X2: X-Men United
John Ottman
" Moments in the music make the score worth it, especially when all the themes appear "Written by Thomas Glorieux - Review of the limited release
Mutants are a funny thing. Even though society doesn't want them, we the society needed to see them so badly. Resulting in box office winnings and critical acceptances around the world. And we the society have every reason to love these films, especially the ones by Brian Singer. Because for X2: X-Men United Singer raised the bar in character development, creative writing and spectacular action, making the movie the best of the original 3 for most people. And luckily for Singer, he was able to depend on John Ottman this time. Due to scheduling conflicts, Ottman needed to pass on X-Men, but there was no stopping him this time. And his editing and composing on X2 does leave a mark, whether you like it or not.
I have to admit that X2 could have sounded bigger, but considering X3: The Last Stand of John Powell filled in that loss, I guess X2 will suffice for most. Not that it needed this complete release of La-La Land Records, but there were tracks missing from the original one that played a vital role in the film. So, even if it's placed along many minutes most would like to skip, X-2: X-Men United pleases me in its complete form. Why? Because I loved the score in the movie and because I love what Ottman did with it, using themes for most characters in the film.
And it's this thematic process that elevates things for me. You may or may not know it, but most tracks are literally filled with theme statements for the characters, musical expressions that support their moments on screen, even if it's for a second. The wonderful combination of Mystique's eerie vocal theme alongside Deathstrike's clanging entrance in "Sneaky Mystique" is an example of this, the use of mystique's theme alongside Stryker's theme as she is a covert part of his operation in "Opening Cerebro / Bottom's Up" is another, followed by Stryker's theme joining Pyro's longing theme in "Jason's Story / Harmless Kiss" or Jean's fragile piano theme morphing into Mystique's theme as she seduces Logan as Jean in "Fireside Chat / Flashback / Jean and Logan / You Know What I Want".
The score is in fact also quite mickey mouse in nature, considering Ottman quite frequently underscores what literally happens on screen. Like the ice growing into a solid wall near the end of "Mansion Attack /Don't You Remember / Escape" or comical flutes as a policeman suddenly sees Logan walking away again (after he's been shot dead) in "Pyro Attack". Even the action music can be entitled as mickey mouse music, but the moment Ottman does insert some powerful action statement or god like choir in it, the score suddenly elevates to something that makes the scene in the movie memorable. The use of lethal percussion and a heroic action theme for Wolverine in "Mansion Attack /Don't You Remember / Escape" is gripping stuff, "Magneto's Escape" receives god like choral music as he literally flies out of his prison and Storm receives equal god like powers when she makes something windy in "Storm's Perfect Storm / Missiles", until Jean Grey's theme suddenly becomes something more evolved.
The second disc, based entirely on Stryker's hideout and the heroes escape is equally gripping in places. The clanging stabs and attacks of Deathstrike in "Augmentation Room (Death Strikes Deathstrike)" doesn't always mesh well, but its power and rhythm is beyond comparison. Magneto's God like choir erupts another time in "Deathstrike Dies / Magneto's Old Tricks" when he changes the rules for the better (or worse) and some excellent action music heightens an escape out of a desperate situation in "Wolverine to the Rescue". The end is not without its highlights either, including the sorrowful Jean Grey choral moment in "Goodbye / We're Here to Stay", evolving low and behold in a strong and powerful statement in "Evolution Leaps Forward" when we suddenly see a glimpse of The Phoenix. This final cue leads in John Ottman's very own main theme, which shares a resemblance with Michael Kamen's main theme, but also with the animation series main theme, each having their own monumental qualities.
Mutate all those themes and moments together and you have a pretty solid, pretty entertaining and pretty impressive score. Sadly this complete edition (with the excellent oomphed Mozart version finally available in "Nightcrawler Attack") and 2 End credits suites as desert has too much music to listen to it frequently, and sadly also some softer moments that literally don't do much without their visual counterpart. But it is evident that Ottman delivered a score to be proud off, simply because of the way he ties every single theme and every single action into one fluent design. It's this combination of highlights and theme statements that still wins me over each time I hear X-2: X-Men United on a single or a double disc. And if you ever make your own 1 disc version of it with all the music that's available to you, you'll come to realize that Ottman actually did a bang up job.
