The Patriot
John Williams
" The Patriot lures John Williams in the New Millennium's action sound "Written by Thomas Glorieux - Review of the regular release
Between destroying the world from any threat possible, Roland Emmerich ventured into unfamiliar ground to deliver a gripping emotional take of a family in the midst of the American Revolution. Mel Gibson, Heath Ledger and Jason Isaacs deliver a more than solid performance, but they are nonetheless aided by John Williams, the surprising choice of composer considering David Arnold did such amazing work of Emmerich's previous movies. Sadly for filmmusic fans, this was the departure of David Arnold on the Emmerich movies and the entrance of other names. Luckily for The Patriot Emmerich left it to the talented hands of John Williams before turning to lesser talented names such as Harald Kloser and Thomas Wanker (now Wander).
For the album presentation (which is not in film order), we encounter a returning element that continuously sets John Williams albums apart from the rest, namely the concert pieces, mostly opening and closing the album in delightful fashion. The Patriot is another one in that style. The opening and closing piece "The Patriot" and "The Patriot Reprise" deliver a marvelous version of the main theme (simply spine tingling through the solo violin's version) and the stirring patriot theme. They bring a wonderful combination of delight, emotion and a patriotic stir that is rarely matched in other cues. And though equally memorable, they are heard with less memorability in "To Family Farm" and "Ann Recruits the Parishioners".
By then, John Williams' music marches differently and more furiously through mere agitated rhythm than thematic structure. Heard perfectly clear in "The Colonial Cause" when the stirring patriot theme is battling a constant rhythmic trumpet attack, right out of Williams previous action blockbuster Star Wars: The Phantom Menace. The mixture of these styles doesn't always fluently transcend into one another, but the stirring climatic delight of the patriot march is rarely matched in the album. But when the themes aren't on board to tie it together anymore, all you're left with is Williams' frenetic action style in "The First Ambush and Remembering the Wilderness", the highlight in the film (but not on disc) "Tavington's Trap" and "Martin vs. Tavington" (delivering Born on the Fourth of July emotional goosebumps after that).
Another element that changed in Williams' sound is the darker / more disturbing edge surrounding his emotional scoring. This is evident in "Redcoats at the Farm and the Death of Thomas", a scene that's so gripping Williams rather underscored the horror and not the emotional reaction of the actors. Honestly, this style totally works considering the actors deliver the emotional depth alone through the expressions of their faces. This is left behind in "The Parish Church Aflame" when the horror is far more brutal than expressions can deliver, bringing forth Williams' familiar emotional string work.
And considering we have encountered heroic patriotism, raw emotional darkness and rhythmic action suspense, all that was left was Williams blossoming the tale with a little romance. And "Ann & Gabriel" is lovely by the sheer explosion of the main theme at the end of this track. And despite all this brilliance and this effective bone chilling music, The Patriot had a hard time finding its place amongst all these classic scores of John Williams. Because for many, it was the turning point where Williams left his fluent thematic scoring behind for more gritty and rhythmic action music. And despite I love it so deeply in the film, I have a harder time accepting it on disc because of this inevitable change. A masterful score in any regards, but a step back from all those blockbuster scores of John Williams nonetheless.
Favorite Moment - The Colonial Cause (1.50 - 2.42)
The most stirring version of the theme
Track Listing
1. The Patriot (6.42) Excellent track
2. To Family Farm (3.04)
3. To Charleston (2.16)
4. The Colonial Cause (3.16) Excellent track
5. Redcoats at the Farm and the Death of Thomas (5.00)
6. Ann Recruits the Parishioners (3.09)
7. Preparing for Battle (5.50) Excellent track
8. Ann & Gabriel (4.35) Excellent track
9. The First Ambush and Remembering the Wilderness (4.00)
10. Tavington's Trap (4.10)
11. The Burning of the Plantation (4.56)
12. Facing the British Lines (3.05)
13. The Parish Church Aflame (3.05)
14. Susan Speaks (3.17)
15. Martin vs. Tavington (3.07)
16. Yorktown & The Return Home (5.20)
17. The Patriot Reprise (7.39) Excellent track
Total Length: 72.31
For the album presentation (which is not in film order), we encounter a returning element that continuously sets John Williams albums apart from the rest, namely the concert pieces, mostly opening and closing the album in delightful fashion. The Patriot is another one in that style. The opening and closing piece "The Patriot" and "The Patriot Reprise" deliver a marvelous version of the main theme (simply spine tingling through the solo violin's version) and the stirring patriot theme. They bring a wonderful combination of delight, emotion and a patriotic stir that is rarely matched in other cues. And though equally memorable, they are heard with less memorability in "To Family Farm" and "Ann Recruits the Parishioners".
By then, John Williams' music marches differently and more furiously through mere agitated rhythm than thematic structure. Heard perfectly clear in "The Colonial Cause" when the stirring patriot theme is battling a constant rhythmic trumpet attack, right out of Williams previous action blockbuster Star Wars: The Phantom Menace. The mixture of these styles doesn't always fluently transcend into one another, but the stirring climatic delight of the patriot march is rarely matched in the album. But when the themes aren't on board to tie it together anymore, all you're left with is Williams' frenetic action style in "The First Ambush and Remembering the Wilderness", the highlight in the film (but not on disc) "Tavington's Trap" and "Martin vs. Tavington" (delivering Born on the Fourth of July emotional goosebumps after that).
Another element that changed in Williams' sound is the darker / more disturbing edge surrounding his emotional scoring. This is evident in "Redcoats at the Farm and the Death of Thomas", a scene that's so gripping Williams rather underscored the horror and not the emotional reaction of the actors. Honestly, this style totally works considering the actors deliver the emotional depth alone through the expressions of their faces. This is left behind in "The Parish Church Aflame" when the horror is far more brutal than expressions can deliver, bringing forth Williams' familiar emotional string work.
And considering we have encountered heroic patriotism, raw emotional darkness and rhythmic action suspense, all that was left was Williams blossoming the tale with a little romance. And "Ann & Gabriel" is lovely by the sheer explosion of the main theme at the end of this track. And despite all this brilliance and this effective bone chilling music, The Patriot had a hard time finding its place amongst all these classic scores of John Williams. Because for many, it was the turning point where Williams left his fluent thematic scoring behind for more gritty and rhythmic action music. And despite I love it so deeply in the film, I have a harder time accepting it on disc because of this inevitable change. A masterful score in any regards, but a step back from all those blockbuster scores of John Williams nonetheless.
Favorite Moment - The Colonial Cause (1.50 - 2.42)
The most stirring version of the theme
Track Listing
1. The Patriot (6.42) Excellent track
2. To Family Farm (3.04)
3. To Charleston (2.16)
4. The Colonial Cause (3.16) Excellent track
5. Redcoats at the Farm and the Death of Thomas (5.00)
6. Ann Recruits the Parishioners (3.09)
7. Preparing for Battle (5.50) Excellent track
8. Ann & Gabriel (4.35) Excellent track
9. The First Ambush and Remembering the Wilderness (4.00)
10. Tavington's Trap (4.10)
11. The Burning of the Plantation (4.56)
12. Facing the British Lines (3.05)
13. The Parish Church Aflame (3.05)
14. Susan Speaks (3.17)
15. Martin vs. Tavington (3.07)
16. Yorktown & The Return Home (5.20)
17. The Patriot Reprise (7.39) Excellent track
Total Length: 72.31