Warriors of Virtue

Review by Thomas Glorieux:

For a children movie, this score surely sparks and bounces. Don Davis, known today as the one who introduced the world into The Matrix realm of wonder and the one that orchestrated for some of the best composers hasn't scored a lot of movies comparable to the ones he orchestrated for James Horner and Randy Newman. One of the first scores to reach the platform of decency became Bound, the next Warriors of Virtue. You would have to mix a lot of scores of a certain Horner to get what Warriors of Virtue achieves. No kiddie sound and no easy way to the end but orchestral and refined complex adventure music that strikes more rhythm each time you encounter it. Don Davis surely isn't only good in orchestrating but has a certain style for delivering something called exciting movie scores for the genre they acquire. I felt this with The Matrix, Warriors of Virtue is after several listens no difference.

Right from the start we enter Davis / Horner territory with Star Trek property but we surely can not deny the effect a certain adventurous sound of any good old score can do for a specific kids movie. Davis has to have the good old familiar main heroic theme and surely we receive it in prime time fashion. First we encounter why this is not a kids score but an attractive and virtually complex entry of Davis, I discovered that the orchestral score is thematically complex and that Davis hardly searched the easy way, in certain aspects commendable because it feels that you want to discover more of the soundtrack's complex scoring with each occasion. The main theme itself, using the same starting notes of David Michael Frank's theme of A Kid in Aladdin's Palace is definitely the best moment of the score, with its orchestral sound, adventurous feel and main bombastic powerful performance of the orchestra. Expect it in full glory in 'Theme of Tao / The Komodo Dragontrot'. Other moments worth remembering are the soft yet excellent choral magic in 'The Lifespring Rhapsody' and the melodic high art feel in 'Encounter of the Roo Kind'.

In any way, you can not get passed Davis' fantastic scoring technique, hardly the easy listen and surely the treat for more complex orchestral bombast. You don't always accept it but you dig it, you respond with it musically. Davis' hard bombastic force of adventure action music will truly please the ones with 'Chained Melody', 'Tunnel Blades', 'Death of Chung' and 'Marsupial Arabesque'. From the 8th track on the score remains adventurous and offers complex orchestrally packed music. And the treat of the end has to be 'Planet of the Roo-Warriors' with its main theme performance and secondary thematic material. Warriors of Virtue isn't my favorite adventure score but I cannot deny that even a bigger and more complex listen once or twice does miracles. For its achieving effect with the occasional stand out in the movie it must be tremendously exciting and for the highlights on disc it has received a good old orchestral score. Choral I wished it could have been more but the slight use is nonetheless spectacular. Warriors of Virtue is loud, exciting and powerful music but even the soft music listens incredible, not for children but just the kind of thing musical fanatics want on occasions. Warriors of Virtue is definitely a virtuous listen when it calls for some more orchestral sounds of power.

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Tracks

Single Disc

1. Main Title (1.24)

2. Bootleg Left (2.33)

3. Ryan And The Tunnel Of Temptation (3.36)

4. The Vortex And The Dare (4.19)

5. The Wonder Of Tao (2.11)

6. The Force Of Yun (2.20)

7. Mudlap Rap / Elysia's Entrance (1.04)

8. The Lifespring Rhapsody (4.00) Excellent Track

9. Forces Of Nature (4.34) Excellent Track

10. Challenge Of Yun / The Force Of Water (3.16)

11. Rooz Reunited (2.04)

12. Theme Of Tao / The Komodo Dragontrot (3.50)

13. Encounter Of The Roo Kind (1.40) Excellent Track

14. Komodo's Seduction (1.47)

15. The Mudlap Trap (2.34)

16. Chained Melody (5.06)

17. Tunnel Of Blades (2.26)

18. Lesson Of Inner Strength (2.06)

19. Death Of Chung (2.55)

20. Komodo's Fury And Elysia's Redemption (1.53)

21. Farewell To Chung / Mudlap's Remorse (2.33)

22. Marsupial Arabesque (5.04) Excellent Track

23. Planet Of The Roo-Warriors (5.26) Excellent Track

24. Ryan's Strengths (3.02)

Total Length: 72.00

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=== Link to Composer Site: Don Davis ===