The Jackal (Bootleg)

Review by Thomas Glorieux:

People don't often associate Carter Burwell with an action movie, let alone one not being done by the Coen brothers. But that is exactly what The Jackal is. An action thriller scored by Carter Burwell and the result is a fairly entertaining one to say the least. The effort isn't bombastic as say the Media Ventures outlets often produce but its also a quite different affair. This one is more subdued to say the last, with a tension like atmosphere that surrounds more the darker nature then the tension nature if you get what I'm saying. The mood falls a bit in the vein of Fargo, yet don't expect the moody nature of that one and it comes a bit in the vein of this score. Yet, one of its qualities is that it doesn't link itself to a Carter Burwell effort per se, its just different and non related but capturing all the Burwell trademarks. The score has also a fairly easy going way of presenting the music and that leads to a very satisfying listening experience with an action score that doesn't sound action like at all. Which explains a bit why The Jackal might prove to be an effort for the fans all right. There are some interesting signs of instrumentation also, like the cimbalom appearing in several tracks including 'Moscow', 'Jackal Arrives in Montreal' and 'The Mole Revealed' after percussive stomps. This percussion way of scoring is also heard in various tracks, stating either the Jackal's presence this way or simply the at times building light suspense.

There are various themes so to speak of. We have the Jackal's theme which isn't so memorable (and its not the stomping either) but the moment you heard it a couple of times you pick it up, appearing in various tracks including 'Jackal's Theme' (with brief soft horns), 'Jackal Returns to Montreal' and in 'Face to Face With the Jackal' where it appears before leading to the stomping face to face attitude in the film. There is also the assassination theme but I guess this is a strange one since its very soft and it appears only once (it could be hidden very carefully in others) but the main attraction is the main theme which appears also the most in the film and score. 'Helsinki' is the first where it appears in full and then it makes wanted statements in many tracks, the best of them being 'Sailing / Operation's Still a Go' and 'End Credits', even here being supported with very light humming choir. This choir is picked up from the previous track which mixes some darker tones while stating the sorrowful nature of 'Valentina's Death', bringing back dissonant touches of Fargo's darker pieces. And the end, only one track stands out from being different from the rest, namely 'Speed Test', which is a progressive track that builds to a darker finale with slight touches of Basil Poledouris in it. The Jackal is a strange kind of action score since it doesn't use any action pieces whatsoever, but I remembered hearing more action like scoring in the picture so this could all have to do with the score. But its a fact that The Jackal is a quite pleasant entry in Burwell's career, bringing neither dark nor action in it to depress any fan that doesn't want it. It has got a easy flowing nature and still stands today as a diversity on its own since it presents its material quite often but it doesn't become repeated listening at all, making perhaps the point that Burwell should do this a bit more often.

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Tracks

Single Disc

1. Moscow (0.39)

2. Nightclub Ruckus (0.50)

3. Helsinki (1.34)

4. Jackal In London (1.19)

5. Weapon Of Choice (1.04)

6. Jackal Arrives In Montreal (1.41)

7. Daclan Mulqueen (2.36)

8. Jackal's Theme (1.02)

9. An Old Family Face (0.27)

10. Daclan & Isabella (1.11)

11. Assassination Theme (1.29)

12. Jackal Returns To Montreal (2.07)

13. Tailing The Jackal / Parking Garage (0.50)

14. Speed Test (3.29)

15. Sailing / Operation's Still A Go (3.20)

16. Face To Face With The Jackal (3.25)

17. Jackal Chase (1.45)

18. En Route To The Target Site (0.53)

19. The Mole Revealed (1.37)

20. Valentina's Death (5.14)

21. End Credits (1.56)

Total Length: 39.06

The use of artwork or photos is posted for non profitable reasons

=== Link to Composer Site: Carter Burwell ===