Filmtracks Traffic Rank: #188
Written 12/16/98, Revised 7/22/07
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Buy it... only if you are familiar with and enjoy John Williams'
similarly subdued character drama scores for small ensembles in the late
1980's.
Avoid it... if you expect any lasting impression to be made by this
safely warm, but ultimately fluffy and mundane replacement score.
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| Williams |
Stepmom: (John Williams) Few films with such an
accomplished cast and crew have failed in such totality as
Stepmom. It's a movie that proves that no matter how wide a range
of talent you hire for your film, everything can be derailed by a team
of five screenwriters who don't know the meaning of the word 'subtlety.'
The story of Stepmom depicts Susan Sarandon as the divorced
mother of two children with Ed Harris. When Harris brings home Julie
Roberts, the kids have to deal with the new mother and the friction
between Sarandon and Roberts. The film never tries to hide the fact that
it blatantly jerks those tears from its viewers. Director Chris Columbus
made it clear at the time, interestingly, that a trusting relationship
with his composers for each film is of paramount importance. He placed
his trust in reliable British composer Patrick Doyle for Stepmom,
who struggled through serious illness to write a heavily melodramatic
score for the film. Unfortunately, Columbus didn't return the trust to
Doyle. Film Score Monthly reported at the time that John Williams, after
being delighted by an advanced screening of the film, used his
reputation as muscle to push Doyle out the door. This is highly unlikely
in its confrontational stance, but it's certainly possible that
circumstances presented themselves in such a way that Williams' arrival
was more than just convenient. Columbus had worked with Williams before
(Home Alone) and would do so again (Harry Potter), and
given Williams' open schedule at the time, it's hard to imagine why
Williams wasn't originally assigned to Stepmom. Another
head-scratcher is the tone of Williams' score; if Columbus and his
writers were so intent on pulling the strings on the audience's emotions
at regular intervals, then why not explore the more syrupy sound for a
score? It seems that Doyle was perhaps simply reacting to what he saw on
screen and writing music to match. Conversely, Williams' score is better
tempered and possibly an attempt by Columbus to tone back the obviously
overt emotions of the film. A score from the maestro hasn't been this
restrained and conventional since the days of Stanley & Iris,
The Accidental Tourist, and Always in the late
1980's.
The most interesting aspect of Williams' work for
Stepmom is just how little family and holiday spirit exists in
this score. No soaring splendor or light, Christmas-inspired percussion
is to be heard, despite the holiday setting of the film. Instead,
Williams approaches the film with a very soft touch, recording a mundane
and safe crowd-pleaser that will be a much easier listening experience
for most people than his
Saving Private Ryan music from earlier
in the year. The score embraces a warmth and coziness that had been
lacking in many of Williams' epic and dramatic efforts of the decade. As
per usual at the time, he teamed up with a distinguished and talented
soloist for
Stepmom, and the resulting performances by
Christopher Parkening on guitar produce some superb tones to relax the
soul. Even though he only contributes to about one third of the music in
the film, his performances overshadow the lengthy atmospheric
meanderings of piano, solo woodwind, and electronic chimes. The title
theme takes time to fully extrapolate and appreciate;
Stepmom has
no single catchy moment. The mass majority of its underscore is offered
by dreamy electronics and an orchestral string section under one of the
aforementioned soloists. The few moments of lively personality are
almost detractions from the consistency of the album. The rambling
electronic baseline and dissonance in "The Soccer Game" will remind of
JFK and
Sleepers. The pompous, classical scherzo for
"Isabel's Horse and Buggy" is a cute play by Williams, though perhaps
itself a little to obvious. The remainder of the score is a frivolous,
light-hearted, and not distinctly memorable listening experience. Hints
of this score would manipulated to far greater heights in the early
portions of
A.I. Artificial Intelligence a few years later.
Technically, the guitar is mixed very well with the ensemble. On album,
a source song from yesteryear separates most of the score from its
largely reprised "End Credits." Overall, the lack of distinctive
personality in Williams' music here, although pleasant, has caused many
film score fans to continue seeking the ever-elusive recordings of Pat
Doyle for the film, despite their lack of success in the passing
decade.
*** @Amazon.com: CD or
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Bias Check:
For John Williams reviews at Filmtracks, the average editorial rating is 3.68
(in 91 reviews) and the average viewer rating is 3.54
(in 363,716 votes). The maximum rating is 5 stars.
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