Customer Reviews

Heaven's Gate

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Whatever is thought of this mis-guided movie, nothing but praise should be heaped on David Mansfield's score. It fuses solo western guitar with zydeco and Irish music that chronicles a brief sad time in our nation's history. Reminds me of the soundtrack to Ken Burns' documentary "The Civil War." THANK GOODNESS it's finally been issued on CD. Lots of new stuff, too.

The soundtrack of Heaven's Gate, by David Mansfield, is an underappreciated gem. Sadly, because this soundtrack is so closely related with one of the biggest box office flops of all time, it will go largely ignored. That's too bad, because it ranks right up there with Avalon as one of the best film scores of the 1980s.

The exquisite blend of Eastern European folk melodies and Western music that permeates this soundtrack make it a joy to listen to. Particularly noteworthy are the accoustic guitar version of Strauss's Blue Danube Waltz as well as Doug Kershaw's Mamou Two Step, a piece that Kershaw fortunately chose to make available on some of his CDs. If you can't locate this soundtrack at least listen to that piece. I'm pretty sure you'll be sold on the artistic merits of this CD if you do.

Whether or not you liked the flop movie this music is from, after listening to the album you will have to agree it is one of the great soundtracks of the '80's. Mansfield manages to convey a wonderful sense of Americana--a gorgeous orchestral version of great native folk and western music. I could listen to this all day, and it's nice to have it back in print after all these years.

I can't believe you all fell for the critic's drivel about what a flawed movie this was and let it flop - and continue to sell the line about what a flop it was!
It was magnificent, and the soundtrack was so evocative you thought you were in the dancehall, skating with Kris and Isabelle.

See the movie and make up your own minds. In the meantime get the soundtrack and hear it in digital splendour.

One of the best cds ever produced I had one years ago and lost it well worth the money

I was enchanted with the movie and the music. I have the tape and sometimes play while I'm doing other things-- the music is so moving. I always wondered why it was considered a flop?? Maybe sometime it will be revived. It's also the history of our country....

This is a lousy movie but the music is great. The plot of the movie involves Eastern European immigrants in Wyoming. This music perfectly blends with that idea. Straight forward American folk music blends into Eastern European folk music. This is the essence of minimalism, although not in a Philip Glass sort of way. These simply themes are are repeated varied only by tone color and orchestration. This is a minor masterpiece of the less is more school.

Although the movie Heaven's Gate has had for many years a difficult reputation that is slowly starting to turn around, David Mansfield's soundtrack is a masterpiece to listen to. Filled with melancholic tunes and leitmotifs revolving around characters living the dramatic Jefferson County Shootings, it is incredible to see that many tracks were played entirely by the composer himself, who also did an amazing job on Transamerica's soundtrack. Through the composer's interpretations, it allows every listener to hear the music according to what the composer envisioned them in his mind. Those that may have had the Original vinyl disc should know that this CD version has more than ten extra tracks (specific to certain scenes in the movie like on the yacht, the end credits, a main character's death, etc.) that were not originally available in the vinyl disc version. What a great way to encourage old buyers to repurchase this soundtrack.

However it is disappointing to see how this CD is no longer available on Amazon and that RykoDisc is no longer offering copies in stores. Sure you can buy it on Amazon Marketplace, which I did, but it would be great if MGM or RykoDisc would bring back more copies of this wonderful anti-western soundtrack. So that more people would rediscover this soundtrack and at the same time, a movie that deserved better recognition than what movie critics at the time gave at its release.

I saw the original movie when it was released in 1980 (in its original ghastly form) and raced to buy the soundtrack. I had never heard a soundtrack like that and I remember it was one of the few things that won universal praise, and the reason I went to see the movie in the first place. There's a good book about the movie and the story behind it called Final Cut by Steven Bach.

Say what you will about the film (I'm actually a fan of the movie, too, but I understand I'm in the minority!), the music is utterly gorgeous from start to finish.