"Hidalgo"

"Hidalgo"
Composed by James Newton Howard
Audio Clips: Sandstorm | The Final Three

I am always enthusiastic when I see that one of my favorite composers takes on a genre where he will have a bit of freedom to develop grand themes and sweeping action cues. James Newton Howard has taken on the glaciers of “Vertical Limit”, the wastelands of “The Postman” and the oceanic apacolopyse of “Waterworld”, but this is the first time, at least from what I know, that he was able to mold an Arabian flavored score. He was finally able to take on the desert! Needlessly to say, this is a score I had in my sights for a good, long while. His middle-eastern influence for “Hidalgo” makes its presence felt, however, it’s the rest of the score that proves to be a bit disappointing.

The musical journey begins with a western motif in the opening two tracks, both of which come across as a mere formality, setting the stage for the ethnically driven soundscapes of the vast desert. The subtlety that Howard employs with the ethnic instrumentation is nice, and overall, the music plays very smooth and crisp. However, I don’t know if my ears were betraying me but the score just wasn’t winning me over ina convincing manner. Was it possible that after all the years of listening to soundtracks that I had lost the ability to be won over? After fleeing my panic ridden thoughts, I realized that was ridiculous. “Hidalgo” just didn’t have enough uniqueness in its themes to keep my interest.

The action music plays out rather well, especially in the middle tracks, reminding one of the aforementioned “Vertical Limit”, but, Howard has done better than this. While I am sure it fits the moving picture well, it just doesn’t whisk one’s imagination away to distant lands while listening to it out of the context of the movie.

Howard always finds a way to come through in some capacity though, and that is the case again as the score concludes with two if the best tracks on the score. Coupling both exciting passages and slower, sweeter melodies, the finale of the score offers a different scope than the rest of the music. It kind of gives us a glimpse into what the score could have been.

All in all, Howard on auto pilot is more captivating than the flock of generic scores that come out of the market I would recommend this soundtrack to JNH fans, and those who enjoy slightly above action-adventure scores for their attention.

A mild disappointment, but still worth a listen!

1.Main Titles (3:14)
2. Don't Waste Our Money 2:08)
3. Arriving in the Desert (2:54)
4. Morning of the Race (2:53)
5. The Race Begins (1:68)
6. The Second Half (2:23)
7. Sandstorm (1:52)
8. Frank Pushes On (1:54)
9. Katib (2:18)
10. Montage (6:52)
11. The Trap (3:17)
12. The Last Push (3:08)
13. The Final Three (5:16)
14. Let "Er Buck (4:53)

** Note - The running time for Track 5 is not a typo...it really is listed at 1:68!

Audio Clips: Sandstorm | The Final Three

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