Product Description The Brothers Grimm by Dario Marianelli .com Dario Marianelli has come up for a fitting soundtrack for an adventure movie set in a world overflowing with mysterious, fantastical events: Somber, haunted with golden-age ghosts, this CD harks back to classic Hollywood scores. Actually, it harks back even further since Bizet seems to be among Marianelli's influences. The very beginning of "The Queen Awakens" winks at the French composer's Carmen. Echoes of Bizet pop up early in "The Queen's Story" as well, before the track takes a turn into Max Steiner territory. Indeed, it's fun to trace the composers Marianelli honors--and at least he looks up to the greats, as exemplified by the Bernard Herrmann-esque screechy strings in "Muddy." Elsewhere, "The Eclipse Begins" starts off with a direct quote from Rossini's The Thieving Magpie before switching gears and later incorporating the haunting vocals of no, not Lisa Gerrard, but eery soundalike Dessislava Stefanova, from Bulgaria. Sure, it all feels a bit derivative after a while, but it's also well-crafted and perfectly appropriate for the film's tone. And Marianelli is also capable of stirring things up on his own: "The Forest Comes to Life" is epic in length and scope, taking the listener through one storm after another, each one having greater intensity than the one before. --Elisabeth Vincentelli
R**L
Quality neo-gothic thrills
Saw this movie in the theaters, thought the music worked well, and then forgot all about it. I recently read a good review over at "Filmtracks", and even though I'd never heard any other music by the composer, I took a chance on it. Glad I did. It's rooted in the classical tradition, but also has a nice "modern ghost story" vibe to it. The synthetic instrumentation and "spooky effects" never get in the way of the music, and it is enjoyable even after repeated listens. A very good "neo-gothic" thriller soundtrack. I'm going to queue it up on Halloween for sure, and I'll definitely look for more albums from this composer.
V**R
The film is quite flawed and has its great moments, but the score is beautiful
Very evocative of fantasy and magic, partly due to the composer's use of the Rimsky Korsakov scale, which is supernatural in effect by nature. The film is quite flawed and has its great moments, but the score is beautiful.
K**A
Quality-Packed Soundtrack!
Brilliant tracks. There are a lot of variations in the mood and the speed, and the songs aren't "dull" or just "background music" like some soundtracks can be. I highly recommend it!
A**N
I listen every chance I get-
I love the music, mood setting for sure. The quality of the music is outstanding.
K**A
We love this music!
After seeing the movie we just had to have the sound track! Really unique stuff. If you are a lover of all music then you will enjoy this!
A**A
Dark marches galore
Dario Marianelli has made a name for himself with this dark, march-heavy, orchestral score to "The Brothers Grimm". Had the movie opened big Dario would have been widely popular and perhaps given an Oscar nod for his work here."Dickensian Beginnings" starts off a bit mellow with low strings playing a soft, slow intro before the dark march begins to take over. The main theme makes its presence known after the loud brassy interruption to the soft opening."Red Riding Hood" starts off with the xylophone Red Riding Hood theme but immediately becomes dark with the presence of evil as something chases Red Riding Hood."The Forest Comes to Life" is the longest track of the album and by far the darkest. The strings are eerie and spooky. The Red Riding Hood theme is present for a while. A chorus adds to the scary tension built by a dark march for the forest. We also hear the theme for the Brothers Grimm in this track.I could go on but you get the picture. The stand-out track is "The Forest Comes to Life" because it contains most of the themes of the album and because of its masterful composition.With this score you can get an idea of what Dario is penning for "V for Vendetta."This score is a keeper. Purchase it to enjoy one of the few hidden surprises of 2005. Dario hit the ground running with this one and "Pride and Prejudice" [which he's nominated for an Oscar].I look forward to his upcoming projects.
N**N
Great score
If you, like me, are pretty unfamiliar with the name Dario Marianelli -- don't worry about it! Pick up the score anyway. This one won't go down in the books as one of the all-time great movie scores, but it is quite an impressive effort, especially coming from a relatively unknown composer. This is a loud, full-blooded gothic fantasy score, richly thematic, thickly orchestrated, and overall simply massive -- you certainly get your money's worth with 72 minutes of music. (Plus it's got some amusing track titles.) Innovative this score is not -- but then, neither was Cutthroat Island, and no one was complaining about that one. And while this score isn't as awesome as Cutthroat Island, it's certainly one of the very best film scores so far this year, along with efforts by such masters of the medium as John Williams and Ennio Morricone and other relative newcomer Alexandre Desplat.I can't wait to see what Marianelli does with V for Vendetta and Pride and Prejudice later this year, but until then we can be glad we've got this satisfying score! Definitely check it out.
R**Z
Worth it
Though Dario Marianelli is not -yet- one of the most known soundtrack composers, he is not the first italian to succeed in the buisness. In my opinion, the soundtrack is actually much better than the movie itself. The score is great, with a gothic envirnment in every track, very rich in sounds, and some really great melodies. It's defenetely worth your money. Besides, this is defenetely not the last time we see Marianelli around.
