Customer Reviews

Battlefield Earth: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

When I first started reading the pre-release buzz surrounding this score, describing it as one that "looked to STAR WARS, BLADE RUNNER, and ALIEN" (or whichever films they were) for inspiration, I thought to myself, "Oh. Great. Another score ruined by a heavy temp-track influence and too many references/rip-offs to sci-fi scores past." Well, when I saw the film on opening weekend (yes, I'm one of the ones who paid to see it), I was simply blown away by the music. It was the complete, total opposite of what I had expected. With the exception of a small bit similar to Waterworld early on, I heard not one piece of music that reminded me of another score.

Written in an impressive six weeks, Elia Cmiral's score for BATTLEFIELD EARTH is a change-of-pace from the scores usually associated with big science-fiction movies, similar to how his RONIN was very different from the typical action/thriller scores. Utilizing the orchestra and synths, he mixes the two beautifully and uses them to create a superb score. Regardless of what you think of the film (and I'm sure we all know what everyone thinks of it), you have to admit that Cmiral's score certainly is interesting for a sci-fi film.

The album opens with the "Battlefield Earth Theme," a too-short heroic fanfare for three trumpets in unison, with the crushing percussion provided by huge Japanese Taiko war drums, accompanied by a rising chorus toward the end of the track. "The Dome" perfectly captures the massive size of the Psychlo's enormous enclosed home base (even though it's not technically a dome in the film, but what the hey?) There's a female voice that appears for the first of many times in "Johnnie Leaves," though what she's saying (if anything at all) I'm not sure.

We get our first taste of action with "The Plan/Fort Hood" and "Man Animal Revolt." Then there's the very strange "Psychlo's Top 40," the source music heard during visits to the Psychlo bar, which what I believe are vocals provided by star/co-producer John Travolta. (Some rumors indicate that Travolta himself had a hand in composing this specific track.) But the action returns when the very next track, "Commence Revolt," builds up to a hard-charging action piece as the rebellion finally gets underway. After a brief slow break with "Do You Want Lunch?" and "Options For Renewal," all-out action explodes for the remainder of the score.

Such standout action tracks are "Air Battle," the short-but-exhilarating "Trench Attack," "Dome Explodes," and "Web Cracking Stops." There's also a nice, quiet statement on the theme in "Mickey the Hero," and everything culminates in the triumphant "We've Won." As with the finale of RONIN, Cmiral wraps this score up quite nicely with the exciting "End Titles."

The score has a bigger (for lack of a better word) feel to it than RONIN, and the way Cmiral utilizes drum kits for most of the percussion is admirable. He certainly is a musical genius. As with RONIN, BATTLEFIELD EARTH shows that this relatively new composer certainly has his own distinct sound, one that makes his music stand apart from the rest. Hopefully, the gigantic negative impact toward the movie itself will not translate to Elia or his score, and producers will continue to see him for what he is: an extremely talented composer.

As a film score fan who has every available score by Elia Cmiral, I eagerly anticipate is upcoming projects.

This soundtrack is beautiful!!! It has an epic theme that compensates for the movie's attempt to create an epic movie. I haven't seen the entire movie (40 min. but only remember 10), but I didn't care for it that much. I read the book, and it was awful. But the soundtrack is DEFINATELY worth getting. Out of all the so-called blunders made during production, the choice for a composer was RIGHT ON!!!!

The critical turmoil that the film "Battlefield Earth" provoked, resulted in a total oblivion of the impressive score written by the talented composer Elia Cmiral.
Here we have a soundtrack that is honest, heroic, dramatic and in many aspects highly original. The orchestrations are dynamic and full of strength (take for example, the great use of War Drums). The moods are varied from the mysterious and tense to the action paced.
The fanfarre main theme that has an unforgettable motive which appears throughout the score should have been destined to become a classic moment of film history.
Please, if you have seen the movie (or read the book) and disliked it, then try listening to this CD as a pure musical experience. I am sure you will find a treasure full of valuable musical jewels.

