Customer Reviews

Music From The Motion Picture Beowulf

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4 star:		(4)
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BEOWULF is a massive work from Alan Silvestri, and of his big scores it's the best listening experience since THE MUMMY RETURNS and arguably his greatest work since JUDGE DREDD. One hears similarities to parts of MUMMY, DREDD, VOLCANO, and THE ABYSS, but BEOWULF is more lyrical than any of them. In it, Silvestri absolutely succeeds in convincing that he's evoking a time distant and primal.

Right out of the gate, the "Beowulf Main Title" combines Silvestri's familiar pounding tympani with one of his most interesting deep-voiced melodies - the kind he normally does with his trademark powerful brass but which is here presented on synthesizer. It's built off a flatted 6th mode with a 3rd that shifts major and minor while a mixed choir interjects a simple and aggressive 2-note motive. In tracks 3 and 7, Robin Wright-Penn, to (again synthesized) "harp" accompaniment, plaintively and understatedly sings the ancient-sounding "Gently As She Goes" and "A Hero Comes Home". They're touching and beautiful performances. Silvestri returns to these melodies repeatedly, expanding and combining them, swelling them with orchestra and choir. In track 11, "He Has a Story to Tell", he gently deconstructs the "Hero" melody so that it sounds almost as if it were from CONTACT. All three themes get a full workout throughout this 45 minute score which seems less like a series of filmic episodes than a cohesive single work - a kind of choral symphony. BEOWULF may be the most mature work of Silvestri's career.

And, the pop version of "Hero" which closes the disc is an exhilarating encore. Not only is it gorgeously scored, but Idina Menzel can really sing! She goes straight for the notes and hits them dead-on and without over-vibrato. She also clearly enjoys the melody just as it is and does not use it as a vehicle for self-indulgent showing off.

Highest recommendation.

Beowulf is a new 2007 version of a classic tale. Beowulf The score is a big part of the film, and Alan Silvestri has put together a power blend of old and new. This soundtrack is bound to appeal to Beowulf fans and music enthusiasts alike.

The score is very well put together and complements the movie experience. There is a lot of driving heart pounding composition, almost operatic in nature. And there are also soft pensive songs. In any case, the music is very well appreciated in a theatre, or in the comfort of well equipped surround sound.

Silvestri draws well from his previous credits, such as "The Polar Express" and "Van Helsing." Yet the score and songs of this film stand on their own and evoke a time long past in a heart felt and powerful way.

The "Beowulf Main Title" starts the film with a driving energetic beat combined with a deep melody. This and other tracks work well to communicate the urgency of the battlefield and the sea.

Yet the surprising and gentle songs sung by Robin Wright-Penn, "Gently As She Goes" and "A Hero Comes Home," are going to please audiences. They provide a stark contrast to the beating operatic pieces. Silvestri uses these melodies in refashioned ways throughout the film to amazing effect. The result is a cohesive score with stand out tracks that will certainly be near the top of his career accomplishments.

A strong pop version of the song "A Hero Comes Home" is sung by Idina Menzel during the credits.

Overall, this score is a key part of a great movie.

Enjoy!!!

