Alan Silvestri is a composer who I think is extremely talented and excels at writing family-friendly music. I was not surprised to see his name attached to "Night at the Museum." I'm unsure why the original composer for the film (John Ottman) was unable to work on it, but a sturdy replacement was ushered in with Silvestri's presence.
Before the first note was written and the synopsis for the film was available, you couldn't help but to let your imagination dwell on the interesting sequences that the film could offer musically. I was looking forward to hearing this one out!
This score is equal parts enjoyment and frustration. The enjoyment comes in during brief snippets of excellent score material from most cues while the frustration emerges from the perpetual 'stop and go' technique that was necessary to pace the film. With so many set pieces and varying sequences from differing historical times, I'm sure this might have been equally as frustrating for Silvestri to tackle as well. At the very least, it must have posed challenges to the musical approach he had to take.
The score offers plenty of orchestral flavors to sample. The listener is strapped alongside the main character for a very colorful oddesy in a very unusual museum! This is not one of your run of the mill field trips. Given the story's variety, you won't be surprised to hear that many of the tracks on this soundtrack have a fairly short running time. Since many of the scenes probably transpire at a quick pace, the music had to function appropriately in the background. Again, this plays into the difficulties I had in listening to this score, consistently feeling an abrupt change of pace. Another note of frustration is when Silvestri gets a really nice thematic sequence going and then is suddenly forced to stop it on a dime. I almost wish I could change the script just to hear how some of these segments would develop!
Aside from the pacing challenges I've mentioned, there are some themes and motifs that are used throughout the soundtrack that help bridge the musical segments together. This is established during the opening track when we first hear the main theme of the album. There is also what I will call a 'prancing' motif that we hear in the score; it's a light, comical bit of work that bounces along gingerly. I could easily imagine someone tip-toeing through a museum to music such as this! Any time a composer can help you envision a relevant sequence just by the music, then he or she is doing their job effectively.
Final Score: I recommend this one but only if you approach it with knowledge of what to expect. You'll enjoy the music, but only if you are prepared to make some quick and abrupt stops with it along the way. If only Silvestri had more room to grow the music, than I would have definitely given this one a higher mark. In the end, just try to enjoy it for what it is.
