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“Vastly more engaging than his Oscar nominated
score for THE QUEEN, Alexander Desplat's work for THE PAINTED VEIL
settles down beneath striking cinematography, on-point-acting, and
engaging directing to be one of the more effective dramatic scores
for a period-film in recent memory. ”
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Subtly Satisfying
Review By Christopher
Coleman
Slipping under the
2006-Awards-wire, came
the Warner Independent
film THE PAINTED VEIL.
The film being adapted
from the 1925 book by
W. Somerset Maugham,
tells the tale of one
Kitty Fane and her
journey of
self-discovery - a
journey which took her
from England to Hong
Kong and back again.
On the way, she learns
of the pains of love,
of life and of death.
Aside from the clear
abilities of stars and
produdcers Edward
Norton and Naomi
Watts, the talents of
screewriter, Ron
Nyswaner, director
John Curran, and
composer Alexander
Desplat combined to
deliver one of 2006's
finest films. Another
fine film
mysteriously and
totally ignored by The
Academy.
Alexander Desplat's
work for THE PAINTED
VEIL is subtly
satisfying. This
particular effort from
Desplat ranges from
the oddly,
contemporary title
theme, to the light
and
introspective "Kitty's
Theme", to the
romantic, "River
Waltz." As the story
centers around two
westerners, it
shouldn't seem too
strange that the score
is predominantly
western. Then again,
given that the
majority of the film
is set in China, it
might considered a
little strange that a
stronger eastern
presence isn't felt in
the score. Perhaps
this peculiarity is
intentional, as one of
the subplots of the
film being the tension
between Western
Imperialists with
their "new ways" and
the Chinese and their
ancient ways. All in
all, its a score that
does its job well
enough on screen and
has some playability
as a stand-alone
soundtrack. At
the risk of reading a
bit too much into the
instrumentation,
perhaps, just as the
culture of the Chinese
is being overrun and
ignored by the
British, so the
Chinese culture is
overrun by western in
the construction of
the music.
The film starts with
some of the most
engaging opening
titles of the last
year underscored by
Desplat's suprisingly
modern, title theme.
The title theme
manages to evoke
images of Dean Witter
or New York Life
television commercials
more than it does
1920's England or
China...at least it
does for the first 45
seconds. After a
pensive start, one of
the few doses
of Eastern flavor is
performed as a chorus
of woodwinds join the
piano, percussion and
strings. The piece
evolves from a
business-freneticism
dominated by jittery
piano and percussion
to an organic, nearly
primitive mix of deep
percussion and
languishing string
work. Desplat's title
theme is re-arranged
and used effectively
and frequently
throughout the score.
It's difficult to call
it a secondary theme
as "River Waltz" (4)
functions as the
love-theme of the film
and THE PAINTED VEIL,
in the end, could be
called a complicated
romance.
Interestingly, the
complexities of the
plot are reflected in
the nuances of
Alexander Desplat's
waltz. As portrayed
in the film, it is
this waltz that plays
as the two main
characters meet and
share their first
dance at a
sophisticated English
party. It might be
best to say that the
title theme represents
intense,
borderline-chaotic
surrounds of the
characters of Walter
and Kitty, while the
waltz represents the
emotions that run
between them.
Two solid themes like
the title theme and
River Waltz, might
have been enough, but
THE PAINTED VEIL
features one more
significant theme
which adds another
intriguing dimension
to the score. Kitty's
Theme (5) played on
woodwinds and piano
meanders from
innocent, to sorrowful
to playful. Here
Alexander Desplat
creates a theme that
initially represents
the childish,
self-centered Kitty of
England and then
later, the
maturing-Kitty who has
truly learned
selfless-love in
"Mourning Tears"
(15). The latter
rendition being a much
sadder version than
the first, omitting
the brightness of the
piano completely.
Aside from these
strong themes, there
are a number of other
high points on the
soundtrack. Composer
Erik Satie's slow
tempoed, "Gnossienne
No. 1" (2) further
develops the somber
mystery presented in
the film's first act.
"The Water Wheel" (7)
and "The Convent" (13)
are both uptempo and
bright - helping to
bring some emotional
balance to the
soundtrack. "Cholera"
(16) is menacing piece
- dark and
purposeful. Finally, there
is a significant
difference between the
film and the
soundtrack release by
Grammaphone. The
track "From Shanghai
to London" (19) is not
used in the film at
all. Oddly enough,
one of the happier and
more enjoyable pieces
on the soundtrack is
replaced in the film.
The track brings
Kitty's Theme into
that more pensive and
"corporate" feel of
the title theme. As
far as the
storytelling goes, it
makes perfect sense as
the character now
returns home to
England from China...a
completely changed
woman. In the film, a
vocal piece is used; a
French, vocal piece.
Aside from the French
nuns in the film, and
the fact that
Alexander Desplat is
half-French, and since
my 2 years of French
classes have long
faded from any useful
memory, any clear
connection between the
scene and this song
was lost on me.
Still, kudos for
Grammaphone for
including the
orchestral piece
instead.
THE PAINTED VEIL
brought home the
Golden Globe award for
Best Original Score
yet somehow the film
has avoided a single
nomination by the
Academy. In a year
that can't be called
one of the strongest
nominee classes in
recent memory, it is
more mystery that THE
PAINTED VEIL has gone
so neglected...it's a
crime. Vastly more
engaging than his
Oscar nominated score
for THE QUEEN,
Alexander Desplat's
work for THE PAINTED
VEIL settles down
beneath striking
cinematography,
on-point-acting, and
engaging directing to
be one of the more
effective dramatic
scores for a period
film in recent
memory. Featuring the
talents of pianist
Lang Lang, Desplat's
subtle score does it
job well without
calling too much
attention to itself.
While it is more
"western" than
"eastern" and more
contemporary than
"period," the
peculiarly weighted
components of the is
score work nicely.
Rating: 7/10
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Track |
Track Title |
Track Time |
Rating |
|
1 |
The Painted Veil |
3:19 |
**** |
|
2 |
Gnossienne
No 1 (Erik
Satie
1866-1925 |
3:24 |
*** |
|
3 |
Colony
Club |
2:09 |
**** |
|
4 |
River
Waltz |
2:24 |
**** |
|
5 |
Kitty's
Theme |
3:08 |
*** |
| 6 |
Death Convoy |
2:50 |
*** |
| 7 |
The Water Wheel |
6:21 |
**** |
| 8 |
The Lovers |
1:27 |
*** |
| 9 |
Promenade |
2:06 |
*** |
| 10 |
Kitty's Journey |
2:51 |
*** |
| 11 |
The Deal |
3:23 |
*** |
| 12 |
Walter's Mission |
3:57 |
**** |
| 13 |
The Convent |
0:52 |
**** |
| 14 |
River Waltz |
2:27 |
*** |
| 15 |
Morning Tears |
1:52 |
*** |
| 16 |
Cholera |
4:23 |
**** |
| 17 |
The End of Love |
4:36 |
*** |
| 18 |
The Funeral |
0:53 |
*** |
| 19 |
From Shanghai to London |
2:03 |
**** |
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Total Running Time (approx) |
54 minutes |
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