Robert Zemeckis created something of an "animated" holiday classic with "The Polar Express" and Alan Silvestri was right there with a great score and notable songs. With "Beowulf" Zemeckis has upped the ante with a visually stunning reworking of the epic saga of the hero Beowulf and again Silvestri has tagged along to provide music for a modern interpretation of an eighth century tale. What Silvestri has produced is also a modern interpretation but of the classic adventure score not without a few appreciative nods to the late Basil Poledouris and his magnificent score for "Conan the Barbarian" (and a little reminder of "Starship Troopers") along with a rather healthy echo of Silvestri's own fine music for "Van Helsing." But there are a couple of surprises as well. Songs play a significant part in the film and on the soundtrack as well they should since the original epic poem of Beowulf was sung after all. Two songs are performed on screen and the soundtrack by none other than Robin Wright-Penn including a vocal of the main theme, "A Hero Comes Home", and they are delightful. There is also another version of the song "A Hero Comes Home" in a pop version by Idina Menzel (of "Wicked" fame) for the end credits and it is also quite good. Of course this whole project was intended to be over the top, and it succeeds on this level as an adventure film and a first rate score. Silvestri opted for something a little less than a classical approach (Poledouris went the other way with "Conan" as did Jerry Goldsmith and his wonderful music for yet another version of the Beowulf tale, "Thirteenth Warrior"), but his choral-synthesizer main theme with thundering percussion seems just the right fit for this fanciful tale of Norsemen, storm tossed dragon ships, and epic battles with mythical monsters. A heroic score for a heroic saga, it is all a good deal of fun. The score is a good fit on the screen and a worthy soundtrack. Nicely produced and packaged by Warner.

Alan Silvestri's score for the epic animated tale `Beowulf' starts out with a bang. Even though the "Main Title" is less than a minute, the track conveys the direction of the rest of the album. With a driving beat common to films of this type, Silvestri also lends the voices of men and women to chant to music to its final moment. This theme is heard over and over again during the course of the score, as Beowulf's theme.

One of the biggest uses of this theme is in "What We Need is a Hero." This track is from when we first meet Beowulf, sailing to Hrothgar's kingdom on a storm swept ocean. It is a great introductory track for the title character with nice use of horns and driving drums. But probably the best use of Beowulf's theme is in "I Am Here to Kill Your Monster." This track is when Beowulf and Hrothgar meet. Again using driving drums and a melodic undertone, the theme is broken up into rounds, with brilliant solos by French horns and blasting trombones. This track is my personal favorite from the album. Listening to the track easily shows the strength and honor that Beowulf and his Geats (Swedes) bring to Hrothgar's kingdom.

Silvestri brings the men's choir back in full force for "I Did Not Win the Race." There are some classic Silvestri moments in this piece. His tweaking of Beowulf's theme is heard as the choir and driving drums bring the track to a dramatic climax, finishing in a quiet soft melody as Beowulf meets the underwater woman.

The track "I Am Beowulf" is basically the finale of Beowulf's main theme, as it is slowly transformed into the sad melodic hero's theme instead (the same notes as "A Hero Comes Home"). When Beowulf becomes king, in the second half of the film, his theme is no longer as grandiose as it was during the first half of the film. The music, like him, has matured and become more melodic and less driving. I found Silvestri's transition between the two themes, which can be heard working against each other in "I Am Beowulf," to be brilliant and highly enjoyable. This is probably the sleeper track on the album, as it is not only a turning point musically, but also in the story of the epic tale.

Also beginning with "I Am Beowulf," is the theme of Grendel's mother. It begins there and continues through "The Seduction," and shows up again in "The Final Seduction." This is a soft, creepy melody that lends itself to a few moments of almost playfulness while Beowulf is in Grendel's cave, negotiating with the demon.

Sadly, the last hurrah of Beowulf's theme from the film is missing from the soundtrack. After Hrothgar's death, Beowulf is crowned king. When the camera pans across his crown, his theme is dramatically repeated, and the next time we see him he is older, as many years have passed. On the track "King Beowulf," Silvestri has included the music from Hrothgar's death, but it picks up again with the next track "He Has a Story to Tell," well after that scene has concluded. I would have liked to have seen this heroic track included in the album. This was Beowulf ultimate achievement, becoming king, but the thundering music of his theme is mysteriously left out.

"He Has a Story to Tell" eloquently displays the character's anguish, replacing the highly energized Beowulf's theme with the now dominant and soft "Hero Comes Home" theme. The track ends playing Beowulf's theme one last time, but it is in a slow soft tone, just to remind us that it's still there, but that is has lost its energy.

