Braveheart

Review by Thomas Glorieux:

You can hardly tell but James Horner re created his mastery of Legends of the Fall with Braveheart. Simply replace the powerful sound with Scottish flair and the main theme with a beautiful love theme and you witness all the right sounds, all the perfect touches and simply another Horner classic. A classic that puts emotion and beauty together into one amazing design. The movie was rewarded with Oscars and one that basically made the movie such a success was sadly denied of its pride. Il Postino might have its charm, it simply vaporizes in an instant when Horner starts composing the gorgeous rhythms of Braveheart, making sure that people will witness why he is still one of the best composers on earth today. If he sticks with his own style and doesn't re use much of score you can rest assured that soundtracks like these will live forever. They make film music a special and unforgettable experience. Horner created one of his ever best themes for Braveheart, and I'm not talking about the main theme (which of course is brilliant on its own) but the main love theme. It has been used in countless trailers and is regarded as one of the most emotional composed pieces on earth. Still, it isn't the only thing that shines when you hear the music. The Scottish drum rhythms, the pure emotion Horner puts in his music, the feeling of rage and anger that accompany the battle scenes. It is just this that makes the movie such a brilliant epic on its own.

Mel Gibson knew exactly what he wanted of Horner namely a score that portrays all the inner emotions of a true warrior. And Horner delivered this with The London Symphony Orchestra at his disposal and a captivating choral performance of The Choristers of Westminster Abbey. Together they breath more emotion to life then Luis Enrique Bacalov's score might ever dream about, making sure that the Award board screwed things up quite good, again. When you look at the facts there is no point denying the brilliance. This entire score floats by without you ever missing a thing. Your concentration picks up the variety and different sounds within a second. This is extremely important for a 78 minute long time running score, making sure you don't miss a moment of brilliance just waiting to emerge at the corner. 'The Secret Wedding' is extremely soft when you compare it with Legends of the Fall's broad sweeping sound but the emotion maintains its status and you can only listen and feel the glory of Horner's music. 'Attack on Murron' is exceptional and uses some brilliant pieces (found in trailers of Titanic and the second LOTR), though it isn't a highlight in my eyes. 'Revenge' sounds just like Legends of the Fall and this is repeated in other tracks such as 'Betrayal & Desolation' and 'Mornay's Dream'.

Emotion runs high with 'Freedom / The Execution Bannockburn' and 'End Credits'. This final offers some of the best film music ever heard. And the Scottish drum rhythms of 'Making Plans / Gathering the Clans' and 'The Legend Spreads' links Braveheart with Titanic. But in all the glory of Horner's score we still haven't heard the finest moment, namely 'For the Love of a Princess'. Hearts melt and emotions weep when Horner introduces us to one of his all time best creations of film music. At the end of the entire score it is this mesmerizing moment of beauty that will be remembered as the pinnacle of Horner's career. The 78 minutes never bore and once you wait long enough before listening to it again, it brings the magic back to life like that. Braveheart stands proud and tall among all the other Horner scores such as Apollo 13, Legends of the Fall and Titanic. Together they become the best emotional high charged efforts of the last decade. It is without a doubt to say that Horner deserves 3 Oscars more then he has today, and true music fans know that I'm not telling a lie. Braveheart remains pure artistic mastery and it brings the best out of the movie. In the end it makes my recommendation just as pure as my quotation at the end of this review.

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Tracks

Single Disc

1. Main Title (2.50)

2. A Gift Of A Thistle (1.37)

3. Wallace Courts Murron (4.25)

4. The Secret Wedding (6.33) Excellent Track

5. Attack On Murron (3.00)

6. Revenge (6.23)

7. Murron's Burial (2.13)

8. Making Plans / Gathering The Clans (1.51) Excellent Track

9. "Sons Of Scotland" (6.19)

10. The Battle Of Stirling (5.57) Excellent Track

11. For The Love Of A Princess (4.07) Excellent Track

12. Falkirk (4.04)

13. Betrayal & Desolation (7.47) Excellent Track

14. Mornay's Dream (1.15)

15. The Legend Spreads (1.09)

16. The Princess Pleads For Wallace's Life (3.37)

17. "Freedom" / The Execution Bannockburn (7.24) Excellent Track

18. End Credits (7.14) Excellent Track

Total Length: 77.57

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

=== Link to Composer Site: James Horner ===