[Review By Elfmaniac] Back in September, whilst whipped into a foaming
frenzy, I viewed - no...experienced - Sam Raimi's A
SIMPLE PLAN. Such grace and restraint I never
knew he posessed. In the shuffle of images (ever
watch a film and it becomes completely surrealistic
and completely erases your memory of the events?)
I caught fleeting moments of Danny Elfman's
staggeringly intricate score.
Three viewings later (with plenty more to come) I've
become entranced and enchanted by the score
within the film and the 31 minutes that the fine folks
at COMPASS III have made available.
A SIMPLE PLAN is in my estimation Danny
Elfman at his most minmalistic. If it was possible to
pare down the minutiae of GOOD WILL
HUNTING into something even more refined and
emotional Danny Elfman has done it - this time with
a trademark theme (heard in "Main Titles", "The
Farm", "Death" and throughout the score in multiple
iterations and variations). A theme central to the
emotional structure of the film - as fragmented and
distorted as Hank and Jacob Mitchell's sense of
reality and morality. Of things gone horribly wrong,
with nothing left to do but cover up the problems
only to create new ones.
A SIMPLE PLAN is Danny Elfman's most abstract
score and shows it's lineage from such downbeat
masterpieces like DOLORES CLAIBORNE and
hammered midi from DEAD PRESIDENTS. The
main theme is played both electronically and with
beautiful woodwinds with an ever present wash of
strings painting musical continuity. There's an out of
tune guitar plucking sadistically and lazilly,
discordant shots from woodwinds to represent the
repetion of the black crow metaphor.
"The Farm" is the full statement of "Jacob's Theme"
- a variation on the main theme but this time played
on woodwind and with great sorrow. "The Badge"
is a piano pulsating cue that really heightens the
middle of the CD. As Hank is forced to return to
the plane once again for the film's climax, Elfman
scores his cop station gun cabinet dilemma with
racing strings and piano (much like "The Airfield"
from MARS ATTACKS! and a similiar phrase from
ARTICLE 99).
"Death" is a restatement of "Jacob's Theme" and
underscores the film's emotional climax. Instead of
overplaying the high dramatic punch (and believe me
it is high drama!) the music is subtle, contained and
minimal. I dare anyone to listen to this cue and not
get misty eyed! This approach calls little attention to itself
in the film, but supprts the action subconciously.
We are now trained to associate Jacob with this
piece of music and as Hank and his brother face one
last hurdle, we get restraint rather than the
Hollywood paradigm to swell the orchestra into a
crescendo.
Danny Elfman has never failed to write an
ass-kicker of a "Finale" cue and "Burning $" is no
exception. The main theme is accentuated by major
piano chords and synth hits with bells. Each beat
cues with the onscreen action - fire, Hank,
money and Sarah.
I like to describe A SIMPLE PLAN as a trip to the
dentist. Your head hurts, your're sore and you feel
slighty nauseated. This of course is a good thing and
both film and score manage to evoke this feeling.
A SIMPLE PLAN is Danny Elfman's best score this
year - perhaps in a few years. While it is minimalistic
and at times harrowing, it can be considered
complex and multilayered - certainly anything but
simple!
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THE SCORE
Main
Title
(1:46, 287Kb)
The Moon
A Change Of Heart
The
Farm
(0:55, 99Kb)
Betrayal Part 1
The
Badge
(1:07, 182Kb)
Stop It
Tracks
In The Snow
(1:45, 281Kb)
Death
(1:48, 287Kb)
Burning
$
(1:08, 182Kb)
End Credits
THE SONGS
Preachin' The Blues
Imperial
Crows
So Sleepless You
Jolene
Deliver Me
Tina
& The B-Sides
The files on this page have to be downloaded first then played using RealPlayer G2. Below each file name is the clip's running time and file size.
CD Notes:
There is a nice picture of Danny Elfman on the back cover of the CD. Click the image below for a
larger version.
Silva Screen Records will release A SIMPLE PLAN in Europe.
ASP Film Review
By Elfmaniac
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