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FILMTRACKS.COM
PRINTER-FRIENDLY VIEW 
Review of Eagle Eye (Brian Tyler)
FILMTRACKS RECOMMENDS:
Buy it... if workmanlike techno-thriller and chase scores of
frenetic pacing and smart electronic and orchestral mixing enthrall you
in even their most predictable incarnations.
Avoid it... if similar scores from the career of John Powell have never distinguished themselves from the realm of generic blockbuster noise to warrant a 75+ minute listening experience.
FILMTRACKS EDITORIAL REVIEW:
Eagle Eye: (Brian Tyler) There periodically exist
films that remind seasoned movie-going veterans that mass audiences will
typically fall for predictably dumb stories simply because of an
intriguing premise and slick advertising. Director D.J. Caruso's
Eagle Eye is exactly that kind of film, posing yet another
variation on the Big Brother story involving technology that includes
such varied Gene Hackman films as The Conversation and Enemy
of the State. The technological advancement in the script of
Eagle Eye attempt to cover for the deficiencies inherent in its
haphazard movements and fallacies of logic, and while the concept of two
ordinary youngsters on the run for and from unknown entities was enough
to rouse a stirring response at the box office, critics saw through the
rapid cuts on the editing table and exposed the film for what it is: one
long, shameless excuse for a chase. What would happen, on a side note,
if the everyday people in these films ignored random, strange phone
calls telling them what they have to do? What if they casually ate a
sandwich instead? It's the kind of production that would lend itself
well to the style of composer John Powell, veteran of the The Bourne
Identity films and countless other, far less impressive
chase-inspired endeavors. Despite his lack of involvement in Eagle
Eye, however, we still hear a score that largely resembles his
typical style for this genre, courtesy of the talented, but continuously
underachieving Brian Tyler. Perhaps more than any other young composer
skirting the edges of A-list artistry in the industry, Tyler has spent
the 2000's compiling the kind of career that frustrates with its
inability to live up to the flashes of remarkable ability that he has
shown in a minority of his works.
There is definitely a place for films like Eagle Eye in Tyler's career; after all, if he's going to so accurately emulate the sound of Powell for this kind of situation, then why not throw some guilty pleasures like Powell's strong score for the equally substandard Paycheck into his own career, picking up a healthy paycheck of his own along the way? Scores like these are exercises in noise, and as the era of Media Ventures and Remote Control has proven time and time again, any number of properly synthesizer-equipped amateurs can produce a basic sound that satisfies producers and audiences of the genre. Sometimes, the popularity of such relatively mindless music is frightful. The question is this: does Eagle Eye join the few rambunctious orchestral/electronic blends that stands head and shoulders above the crowded field of entries? In almost every cue, Tyler makes an attempt to elevate this work to the realm of memorability, though ultimately, in the process of complicating the orchestral lines and cranking up the volume, all he really accomplishes is a very competent imitation of a typical Powell work in the same genre. There is much owed to the genesis of Hans Zimmer's influence back in the 1990's as well. The title theme is an easy, rising figure that reminds of several Media Ventures scores of an era past, with a brass performance in "Eagle Eye" that actually rips an entire phrase from Zimmer's memorable Crimson Tide theme. Underneath the theme is an ostinato that frantically chops on strings as though Jason Bourne was a character in this film, and Tyler even tones back the action for a moment in "Honor" to pay tribute to the kind of simplistically optimistic thematic statement that you have heard in everything from Trevor Rabin's Armageddon to Steve Jablonsky's Transformers (in fact, there are even pulsating strings present from the former score late in "Honor"). At times, as in "Escape" and "Clutch Then Shift," Tyler attempts to build upon the density heard in his Aliens Vs. Predator: Requiem work, though with this score so consistent in tone and the album release so overwhelmingly long, he ultimately bashes you over the head with the same idea to the point where you may as well have watched the actual chase scenes to help distract you from the obvious attempts to use the music as a basic tool for adrenaline production. The score never evens out in its presentation of themes to give you sections of satisfying statement like those that are heard in Children of Dune or Timeline, both of which maintain significantly greater doses of style than Eagle Eye. All of that said, though, Tyler's workmanlike task here is accomplished well, and if you appreciate extremely consistent scores that maintain frenetic levels of orchestral excitement for lengthy periods of time (as some of Powell's equivalents accomplish), then this will be a rewarding experience. As usual, Tyler's balancing of orchestral and synthetic elements is smart. Varied percussive effects help a dynamic soundscape that is rooted in the power of deep strings. Softer, rock-like tones in "Copyboy" and "Eagle Eye End Title" show the composer's ease in bending genres for the occasion. Overall, though, unless you're a fan of this very specific, predictable sound for the contemporary techno-thriller, then you'll be left only appreciating the merits of Tyler's complicated rendering while the uncompromising tone unwittingly gives you a headache. You can't really fault Tyler for providing this music for such an appropriate match on screen, but he has the ability to take these sounds to another level of intrigue without simply cranking up the intensity of his constructs and laying on the volume. In terms of substance, it's fine; in style points, it fails to impress. ***
TRACK LISTINGS:
Total Time: 77:19
NOTES & QUOTES:
The insert includes a list of performers, but no extra information about
the score or film.
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The reviews and other textual content contained on the filmtracks.com site may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of Christian Clemmensen at Filmtracks Publications. All artwork and sound clips from Eagle Eye are Copyright © 2008, Varèse Sarabande and cannot be redistributed without the label's expressed written consent. Page created 10/27/08 (and not updated significantly since). |