X2: X-Men United (2003 release) ****
X2: X-Men United 2 CD (2012 release) ****
Track Listing
CD 1: 60.09
1. Twentieth Century Fox Fanfare *+ (0.22)
2. Opening Titles * (1.07)
3. Nightcrawler Attack * (3.15) Excellent track
4. Alkali Lake * (2.03)
5. Jean's Hallucination / Something Terrible * (1.03)
6. Newscast / Permission / Reunion * (3.44)
7. Cerebro (1.28)
8. Sneaky Mystique ** (4.04)
9. Meeting Nightcrawler * (2.20)
10. You Remember Him * (2.32)
11. Mansion Attack /Don't You Remember / Escape ** (7.53) Excellent track
12. Opening Cerebro / Bottom's Up ** (1.55)
13. Jason's Story / Harmless Kiss ** (3.29)
14. Magneto's Escape ** (1.25) Excellent track
15. What Bobby Can Do / Finding Faith ** (2.51)
16. Pyro Attack ** (3.13)
17. Xavier Escapes (1.26)
18. Storm's Perfect Storm / Missiles (2.07) Excellent track
19. Fireside Chat / Flashback / Jean and Logan / You Know What I Want * (5.02)
20. God Among Insects / Where Is Everyone? * (2.08)
21. I'm In ** (4.17)
22. It's Time ** (3.51)
CD 2: 51.41
1. The Children / Something's Wrong * (2.36)
2. Augmentation Room (Death Strikes Deathstrike) ** (4.45)
3. Deathstrike Dies / Magneto's Old Tricks ** (5.52) Excellent track
4. Wolverine to the Rescue ** (8.10)
5. Rogue Earns Wings ** (2.20)
6. Goodbye / We're Here to Stay ** (7.08) Excellent track
7. Evolution Leaps Forward ** (3.09) Excellent track
8. Suite from X-Men 2 (End Credits original version) (7.11) Excellent track
9. Evolution Leaps Forward (original version) ** (0.48)
10. Suite from X-Men 2 (End Credits film version) ** (9.07) Excellent track
+ composed by Alfred Newman
* previously unreleased
** contains previously unreleased material
I have to admit that X2 could have sounded bigger, but considering X3: The Last Stand of John Powell filled in that loss, I guess X2 will suffice for most. Not that it needed this complete release of La-La Land Records, but there were tracks missing from the original one that played a vital role in the film. So, even if it's placed along many minutes most would like to skip, X-2: X-Men United pleases me in its complete form. Why? Because I loved the score in the movie and because I love what Ottman did with it, using themes for most characters in the film.
And it's this thematic process that elevates things for me. You may or may not know it, but most tracks are literally filled with theme statements for the characters, musical expressions that support their moments on screen, even if it's for a second. The wonderful combination of Mystique's eerie vocal theme alongside Deathstrike's clanging entrance in "Sneaky Mystique" is an example of this, the use of mystique's theme alongside Stryker's theme as she is a covert part of his operation in "Opening Cerebro / Bottom's Up" is another, followed by Stryker's theme joining Pyro's longing theme in "Jason's Story / Harmless Kiss" or Jean's fragile piano theme morphing into Mystique's theme as she seduces Logan as Jean in "Fireside Chat / Flashback / Jean and Logan / You Know What I Want".
The score is in fact also quite mickey mouse in nature, considering Ottman quite frequently underscores what literally happens on screen. Like the ice growing into a solid wall near the end of "Mansion Attack /Don't You Remember / Escape" or comical flutes as a policeman suddenly sees Logan walking away again (after he's been shot dead) in "Pyro Attack". Even the action music can be entitled as mickey mouse music, but the moment Ottman does insert some powerful action statement or god like choir in it, the score suddenly elevates to something that makes the scene in the movie memorable. The use of lethal percussion and a heroic action theme for Wolverine in "Mansion Attack /Don't You Remember / Escape" is gripping stuff, "Magneto's Escape" receives god like choral music as he literally flies out of his prison and Storm receives equal god like powers when she makes something windy in "Storm's Perfect Storm / Missiles", until Jean Grey's theme suddenly becomes something more evolved.
