Crocodile Dundee in Los Angeles
Basil Poledouris
" Like the movie, this one sadly wastes your time and Basil's potential "Written by Thomas Glorieux - Review of the regular release
At the begin of the new millennium, Basil Poledouris was concentrating his work on the projects that really meant something to him, or at least we're delivered by friends he got to know throughout his career. If you see it through the second way, you can at least understand why he tackled Crocodile Dundee in Los Angeles in 2001, because I honestly can't think why this effort would appeal to him otherwise. Sure, we were all a fan of Paul Hogan's character once it made its splash debut in 1986, and most of us went to see the sequel several years after that. But now Crocodile Dundee feels different and is only good for the laughs because story wise there isn't much depth in the motion picture. It's only because it was made by his friend Simon Wincer (Lonesome Dive, Quigley Down Under, Harley Davidson and the Marlboro Man & Free Willy) that we understand Basil Poledouris' connection to it, because it surely ain't for the movie.
Now considering the movie's a poor excuse to gain some money of an already aged concept, how could we expect something of the score? Well because one Basil Poledouris is attached to it. But sadly even that can't save what is a mediocre effort. And that's evident when we already hear a decent main theme in "Crocodile Dundee in Los Angeles / Main Title", accented by both an acoustic as electric guitar. The guitars continue to push the score forward in "Croc Sinks the Boat / Croc Eats the Boat / Swimming / Mystical Mick", even though it's the acoustic guitar that becomes the far better one.
Typical instruments continue to insert their way into the music (like the Didgeridoo) but quite frankly that only sets a mood down, not quality. And so Crocodile Dundee continues to move forward, creating standard music but not an experience. The funny sound of "Spider / Spider in Hat", the main theme on acoustic guitar in "Walking With Mikey #2 / Mikey, Mick and Sue" and a series of electric guitar twangs in "Jacco Show and Tell / The Big Nanny / Dine and Drive / Down the Stairwell / L.A. Thing" deliver us acceptable fare.
But are you missing anything if one would take a stroll during the meantime? Nope, sadly you would not be missing anything. This is background music that only aids the movie. From a soundtrack's point of view, this one of Poledouris has very little to offer. A couple of beats underscoring a sneaky scene in "Up the Ladder / Into the Jungle" and "Molotov Cocktail / Lions" is basically how Basil paints the finale. Even the final score cue forgets to bring real momentum, just some acoustic guitar moments in "Proposal / Wedding Day". The songs aren't helping much either, even though Men at Work's hit song "Down Under" becomes the most enjoyable track on the album.
It's sad to see that one of the final scores of Basil Poledouris' career had to be this stinker, because I honestly can't understand why else it got this kind of attention in 2001. I know that it's Basil and I know that Basil makes any music better, but even he couldn't save what became a poor excuse of a project. And the only answer was to put background music on it and forget the whole deal. Sadly that deal wasn't forgotten because we fans had the opportunity to hear it on CD after that. Only to prove that it was quite frankly forgettable. Take it from me boys and girls, Crocodile Dundee in Los Angeles is a waste of time and doesn't summarize what Basil could do with a movie. No it was a favor for an old friend, and a forgettable one at that.
Score: **
Songs: **1/2
Tracklisting
1. Crocodile Dundee in Los Angeles / Main Title (2.40)
2. Croc Sinks the Boat / Croc Eats the Boat / Swimming / Mystical Mick (1.43)
3. Hypnotize the Pig / Walking With Mikey / Beverly Hills (2.00)
4. Spider / Spider in Hat (0.52)
5. Studio Gate / Jungle Set (0.36)
6. Walking With Mikey #2 / Mikey, Mick and Sue (1.40)
7. Eraser Rat / Monkey Wrangler (1.04)
8. Jacco Show and Tell / The Big Nanny / Dine and Drive / Down the Stairwell / L.A. Thing (3.36)
9. Paintings / Clue Snoop / Who the Hell is That? (3.14)
10. Up the Ladder / Into the Jungle (4.37)
11. Molotov Cocktail / Lions (2.59)
12. Proposal / Wedding Day (3.07)
13. Down Under: Men at Work (4.46)
14. Strike it Up: Black Box (5.15)
15. Mr. Big Talker: Mystikal (4.00)
16. Boys from the Bush: Lee Kernaghan (2.47)
Total Length: 44.56
Now considering the movie's a poor excuse to gain some money of an already aged concept, how could we expect something of the score? Well because one Basil Poledouris is attached to it. But sadly even that can't save what is a mediocre effort. And that's evident when we already hear a decent main theme in "Crocodile Dundee in Los Angeles / Main Title", accented by both an acoustic as electric guitar. The guitars continue to push the score forward in "Croc Sinks the Boat / Croc Eats the Boat / Swimming / Mystical Mick", even though it's the acoustic guitar that becomes the far better one.
Typical instruments continue to insert their way into the music (like the Didgeridoo) but quite frankly that only sets a mood down, not quality. And so Crocodile Dundee continues to move forward, creating standard music but not an experience. The funny sound of "Spider / Spider in Hat", the main theme on acoustic guitar in "Walking With Mikey #2 / Mikey, Mick and Sue" and a series of electric guitar twangs in "Jacco Show and Tell / The Big Nanny / Dine and Drive / Down the Stairwell / L.A. Thing" deliver us acceptable fare.
But are you missing anything if one would take a stroll during the meantime? Nope, sadly you would not be missing anything. This is background music that only aids the movie. From a soundtrack's point of view, this one of Poledouris has very little to offer. A couple of beats underscoring a sneaky scene in "Up the Ladder / Into the Jungle" and "Molotov Cocktail / Lions" is basically how Basil paints the finale. Even the final score cue forgets to bring real momentum, just some acoustic guitar moments in "Proposal / Wedding Day". The songs aren't helping much either, even though Men at Work's hit song "Down Under" becomes the most enjoyable track on the album.
It's sad to see that one of the final scores of Basil Poledouris' career had to be this stinker, because I honestly can't understand why else it got this kind of attention in 2001. I know that it's Basil and I know that Basil makes any music better, but even he couldn't save what became a poor excuse of a project. And the only answer was to put background music on it and forget the whole deal. Sadly that deal wasn't forgotten because we fans had the opportunity to hear it on CD after that. Only to prove that it was quite frankly forgettable. Take it from me boys and girls, Crocodile Dundee in Los Angeles is a waste of time and doesn't summarize what Basil could do with a movie. No it was a favor for an old friend, and a forgettable one at that.
Score: **
Songs: **1/2
Tracklisting
1. Crocodile Dundee in Los Angeles / Main Title (2.40)
2. Croc Sinks the Boat / Croc Eats the Boat / Swimming / Mystical Mick (1.43)
3. Hypnotize the Pig / Walking With Mikey / Beverly Hills (2.00)
4. Spider / Spider in Hat (0.52)
5. Studio Gate / Jungle Set (0.36)
6. Walking With Mikey #2 / Mikey, Mick and Sue (1.40)
7. Eraser Rat / Monkey Wrangler (1.04)
8. Jacco Show and Tell / The Big Nanny / Dine and Drive / Down the Stairwell / L.A. Thing (3.36)
9. Paintings / Clue Snoop / Who the Hell is That? (3.14)
10. Up the Ladder / Into the Jungle (4.37)
11. Molotov Cocktail / Lions (2.59)
12. Proposal / Wedding Day (3.07)
13. Down Under: Men at Work (4.46)
14. Strike it Up: Black Box (5.15)
15. Mr. Big Talker: Mystikal (4.00)
16. Boys from the Bush: Lee Kernaghan (2.47)
Total Length: 44.56