Edward Zwick is a director notable for bringing out the best in composers with whom he collaborates: his association with James Horner led to the writing of Glory and Legends of the Fall, two of that composer’s finest scores.
Zwick also collaborated with Hans Zimmer on The Last Samurai (an excellent score indeed), and his most recent projects, Blood Diamond and Defiance, have seen James Newton Howard writing two very diverse, but no less magnificent soundtracks. The former featuring heavy African ethnic elements and blistering action cues, the latter showcasing a subdued, elegantly harmonic attitude of reverence and respect, drenched in Slavic-styled melodies.
Themes in Defiance
Several distinctive themes can be found in Defiance. A brooding, ominous theme for deep bass is heard in “Main Titles,” “Make Them Count,” “Police Station,” and (most dramatically) at the outset of “Nothing is Impossible.” A lighter, softer theme for the romance in the story can be found in “Truvia Kisses Lilka” and “The Bielski Brothers,” while a similar (but more optimistic and uplifting) theme graces portions of “Camp Montage” and “The Bielski Brothers.”
But the most attractive theme, by far, is the swooning, lovely theme on solo violin heard in “Exodus,” “Escaping the Ghetto,” and in the latter halves of “Nothing is Impossible” and “The Bielski Brothers.” The Jewish-flavored melody is slow and incredibly graceful, stunning in spite of (or perhaps because of) its sparse construct. It also receives a very brief but no less winning performance on solo woodwind in the latter halves of “Exodus” and “Nothing is Impossible.” It is easily the most attractive aspect of an otherwise terrific score.
The memorable lyricism of the theme is given exquisite treatment by prominent soloist Joshua Bell, who interprets the theme with remarkable clarity and passion. The churning, bubbling ostinato figures which often accompany the theme are remarkably similar to those found in Howard’s score for M. Night Shyamalan’s The Village (which featured remarkable violin solos by Hilary Hahn), and while the ostinatos in Defiance are not as complex or fully rendered, they are equally attractive.
Standout Cues in Defiance
“The Bielski Otriad” contains a racing action motif featuring thudding percussion, dancing strings and cimbalom (a pleasant surprise!). Moments of dissonant suspense include “Bella and Zus” and “The Wedding.”
The highlight of the score is easily the seven-minute “Nothing is Impossible:” it begins with the brooding “danger” theme, but eventually crescendos into a powerful, gorgeous and arresting statement of the main theme (again performed by Joshua Bell). The album closes with the graceful “The Bielski Brothers,” which ends softly with the traditional Jewish tune “Ikh Bin A Mame” on solo piano.
Conclusion
Defiance is a simple, subdued, quietly magnificent score. Its beauty and reverence belies its sparse composition, and repeat listens are encouraged: the score does not feature flashy, obvious themes or dense orchestration. It will not take much attention to fully appreciate and explore: just a hand on the volume control for the quieter moments and an appreciation for sublime violin solos. Highly recommended.
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