The second disc, based entirely on Stryker's hideout and the heroes escape is equally gripping in places. The clanging stabs and attacks of Deathstrike in "Augmentation Room (Death Strikes Deathstrike)" doesn't always mesh well, but its power and rhythm is beyond comparison. Magneto's God like choir erupts another time in "Deathstrike Dies / Magneto's Old Tricks" when he changes the rules for the better (or worse) and some excellent action music heightens an escape out of a desperate situation in "Wolverine to the Rescue". The end is not without its highlights either, including the sorrowful Jean Grey choral moment in "Goodbye / We're Here to Stay", evolving low and behold in a strong and powerful statement in "Evolution Leaps Forward" when we suddenly see a glimpse of The Phoenix. This final cue leads in John Ottman's very own main theme, which shares a resemblance with Michael Kamen's main theme, but also with the animation series main theme, each having their own monumental qualities.
Mutate all those themes and moments together and you have a pretty solid, pretty entertaining and pretty impressive score. Sadly this complete edition (with the excellent oomphed Mozart version finally available in "Nightcrawler Attack") and 2 End credits suites as desert has too much music to listen to it frequently, and sadly also some softer moments that literally don't do much without their visual counterpart. But it is evident that Ottman delivered a score to be proud off, simply because of the way he ties every single theme and every single action into one fluent design. It's this combination of highlights and theme statements that still wins me over each time I hear X-2: X-Men United on a single or a double disc. And if you ever make your own 1 disc version of it with all the music that's available to you, you'll come to realize that Ottman actually did a bang up job.
X2: X-Men United (2003 release) ****
X2: X-Men United 2 CD (2012 release) ****
Track Listing
CD 1: 60.09
1. Twentieth Century Fox Fanfare *+ (0.22)
2. Opening Titles * (1.07)
3. Nightcrawler Attack * (3.15) Excellent track
4. Alkali Lake * (2.03)
5. Jean's Hallucination / Something Terrible * (1.03)
6. Newscast / Permission / Reunion * (3.44)
7. Cerebro (1.28)
8. Sneaky Mystique ** (4.04)
9. Meeting Nightcrawler * (2.20)
10. You Remember Him * (2.32)
11. Mansion Attack /Don't You Remember / Escape ** (7.53) Excellent track
12. Opening Cerebro / Bottom's Up ** (1.55)
13. Jason's Story / Harmless Kiss ** (3.29)
14. Magneto's Escape ** (1.25) Excellent track
15. What Bobby Can Do / Finding Faith ** (2.51)
16. Pyro Attack ** (3.13)
17. Xavier Escapes (1.26)
18. Storm's Perfect Storm / Missiles (2.07) Excellent track
19. Fireside Chat / Flashback / Jean and Logan / You Know What I Want * (5.02)
20. God Among Insects / Where Is Everyone? * (2.08)
21. I'm In ** (4.17)
22. It's Time ** (3.51)
CD 2: 51.41
1. The Children / Something's Wrong * (2.36)
2. Augmentation Room (Death Strikes Deathstrike) ** (4.45)
3. Deathstrike Dies / Magneto's Old Tricks ** (5.52) Excellent track
4. Wolverine to the Rescue ** (8.10)
5. Rogue Earns Wings ** (2.20)
6. Goodbye / We're Here to Stay ** (7.08) Excellent track
7. Evolution Leaps Forward ** (3.09) Excellent track
8. Suite from X-Men 2 (End Credits original version) (7.11) Excellent track
9. Evolution Leaps Forward (original version) ** (0.48)
10. Suite from X-Men 2 (End Credits film version) ** (9.07) Excellent track
+ composed by Alfred Newman
* previously unreleased
** contains previously unreleased material