Filmtracks Traffic Rank: #1,553
Written 12/29/15
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Buy it... if you are patient enough to appreciate an introspective
and intelligent treatment of a film about suspenseful anticipation,
Thomas Newman replacing John Williams with more than capable results.
Avoid it... if you await extroversion in more than just a few
highlights of this score, a work defined by its ability to set a
conservative pace rather than outwardly influence the core emotions of
the story.
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| Newman |
Bridge of Spies: (Thomas Newman) Director and
producer Steven Spielberg is among the few movie-makers who can still
manage to turn a sizable profit on an intellectual, character-driven
World War II espionage film lacking much physical excitement. The story
of 2015's Bridge of Spies falls into the "hurry up and wait"
category of inertia, detailing a cat and mouse game between the
American, Soviet, and East German governments in the early 1960's as
they ultimately succeed in arranging a famed three-man prisoner swap at
the Glienicke Bridge in Berlin. The negotiator on behalf of America's
CIA was unassuming attorney James Donovan, an insurance settlement
specialist who became involved in the story due to his unexpected but
spirited representation of the Soviet spy captured in the late 1950's
and eventually used as collateral in the Berlin exchange. That swap is
best known for its return of American pilot Francis Gary Powers after
his U-2 spy plane was shot down over the Soviet Union. The plot of
Bridge of Spies follows Donovan's experiences throughout his
involvement with these spies, the character portrayed with dignity by
Tom Hanks. The pacing of the film requires involvement in the political
and human processes of the back and forth between cultures and
ideologies, and what few critical complaints existed about the film
typically pointed to this slow movement. With the help of the
Spielberg/Hanks name power, however, Bridge of Spies was a fiscal
success and marginal awards bait. For film music enthusiasts, the
project originally marked the continuation of the director's
collaboration with composer John Williams, though the maestro's
deteriorating heart condition required installation of a pacemaker that,
in conjunction with his busy schedule writing and recording three hours
of immense music for Star Wars: The Force Awakens, precluded his
involvement with this picture. This despite the very minimal spotting of
music in the film. Spielberg then turned to Thomas Newman to write the
short score for Bridge of Spies, a logical choice given Newman's
lineage, reputation, and connections to Williams. Questions then arose
about how Newman would handle the project, and, more specifically,
whether Spielberg would allow him to write a quintessential "Tom Newman"
score rather than simply emulate Williams. In the end, while there are
stylistic similarities in some techniques between Williams' past efforts
(namely JFK) and Newman's music, perhaps due to specific
instructions from Spielberg that remain consistent regardless of
composer, the resulting score is almost pure Newman.
For listeners that had not witnessed a Spielberg film
without a Williams score since
The Color Purple, Newman's
achievement should be considered a relief at the very least. There are
definitely strong connections between Newman's approach to
Bridge of
Spies and his more subdued portions of
Road to Perdition,
How to Make An American Quilt, and
Saving Mr. Banks, but
he accomplishes this extension of style without simply regurgitating
past music, as he did disappointingly earlier in 2015 with
The Second
Best Exotic Marigold Hotel. Still, although this work is certain to
please enthusiasts of Newman's Americana mode of operation, be
forewarned that there are still plenty of influences from his dissonant
and disillusioned side utilizing unconventional instrumentation, from
glassy and metallic ensemble effects to outright manipulation of voice
and other sounds for suspense. It's perhaps unnecessary to mention that
Newman joins his orchestral ensemble with a dulcimer and balalaikas for
this environment, the former a staple of his style, but it is intriguing
to hear the openly straightforward use of choir in this work. His
insertion of deep male chorus for the Soviet interests in several cues
is a little obvious but handled in the same stutter-step format that
defines much of the rest of the score. The pacing of the music is key,
emulating the film's "stop and go" anxiousness with Newman's normal,
prickly string rhythms, the emphasis on chopping determining the level
of angst in any given scene. His patience motif is introduced in "Rain"
and extends to two later cues (including the opening of the end titles),
eventually building to the string pulsations after an effective,
precise, and nervous piano sequence. The Russian motif is more
stereotypically static in its applications, solidifying into an extended
performance only in the end titles as well. The heart of the score is
Newman's sympathetic, nostalgic string theme for Donovan, heard first in
the middle of "Sunlit Silence" and employing increasingly redemptive
layers until its natural conclusion in "Homecoming." There requires
significant patience and survival of the challenging ambience of "Lt.
Francis Gary Powers" before the narrative payoff in the final two cues
prior to the end titles, a lengthy pair highlighted by the moment of
prideful success with militaristic flair late in "Glienicke Bridge."
Casual listeners may be best served sampling the "Bridge of Spies (End
Title)" track rather than the entire score for a sense of its three
major motifs and the somewhat lurching pacing that the whole exudes.
Depending on your mood for this type of introspective thriller music
with a wholesome bent,
Bridge of Spies could be a three-star or
four-star effort, though given its smart match for the film, the latter
rating is fairer for the patient listener.
**** @Amazon.com: CD or
Download
Bias Check:
For Thomas Newman reviews at Filmtracks, the average editorial rating is 3.14
(in 37 reviews) and the average viewer rating is 3.18
(in 60,837 votes). The maximum rating is 5 stars.
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