The music personifies Beowulf just as good as the pictures telling the story. From the strong Geat warrior able to take on anything to the tragic cursed king who is being replaced by the Christian symbols throughout his kingdom and has outlived his usefulness.

That is when we get "Beowulf Slays the Beast," which brings many of the elements from "Second Grendel Attack" and "I Did Not Win the Race" and combines them into one last driving force, lasting 6:02, the longest on the album. The use of men's and women's choirs is at its height here, while both Beowulf's theme and the hero theme are absent. Beowulf's battle with the dragon is the climax to the film, and it works well as a climax to Silvestri's great score as well.

Silvestri culminates all emotion into "He Was the Best of Us," where the sad, melodic hero's theme is the dominant theme. This is a sad, but powerful piece, as this track serves as the backdrop for Beowulf's death and burial at sea.

There is also a nice treat on the album, which includes the two songs sung by Robin Wright-Penn while in the mead hall during the first half of the film. "Gently as She Goes" and "A Hero Comes Come" are nice soft pieces, nearly devoid of other instruments. Only a fife and harp accompany the songs. These two tracks are a nice treat to the score.

The final track, and the one that serves as the film's end credits, is "A Hero Comes Home (End Credit Version)" as performed by Idina Menzel. This is a great piece. This is one that you definitely want to crack up your stereo and blast this tune. It starts out with the powerful preamble of the hero's theme and driving drums, and then forms itself into the new age sounding lyrical genius of Menzel's version of "A Hero Comes Home." I remember overhearing some of the people walking out at the end of the movie saying that they thought the end credit song was a horrible choice and it didn't match the film. I couldn't disagree more. This is a great track and sums up Beowulf perfectly. He's a romantically tragic character with the flaws that make him seem more human than epic hero. If you listen to the words, this song is Beowulf! Overall, a fantastic album!

"A Hero Comes Home" by Idina Menzel

Out of the mist of history

He'll come again

Sailing on ships across the sea

To a wounded Nation

Signs of a savoir

Like fire on the water

It's what we prayed for

One of our own

Just wait

Though while he may roam

Always

A hero comes home

He goes where no one has gone

But always

A hero comes home

Deep in the heart of darkness sparks

A dream of lies

Surrounded by hopelessness

He finds the will to fight

Theres no surrender

Always remember

It doesn't end here

We're not alone

Just wait

Though while he may roam

Always

A hero comes home

He goes where no one has gone

But always

A hero comes home

And he will come back on the crimson tide

Dead or alive

And even though we know the bridge has burned

He will return

He will return

Just wait

Though while he may roam

Always

A hero comes home

He knows of places unknown

Always

A hero comes home

Someday they'll carve in stone

"The hero comes home"

He goes and comes back alone

But always

A hero comes home

Just wait

Though while he may roam

Always

A hero comes home

Beowulf is the type of movie that just came out of nowhere, and just by its title alone, demanded attention. The poem, which the completely Computer Generated film is based off, had reached a sort of cult status among the populous. It wasn't as popular Homer's Iliad or the Odyssey , but people were fascinated enough about it for Hollywood to decide to turn it into several movies. Most of them were what you would call trash.

Enter Zemeckis' vision of Beowulf. With the screenplay co-written by Neil Gaiman of Sandman fame, this film was either going to soar or plummet. With Beowulf, there is no other conclusion.

Zemeckis had long collaborated with Alan Silvestri, and even if you don't like the choice of Beowulf going CG, you will agree with the composer. This is a soundtrack that exhibits two things - hubris, and pure heroism, much like the tale.

The soundtrack begins with a bang thanks to the main theme, which runs just a few seconds short of a minute. It begins with some sort of rock like musical, and it runs in the background for the remainder of the composition. But what garners your attention is the chorus. It is aggressive, takes you by the horns and tosses you around for a bit before letting you go. The male chorus is loud, and with nearly ever syllable a massive drum beat is sounded. A few female lines are heard in the end, with a different phrase than the males. It is an addicting song which you can play for several minutes and not tire of. The fourth song on the track, What We Need Is a Hero, expands on the main theme, and is another excellent song, adding more lines for the female chorus.

