Customer Reviews

King Arthur (Original Score)

5 star:		(58)
4 star:		(14)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Let me first say that I am a huge Hans Zimmer fan and own 75 of the scores and soundtracks he's been involved with. Hans is at his best when he has the canvas of an epic action/adventure movie such as King Arthur to work with. This score is bold and brash, yet at times can be contemplative and melancholy.

The inclusion of the Metro Voices Choir throughout the score adds magnificently to the prominent themes of humanity's desire for freedom and self-determination addressed in the film.

"Tell Me Now" The CD leads off with this absolutely beautiful song (played during the closing credits of the film) written by Hans Zimmer and Moya Brennan (Irish soloist, lead singer for Clannad and sister of Enya).

"Woad To Ruin" would have to be my favorite track on the CD. It incorporates nearly all the themes from the film into one track and is used in the opening scene. Zimmer incorporates french horns here a little more than in his other work reminding me a little of John Williams' style. The strings used throughout add a very ethereal mood that dominates much of the piece. The middle of the piece is quick-paced and is somewhat similar to "The Battle" from Gladiator. Like many of the tracks on the CD it is quite lengthy (11:31).

"Do You Think I'm Saxon?" is reminiscent of some of Howard Shore's work in The Lord Of The Rings trilogy. Heavy percussion and male choral voices create a dark yet hopeful feeling for this piece. The inclusion of bagpipes adds a nice touch also.

"Hold The Ice" begins with a haunting female voice and turns desperate, chilling, and grandiose, perfectly matching the scene it accompanies in the film.

"Another Brick In Hadrian's Wall" is a very heavy piece used in the film as the Saxons and Britons/Woads prepare for battle.

"Budget Meeting" is another beautiful, bold, dark, and epic piece relying heavily on percussion and male choral voices. The end of the track reminds me a little of some of Don Davis' work from The Matrix Revolutions.

"All Of Them" leads off with Moya Brennan's lush vocals and then turns reflective and sorrowful matching the mood of the film following the great battle scene. The track finishes in a hopeful and grand fashion. This piece beautifully captures the essence of the entire movie.

My only complaint regarding the score is that it doesn't include the aria in the movie by Lisa Gerrard and Patrick Cassidy. This can be found on the Lisa Gerrard/Patrick Cassidy CD Immortal Memory track 3 "Amergin's Invocation". I highly recommend this CD to those who enjoy Lisa Gerrard's work.

If you liked Gladiator, The Last Samurai, Crimson Tide, The Rock, Pearl Harbor, The Peacemaker, Pirates Of The Caribbean, The Time Machine, Armageddon, Children Of Dune, or The Last Of The Mohicans you will thoroughly enjoy this score.

The unaccompanied song sung by Vanora, girlfriend of Bors (Ray Winstone) in the film is called "Song of the Exile". It was composed and sung by Caitlin Matthews, a writer on all things Celtic and druidic, who along with her husband John was a consultant on the film.

Unfortunately, a problem at Disney resulted in this song remaining unpublished. This is a major omission from the album, which is otherwise excellent.

For those Arthurian purests that were holding their colective breath regarding the Antoine Fuqua/Jerry Bruckheimer production of "King Arthur" you can relax. The film is an interesting interpretation of the legend (within acceptable parameters) and the score by Hans Zimmer is fine. In truth the film should have been titled "Arturius Rex" given the time frame and the Roman elements, and that put Zimmer into fairly comfortable musical territory given his triumph with "Galdiator." This is more of a true orchestral score that is both action oriented and melodic. Zimmer makes dramatic use of percussion and choral material, and yes there is a nice Celtic vocal sung by Moya Brennan for the early, end credits. The main theme for Arturius and his knights is one of the best that Zimmer has produced. It is Arthurian in nature, if that makes sense, but has a certain Roman gravitas as well. The score seemed a perfect fit for the film and works very well as a soundtrack recording. Nicely produced by Hollywood Records, but the packaging is a little disappointing.

I've been waiting paitiently (not really, but I can always say so) for this soundtrack to be released. I saw the movie as soon as it was released and was just dying to own the soundtrack and now I do. Anyway, I've listened to it and completely love it.

1. Tell Me Now (What You See) - Moya Brennan, this song is just one of the best theme songs I've heard this year. I love Moya Brennan and the way her voice sounds, so I was expecting this to be awesome, I love soo love it when I am right. I don't really know how else to say this but this song is just so great! Just listen to it.

2. Woad to Ruin - this song has a very epic quality, sort of bittersweet in a way.

3. Do You Think I'm Saxon? - is very menacing and dark. It overwhelms you and scares you a little bit at the same time.

4. Hold The Ice - with some vocals from Moya Brennan, this song is very beautiful. As the song progresses it gets more sensual and dark.

5. Another Brick In Hadrian's Wall - The Beginning is epic, beautiful and dark at the same time. It's loud and overpowering, I love it!!!!

6. Budget Meeting - It starts off with a very dark, scary theme and as it progresses, it gets louder and darker.

7. All of Them! - again you have the very sensual quality, again Moya Brennan graces it with her breathey, beautiful vocals. The Violins in here are also very impressive.

