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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Two great lost scores out of three,
By
This review is from: Gangs of New York / The Journey of Natty Gann / The Scarlet Letter (Audio CD)
Varese Sarabande's four-disc limited edition of three famously rejected Elmer Bernstein scores is something of a treat, proving the truism that many of the best scores are written for the worst films. Perhaps not altogether surprisingly it's the score Bernstein was most disappointed to lose, Gangs of New York, that's the weakest, a thin and predictable work filled with many of the more worn out clichés of his latter scores - whistling strings, ondes martinets, wistful vocals - with a clumsy over-reliance on period source music. Intriguingly it does contain some watered down elements of his rejected score for the infamous Demi Moore version of The Scarlet Letter, but nothing to prepare you for how impressive that score is itself.
Moore had already rejected a score by Ennio Morricone before passing over Bernstein and reluctantly accepting one of John Barry's lesser efforts, leading Bernstein to reportedly send the star a note thanking her because he could now use his score `on a good picture instead.' From its surprisingly energetic main title, slightly reminiscent at times of a more violent version of Henry Mancini's score for The Molly Maguires, to its effective love theme, it more than justifies taking up two CDs. Yet ironically Bernstein apparently had a low opinion of his effort, which is surprising considering it's perhaps his last really great score. He even manages to turn in a ferociously energetic and elaborate piece of scoring for the film's ridiculous finale Battle when the friendly Indians rescue Hester Pryne from being burned as a witch (did I mention this isn't exactly a faithful adaptation?): the scene may be absurd, but the music sounds like something he'd have written in his 1960s prime for John Wayne or one of the better Magnificent Seven pictures. It even manages to outshine the third score, the much-bootlegged (and therefore less-surprising) The Journey of Natty Gann, a particularly vivid piece of exuberant Americana that's long been one of the most inexplicably rejected scores.
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