• Composed by Christopher Wong
• MovieScore Media / 2016 / 40m

A successful film in its native Vietnam, Yellow Flowers on the Green Grass tells the story of two young brothers whose close relationship begins to break apart when a girl arrives on the scene.  Based on Nguyễn Nhật Ánh’s novel and directed by Victor Vũ, the film was shown at Cannes in 2015 and widely praised by critics, but it doesn’t seem to have found much of an audience outside Vietnam.  The charming score comes courtesy of Christopher Wong and is his tenth for this director.  It’s a simple, highly melodic affair with a number of lovely little tunes played by small ensemble (with the Bulgarian Symphony Orchestra on hand when larger forces are required), and is completely full of pastoral beauty.

The main theme is based on a Vietnamese children’s song, and appears several times during the course of the album, which opens with a lovely guitar and viola version (“Green Grass”) and ends with a vocal performance (“Thang Cuoi”).  Nearly every track brings a treat of some form or another; particularly touching are “The Fable” with its charming waltz, the strained tragedy of “Flooded” which is bolstered by tender viola and piano solos, and the sublime “Walking Again”.  Scarcely a moment goes by without something lovely being heard, so this is another fine album to add to a composer who’s delivered several of them – modestly-paced but really quite delightful.

Rating: ****

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