music, but "The Keeper of the Loch", "Local Antagonism" and "We're Going Out Again" certainly contain the trademark Jones licks and are the score's most impressive element.  "Dempsey Dispels the Myth" is incredibly cheesy, but great to listen to, with the composer adding a pop beat to his main theme and even featuring some Rocky-style trumpets.  One particularly effective device Jones uses through the score is the EWI (a frequent component of his scores), which really does give a genuinely mystical feel and is perfect for the score.

It's all very nice and makes a perfectly pleasant way to pass an hour.  After that hour, though, it's hard to remember much about it because it really doesn't stick in the memory at all.  There's nothing wrong with it, the melodies are all sweet and the atmosphere is great; I just wouldn't recommend spending a fortune on Ebay for it if you miss out on the release!