Defiance
James Newton Howard
" Defiance is drama and action, only one of these is represented on disc "Written by Thomas Glorieux - Review of the regular release
When German troops invaded their home town and killed their parents, the Bielski brothers escaped into the woods to restart their life. Their fight for survival lured other people to join their quest, but for one brother it wasn't enough. He wanted revenge and joined the Russian Resistance fighters. It is not until that they are separated that they discover that family still comes first.
Common war director Edward Zwick has tackled projects like this before. And even though Defiance is a strong movie on itself, it still remains to have this feeling of been there, done that. The true tale of 3 brothers is more than captivating, and the cast is more than believable, and yet Defiance remains a good movie that's lacking that something extra. That something extra isn't necessarily the blame of the now frequent Edward Zwick composer James Newton Howard. No, his music is lovely and effective in all areas. It's only that the CD tends to lack that something extra as well, especially if one thinks back at the movie in general.
I'm talking about the fact much of the action material is missing from the CD release, or at least much more than the movie offered us. It delivers us in the end a soundtrack experience that's lovely, but not accurately. What we do receive is another one of James Newton Howard's magical surprises, this time in the form of violinist Joshua Bell. His first appearance in "Defiance / Main Titles" is already noticeable, especially when it stirs up the horror of the opening scene tremendously.
The first real vibe comes however in "Survivors", brining forth a pre Village like effect. The effect is more convincing in "Make them Count" when the scene receives emotional gripping violin solos. And the violin remains to take most of the attention in the first part. In "Your Wife" it supports the sad news of Zus' wife, while in "Exodus", "Escaping the Ghetto" and "Nothing is Impossible" it carries all the weights of the people through a heartbreaking theme.
That there is hope for the people living under the command of the Bielski brothers is evident in "Camp Montage", especially once another touching and now more hopeful theme constructs the hopeful life as the town they're living in. The final track "The Bielski Brothers / Ikh Bin a Mame" dares even to bring both themes together, this alongside a thoughtful piano moment.
When Defiance does push the pedal, things only tend to stir up a bit. In "The Bielski Otriad" we discover various suspenseful moments and in "Bella and Zus" rage fuels the brothers fight against each other. "Police Station" is a bit different from all the rest, by delivering an extra set of moody effects over an already charged fight. But that's it I'm afraid, and you need to look only one time to the film to realize that is but a fragment of Defiance's action moments. Even a larger promo showed us that there is much more action music worthy of a release.
This for me changes things. After all soundtracks need to recreate the movie's experience through the music it's representing, and if you dare to dismiss practically the entire finale fight on disc, then you're not making a valid soundtrack. Period. Don't get me wrong, I don't need action music to make my listen memorable, but I do need an accurate listen, and this release of Defiance is not it. Sad because the violin music doesn't equal the scope of The Village anyway. It's dramatic, at times heartfelt and works wonders in the film, but without the remainder of the score (and action sound), it tends to lose its dramatic effect. Take it from me, the extended promo gets a better rating from me.
Tracklisting
1. Defiance / Main Titles (2.26)
2. Survivors (2.10)
3. Make them Count (2.39)
4. Your Wife (3.07)
5. The Bielski Otriad (5.17)
6. Bella and Zus (2.16)
7. Exodus (4.29) Excellent track
8. Camp Montage (2.22) Excellent track
9. The Wedding (1.36)
10. Winter (2.01)
11. Escaping the Ghetto (1.34)
12. Police Station (4.32)
13. Tuvia Kisses Lilka (3.16)
14. Nothing is Impossible (7.33)
15. The Bielski Brothers / Ikh Bin a Mame (4.22)
Total Length: 49.40
Common war director Edward Zwick has tackled projects like this before. And even though Defiance is a strong movie on itself, it still remains to have this feeling of been there, done that. The true tale of 3 brothers is more than captivating, and the cast is more than believable, and yet Defiance remains a good movie that's lacking that something extra. That something extra isn't necessarily the blame of the now frequent Edward Zwick composer James Newton Howard. No, his music is lovely and effective in all areas. It's only that the CD tends to lack that something extra as well, especially if one thinks back at the movie in general.
I'm talking about the fact much of the action material is missing from the CD release, or at least much more than the movie offered us. It delivers us in the end a soundtrack experience that's lovely, but not accurately. What we do receive is another one of James Newton Howard's magical surprises, this time in the form of violinist Joshua Bell. His first appearance in "Defiance / Main Titles" is already noticeable, especially when it stirs up the horror of the opening scene tremendously.
The first real vibe comes however in "Survivors", brining forth a pre Village like effect. The effect is more convincing in "Make them Count" when the scene receives emotional gripping violin solos. And the violin remains to take most of the attention in the first part. In "Your Wife" it supports the sad news of Zus' wife, while in "Exodus", "Escaping the Ghetto" and "Nothing is Impossible" it carries all the weights of the people through a heartbreaking theme.
That there is hope for the people living under the command of the Bielski brothers is evident in "Camp Montage", especially once another touching and now more hopeful theme constructs the hopeful life as the town they're living in. The final track "The Bielski Brothers / Ikh Bin a Mame" dares even to bring both themes together, this alongside a thoughtful piano moment.
When Defiance does push the pedal, things only tend to stir up a bit. In "The Bielski Otriad" we discover various suspenseful moments and in "Bella and Zus" rage fuels the brothers fight against each other. "Police Station" is a bit different from all the rest, by delivering an extra set of moody effects over an already charged fight. But that's it I'm afraid, and you need to look only one time to the film to realize that is but a fragment of Defiance's action moments. Even a larger promo showed us that there is much more action music worthy of a release.
This for me changes things. After all soundtracks need to recreate the movie's experience through the music it's representing, and if you dare to dismiss practically the entire finale fight on disc, then you're not making a valid soundtrack. Period. Don't get me wrong, I don't need action music to make my listen memorable, but I do need an accurate listen, and this release of Defiance is not it. Sad because the violin music doesn't equal the scope of The Village anyway. It's dramatic, at times heartfelt and works wonders in the film, but without the remainder of the score (and action sound), it tends to lose its dramatic effect. Take it from me, the extended promo gets a better rating from me.
Tracklisting
1. Defiance / Main Titles (2.26)
2. Survivors (2.10)
3. Make them Count (2.39)
4. Your Wife (3.07)
5. The Bielski Otriad (5.17)
6. Bella and Zus (2.16)
7. Exodus (4.29) Excellent track
8. Camp Montage (2.22) Excellent track
9. The Wedding (1.36)
10. Winter (2.01)
11. Escaping the Ghetto (1.34)
12. Police Station (4.32)
13. Tuvia Kisses Lilka (3.16)
14. Nothing is Impossible (7.33)
15. The Bielski Brothers / Ikh Bin a Mame (4.22)
Total Length: 49.40