I am saying "wow" for two reasons right now. One because of this amazing score by Elia Cmiral and Two, because I'm so surprised that I'm not the only person who LIKES this movie. After I bought the soundtrack I sat down and read Battlefield Earth again, this time listening to the music. It's incredible! If you don't like the movie, give the soundtrack a chance, it's worth it if you're a fan of good Sci-Fi music.

Czech composer Elia Cmiral did the score to Battlefield Earth and it is nothing like I thought it would be. For a film like this, I expected the music to be mainly all electronic with a bunch of noises. However, Cmiral uses electronics with a large orchestra and a massive choir to create a score that is overall, an enjoyable listening. "Battlefield Earth Theme" introduces the theme briefly in this under a minute long track. However, further thematic material is not found until "Man Animal Revolt". Generally speaking, the music is loud and bombastic in nature scored with booming orchestral passages and heavy percussion. "Jonnie Leaves", "Jonnie's Enlightenment", "Chrissy", and "Mountain Tribe" are mainly exotic in nature with pan flutes and ethnic vocals thrown in the mix. One of the strangest tracks I have heard in a long time is "Psychlo's Top 40", which contains a strange mixture of synth loops that is just plain weird sounding. Where the music really takes off, however, is in the second half when the action music kicks in. (Did I mention that I love good action music?) "Commence Revolt", "Revolt Continues", "Air Battle", "Trench Attack", "Dome Explodes", and "Gas Drone and Fight" are solidly performed action pieces with lots of energy and firepower with orchestra and chorus. Some great electronic sounds are featured in "Terl", "Psychlo Wrangler", and "Do You Want Lunch?" (Not now thanks.) I hope to see Elia Cmiral continue scoring films because he is really talented and can write some great music. Too bad the film was terrible, though.

I liked the book, I liked movie and I really love this score. the soundtrack is really captivating, it should be welcome in any Sci-fi score collection. I was thrilled by the first second I was listening to it.

When I heard the movie was comming out I purchased the book so I can read and to see if it was worth to see. When I heard John Travolta was in it. I had to see it no matter what. The movie was a spectacular piece of work. The music and story fit perfect together. The movie will be going into my collection of sci-fi epics.

Just as the oh-so-horrible BATTLEFIELD EARTH came close to setting a new low for cinema, so to does the music by Elia Cmiral. After hearing about how the film left a foul stench behind, I figured that at least the music had to be OK.

Boy, was I wrong.

This score is putrid in that MST3K way: it sucks so bad that it's actually funny to listen to. First off, the music sounds like it's being played by the tiniest, tinniest-sounding orchestra possible. There's no epic feel or grandeur to this score at all. It sounds for all the world like the music's being played by high school kids. Apparently Cmiral figured this out, so he had a choir sing on well over half the album tracks in a last ditch attempt to make the score sound grand, and he tried using sharp clanging percussion to add excitement. He only succeeded in making it sound even sillier. (If you want to hear a score that uses sharp percussion with more success than Cmiral, try listing to James Horner's STAR TREK II score. It's vastly superior to this bad boy.) The ultimate laugh riot on this CD is "Psychlo Top 40." Not only does the music itself sound like a castoff from a Notorious BIG album, but what is up with the moaning-in-pain vocals on said track? Is the vocalist suffering severe digestive problems? This track alone never fails to give me a severe case of the giggles.

Is this album worth your while? If you're looking for good music, no. However, if you're looking for some great heckling material that'll leave you laughing no matter how bad your mood is, BATTLEFIELD EARTH is the CD for you. Like the film it accompanies, this score will make terrific fodder for mockery for years to come.

The movie lacked the entertainment but the music is ok...but not the best.

This album was pretty good, but the music just wasn't as great as I think it could have been. Great if you liked the movie, but the movie came up short too.