All in All I give this CD 4 Stars, this CD is amazing, but with only 7 tracks it was a bit disapointing. I was hoping for more tracks, instead of only several that are each about 8 - 11 minutes long. I love this CD and Hans Zimmer has proved that he can make anything he touches into gold!

Hans Zimmer composes and conducts score showcasing what he does best, a thrilling and compelling action score in the form of Jerry Bruckhimer's "King Arthur." Granted, I would've never taken a second look at this soundtrack if the familar BRUCKHIMER action theme was used (like it was in "Pear Harbor" and "Pirates of the Caribbean[?]"), and that tinges of "Batman Begins" (before its time) are heard, its not a horrible buy at all. Well worth the money in fact. I've heard enough of Zimmer other scores now to know that he does indeed know how to compose an action theme strong enough to compel the listener to press the repeat on their radio, he does indeed lack a certain "something" whenever the melancholy cues come up in seven tracks, unlike Howard Shore (LOTR) and James Newton Howard (Batman Begins, King Kong) would construct in the short termed Soundtracks I mentioned. However, he does a good with emotional range and tugs at heartstrings nonetheless. The vocals used in the various tracks are not as strong as I would've liked, but there are compelling enough to send a chill of mild surprise through you, especially in tracks like "Do You Think I'm Saxon?" - "Budget Meeting" (in which the vocalists sound like wailing souls under the pounding drums) - and "All of the them!" whose drowned vocals for the extended KA theme grow louder in volume and moving emotion.



The action themes are well composed as mentioned above, one annoying thing about them is that some moments of AT's are scattered in the more slower and melancholy songs, most notably in "Another Brick in Hadrian's wall" (wordplay with Pink Floyd's "Another Brick in the wall") and "Hold the ice" either of which plays the music from the scene Arthur remembers the death of his mother if memory serves. This method is sort of jarred in my opinion and a very poor way to piece together a song.



That aside, the best action themed tracks would have to be "Woad to Ruin" - "Do You Think I'm Saxon" - and "Budget Meeting," for sure. With their pulsating beats and sheer utilization of instruments, they can do no wrong, save end too quickly. One a small note, "All of them!" (and other bits from other tracks)carries off a melodic flute intro that reminds me of the Rrarr instrument used in Joseph LuDuca's score for "Xena Warrior Princess." The vocal song of the track, "Tell me now (what you see)" by Moya Brennan is indeed a beautifully constructed song, with lyrics that fit the soundtrack theme well and a melody that is reminiscent of Enya to a certain extent, it certainty is a treat for the senses.




My only problem with the track: Its positioned at number one, I'm much too used to vocal performances on Soundtracks to be at the end of the CD. Now other problems with score itself is that it uses the King Arthur theme perhaps far too much through all seven lengthy tracks, it does grow steadily annoying until the end (then its not so annoying). Another problem would probably be the lack of presence of Venora's "Go Home" song, But all in all, "King Arthur" is a splendid score to add to anyone's collection of CDs. Highly recommended listening.




1): Tell me now (What you see) - 4/5

2): Woad To Ruin - 5/5

3): Do you think I'm Saxon? - 4/5

4): Hold the Ice - 3/5

5): Another Brick in Hadrian's Wall - 4/5

6): Budget Meeting - 5/5

7): All of them! - 5/5 ------ [a 5 out of 5]

I have to say, everything Hans Zimmer has composed, from Gladiator to King Arthur, is brilliant, and always original. He has a way of capturing the essense of a film in the score he composes, and each score is exquisite and cultural in its own way. Although I was not fully pleased with how the film itself turned out despite other reviews, I greatly enjoyed Hans Zimmer's work on King Arthur; and now listening to this score, it seems to turn the movie around... funny how he always has a way of doing that.

Seeing this film was about the Arthurian legend, there was a largely Celtic yet Roman theme, which requires such an interesting soundscape for Hans Zimmer to approach. Having had done Gladiator, he was well trained to work with such soundscape. However, I was truely amazed how well Celtic and Roman themes were balanced...with Celtic dominating, like in the film...since in the film we only hear of Rome, but never see it or taste the essense of the Roman Empire.

"Tell Me Now [What You See]" is great beginning track... it wasn't necessarily a soundtrack song, but a track by itself in its own right. Beautiful vocals by Moya Brennan, as top-notch as Lisa Gerard was for Gladiator, helped bring this Celtic themed title track together amazingly. I think it's a really great start to setting the mood and tone of the soundtrack to follow.

"Woad To Ruin" is the title track seen on screen at the beginning of the film, and is one of Han's lengthy pieces. Features a variety of motifs which are further developed later in the soundtrack.

I could go on and bore you with words of interpretation and analysis, but I think you get the picture here.

My only, if somewhat minor, reason for 4 was the length of the soundtrack. I will admit Hans Zimmer is a man who deals with "quality not quantity" like his collegue Klaus Badelt, however I wish I could have heard a mere 10-15 minutes more of Hans' brilliance. Also, Hans takes a liking to composing large 10 minute pieces, which I admit are phenominal (like the Gladiator Waltz)...and King Arthur has two of them which is great, and almost a third.