For some reason or another, Silvestri placed in what could best described as lullaby songs. Sung by Robin Penn-Wright, they are very simple, yet at the same time, soothing songs. A string is usually found in the background, adding to the sense of peace. It gives a sense of a mother singing to her babe. It can be debated wherever these add or retract to the soundtrack. Whereas the soundtrack is full of pounding songs, with powerful drums and lyrics, here we have these very quiet songs. They stand out there, for better or for worse. They aren't the type of songs you can listen to over and over - a few times, and you want to move on, but they will remain in the back of your mind.

Beowulf is focused on the battle between the title character and two monsters - Grendel, and a dragon. What Silvestri gives us is some amazing battle tracks. I Did Not Win The Race and Beowulf Slays the Beast come to mind. Second Grendel Attack follows loosely behind. I admit I do not know much of Silvestri, but I am certain just by listening these are some of the best battle tracks he has written.

Grendel's mother also has two of her own themes - The Seduction, and The Final Seduction, which appropiatley enough, is the next to final track. Both songs just scream `corruption' and `manipulation', which is exactly what Grendel's mother does to Beowulf.

The album ends with a pop version of A Hero Comes Home, the seventh track. It is not the worst way to end the soundtrack, but it was not the best way either. It feels alot to desire for. After the epic magnitude of the previous sixteen tracks, we are left with this. Its an enjoyable listen, but it doesn't remain in your memory.

Overall, Beowulf is exactly as you expect: proud, and manly, with alot of drums and horns and epic chorus. For those who like to sort of things, Beowulf is an excellent choice to fill you with adrenaline. For everyone else, it will leave you with some disappointments. It might provide you with an enjoyable listen, though. And with it just running for a mere 46 minutes, it's not a very long soundtrack either.

Four out of five stars - take off a star if you're not much of a fan of `epic' soundtracks.

I really love this soundtrack. Alan Silvestri has creatively captured all the drama and action of the movie in his notes. I love this soundtrack like I have loved Peter the Wolf all these years. It is very moving and of the highest creative quality. You won't be disappointed if u appreciate beautiful music.

From what I heard in the movie I knew this would be a great sound track and I wasn't disappointed.

A stirring soundtrack with some haunting moments and a number of strident themes that reappear more in the film than on disc and therefore have more power through repetition there. The score was composed and conducted by Alan Silvestre and he has stayed true to the concept of the film, wedding strong motifs to the presence of quite minimalist sung tracks that combine nicely to create a soundtrack album you can listen to all the way through. I'm not going to claim the entire thing is wonderful, some of the mellower sections do lose me a touch, but only a touch.

With a production that isn't too compressed the numbers are able to breathe and the sung tracks assist with the pacing and the fact that there are a couple of different versions of A Hero Comes Home actually adds to things rather than feeling like the creators were just lazy.

If you liked the movie then you'll enjoy this, that's about the most helpful point I can make. If you've not seen the film then you may not enjoy the score so much but will probably get some use out of the songs - those being tracks 3, 7 and 17.

W/o a doubt this score is awesome and packed with a lot of surprises and thrill but it doesn't flow well at all. A word of caution. Be sure to keep the music at a safe level when you have earphones because one minute the score will be ppp and then the next thing you know, fff (for those of you who know musical theory you know what those dynamic markings mean). Anyway the rough spots/loud abrupt transitions are from tracks 3-4 and 7-8. My favorites tracks are (1) What we need is a hero, (2) I did not win the race, (3) I'am Beowuld, and especially #4 Beowulf slays the Beast.

Fantastic - I had seen the film on 2nd Dec 2007,loved the music and ordered it the very next day - only available from America! - when it arrived on Friday 5th Jan 2008 it was better than I remembered - well worth waiting for!!!