a Beautiful Mind

James Horner

 
" A Beautiful Mind yes, but quite long as well "

Written by Thomas Glorieux - Review of the regular release

Director Ron Howard has made many memorable films, and worked with very memorable actors and composers. And some tend to return more than others. For composer James Horner, A Beautiful Mind was their 6th collaboration together. And A Beautiful Mind was arguably one of their most beloved. It won 4 Oscars out of 8 nominations (including a nomination for best original score) and it was a financial and critical success. So all the more reason to check out what Horner had in store for us.

Well, what Horner has in store for you is 70 minutes that feels like it's longer then that. The first 5 tracks bring a wonderful magical charm to the experience, showing especially Nash's his brilliance and understanding of mathematics. And after those 5 tracks, the danger theme starts developing, bringing forth more mysteriousness, light suspense and uneasy emotion. This is never hard or burdensome, nor is the danger theme the perhaps expected 4 note motif. No, this is all handled calm and delicately, as it interferes only Nash and his wife's way of life, not everyone else. This is a calm and often beautiful score to listen to. But 70 minutes is seriously stretching it.

The opening with vocal, strings and piano in "A Kaleidoscope of Mathematics" and "Creating Governing Dynamics" is perfect music to dream away with, if not for the fact it makes you dream of other Horner soundtracks. It literally brings back the first track of Searching for Bobby Fisher and Bicentennial Man. And this is not the only rip that's returning. The desolate opening space music of Aliens crops up from time to time as well (track 6, 9 and 10). It's expected territory for the Horner fan. The most magical moments are when piano, strings and the vocal of Charlotte Church combine forces to create some of the most magical minutes of A Beautiful Mind. My favorite moment of all this is "Cracking the Russian Codes".

Yet most of the music after the magical 5 tracks is soft, meandering, slightly dramatic and almost always mysterious. After all only Nash can look in his own mind, unable to determine whether or not everything is real. This is highlighted by a danger theme in "Nash Descends Into Parcher's World", "The Car Chase" and "Alicia Discovers Nash's Dark World" amongst others. It's refreshing that it's not the 4 note motif for once, and it aids the suspense softer than perhaps expected. And when the troubled mind is at peace for once, Horner delicately performs this change with soft dreamy music. This is relaxing and often beautiful to listen to, but one can lose itself in it as well, making the 70 minutes quite a challenge if you want to stay focused or entertained.

So, A Beautiful Mind works much easier if you just relax and put it on the background instead. The soft nature will not hinder you at all, and I'm pretty sure Charlotte Church or a tantalizing piano performance will make you aware you're still in the mind of A Beautiful Mind. For the James Horner fan, this is a relaxing and often wondrous example, but even for the die hard fans it's a challenge to absorb just about anything. A shorter more focused album presentation therefore should sweeten the deal. For you to decide which soft dramatic cue goes, and which one stays.

Favorite Moment - Cracking the Russian Codes (1.14 - 2.11)
Piano, Charlotte Church and magical strings find each other in this mesmerizing minute.

Track Listing

1. A Kaleidoscope of Mathematics (4.55)
2. Playing A Name of "Go!" (3.34)
3. Looking for the Next Great Idea (3.02)
4. Creating "Governing Dynamics" (2.33)
5. Cracking the Russian Codes (3.21)
6. Nash Descends Into Parcher's World (4.39)
7. First Drop-Off / First Kiss (5.15)
8. The Car Chase (2.24)
9. Alicia Discovers Nash's Dark World (8.29)
10. Real or Imagined (5.47)
11. Of One Heart, Of One Mind (6.21)
12. Saying Goodbye to Those You so Love (6.43)
13. Teaching Mathematics Again (3.16)
14. The Prize of One's Life ... / The Price of One's Mind (3.02)
15. All Love Can Be: Charlotte Church (3.17)
16. Closing Credits (4.48)

Total Length: 71.36
(click to rate this score)  
 
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(total of 45 votes - average 3.91/5)

Released by

Decca Records 440 016 191-2 (regular release 2001)

Conducted by

James Horner

Orchestrations by

James Horner & Randy Kerber

Vocals performed by by

Charlotte Church