Even if you were unsure about the film, this piece of Hans Zimmer's work should be added to your collection! Without a doubt it is some brilliant and refreshing work! Good job Hans!

If you want to hear Hans Zimmer's take on an eclectic blend of Celtic and Roman-era music (unlike his previous works), buy this!

I went out and bought this CD after reading a review over at filmtracks.com - even though I have yet to see the film.

I was especially looking forward to hearing how Zimmer would incorporate Maire Brennan's style with his own as I also like her (and Enya's) work very much. The answer is very well, although I would have liked a little more of Brennan's vocal talents throughout the soundtrack. Still, what's there is wonderfully celtic as you would expect.

In the filmtracks review, at one point it said this Zimmer creation was "Crimson Tide on steroids". I disagreed with this - until I listened to track 6. Everything including the kitchen sink has been thrown in here: deep male vocals, higher female vocals, synths, percussion to get your adrenalin pumping and a good helping of brass which eclipses even the battle theme Zimmer composed for Gladiator. Awesome.

Whilst listening to this you can definately hear his previous work coming through, most noticably The Last Samurai & Gladiator which, whilst some listeners might deem this a negative trait of this soundtrack, I certainly don't being a fervent lover of the aforementioned compositions.

To sum up, if you are a Zimmer fan and you enjoyed listening to Crimson Tide, The Rock (although Zimmer had precious little to do with this he did compose the main theme), Gladiator & The Last Samurai then this is a must to add to your collection.

My only slight gripe is that I would have loved Zimmer to have put some Celtic whistle/flutes in there as well, as heard in his Beyond Rangoon soundtrack (another truly awesome masterpiece), but maybe the film didn't call for it?

Anyway, this still gets 5 stars for me. Zimmer the man does it once again!

At first viewing- I thought the music a bit too bombastic and cliched-but each time I listened, its magic began to enchant me more and more.

I have to say this film may have had flaws, but they are minor-*IF* you are not looking for some cliched Hollywood Medieval blockbuster-ie: FIRST KNIGHT or crap like that-which is what I think most people WANTED, and thus the film did poorly.

I am only disappointed that the very beautiful, haunting and moving song "We will Go Home" was not included on the CD-it is near well the centerpiece of the film-in that it foretells the grief and the dreams of these men as they think they have settled their debt to Rome...only to have their hopes dashed.

Lisa Gerrard did the added vocal interlude on it-she WAS in this film, contrary to popular belief-check the end credits in detail...

When I found out that Hans Zimmer was writing the score for King Arthur, I knew I had to have it as soon as it hit the shelves. I was incredibly disappointed by the film but no matter. Had the film not been made, we probably wouldn't have one of Hans Zimmer's greatest scores.

King Arthur is a powerhouse of orchestral music. With Gladiator's success, the director and producer must have demanded a similar score. There are some cues from Gladiator in the film, but a lot of it does sound original.

The album opens with the song "Tell me now" performed by Moya Brennan. The song is pretty but I'm a score fan so let's get the heart of the album.

"Woad to Ruin" leaves me speechless. This almost 12-minute song has to be one of Zimmer's greatest single pieces ever! It starts off with low strings and male chorus . . . only for about three seconds, if that, then gives a loud, slow, pounding intro to Zimmer's awesome song. When the brassy theme makes its appearance it makes my arm hair rise. Talk about triumphant! The mixture of orchestra and choir is amazing. We get to the action sequence a little after five minutes into the song. This is one of my favorites for Hans Zimmer knows how to make transitions of tempo and instruments. The percussion ends the sweet, heroic moment and tosses us into the choatic battle music. The song ends with a reprise of King Arthur's theme.

My next favorite song is "Budget Meeting." I'm not sure why but there is a moment in this song that reminds me of Lord of the Rings. Not that there are similarities in the music, just similarities in the moment. Whatever. This song starts with a march, then without warning throws us in the middle of the battle. We have to hold on for dear life as the orchestra and choir take us on the wildest ride of the album.

This is a MUST-OWN soundtrack. My only complaint of this album, like many other Hans Zimmer works, is the lack of more music! Hans is a great composer, but there are times he disappoints me with missing cues from the film. He always leaves me begging for more. I can live with the 50+ minutes of music here and continue hoping that one day Hans Zimmer will make the one great epic score but until then, King Arthur will have to do.

Hans Zimmer is a brilliant composer, as he has proved countless times. The music to King Arthur is no exception to his immense musical talent. It is simply breathtaking. Very beautiful, powerful, emotional, inspirational music. The movie was done well enough, and fun to watch, but I've much more thoroughly enjoyed simply listening to the score over and over again. It's just perfect. A wonderful backdrop to heroic tales and the wonder of ancient times. It's also excellent mood music. Usually, my mood when I listen to it is either pensive, nostalgic, brooding, or wistful. Or all of them. "All of Them"...get it? :p