"We Are Marshall" is a film that deals with a tragic situation and the triumphant recovery thereafter.  Specifically, the utter loss of an entire football team to a plane crash is the stuff of nightmares and one can hardly imagine being caught in the midst of such loss. The movie tackles this event and does so by dealing with the recovery of the football program and the people involved.  Whether the critics are correct or not about this being turned into formulaic Hollywood scripting is not for me to decide, but what I can say about the score is relevant.

 

Christophe Beck is a relative necomer to the world of film music but that doesn't stop him from creating a score that is both moving and in balance for "We Are Marshall."  The music follows the course of the script, going from football to tragedy and then to revitalized hope.  He begins with crafting a theme for the film that opens the soundtrack up. It's not a complicated theme nor is it full of syrup.  Instead, it's a light motif that instills hopefulness to the listener and the proceedings around which it covers.

 

There is plenty of satisfaction to the music, some of which is when the music offers collegiate band music to accompany the football action on the screen.  This type of music first emerges in one of the earlier contests, presumably when the Marshall team was at first intact.  It carries over later in the score when the reassembled team takes flight and this is when Beck's originality really shines through.  The pep of the college band gives way to a statement of the film's orchestral theme, offering a very unique transition and use of instrument style.  For me to pick one of the highlights, this would be it.

 

Other areas of strength within the score is the balance of it, simply put.  One can hear a clear direction and focus at work since the music travels across many differing moods given the circumstances.  Above all else, however, the feeling of hope resonates from the music.  There was a real danger that the flow of the music could have been too derivative but Beck ensures this doesn't happen by his style of writing.  Indeed, one can tell that he had studied under Jerry Goldsmith for a time as the music is strategically assembled and punctuates itself at all the appropriate moments.

 

The Varese Sarabande release is an un typically generous one as far as running times go.  The sound quality of the orchestra is also wonderful and makes for a smooth listening experience.  it's always rewarding when all the instruments are aligned and operating in harmony.

 

Overall, this is a very worthwhile purchase.  I admit, I wasn't sure of what to expect going in as I had thought the film's production staff would have opted for music that offered a heavy margin of underscore and filler music for the football games.  That is, after all, how the majority of composers seem to be saddled in movies these days.  Pleasantly, though, this is far from the case in "We Are Marshall."  One listen will give you clear indication why Beck thinks this is his most rewarding score to date.  With the impact it had on me, I would have to agree.

 

Final Score: Christophe Beck paces the movie with a touching, balanced score that is very enjoyable to listen to and is deserving of attention.