Public Enemies Soundtrack Review

Elliot Goldenthal’s Newest Score is Subtle, Brooding, & Magnificent

Jul 14, 2009 David Abraham Dueck

After years of being absent from the mainstream film-scoring scene, master composer Elliot Goldenthal has returned to score Michael Mann's crime epic, Public Enemies.

Elliot Goldenthal, not especially known for being subtle in his scores, has provided a surprisingly low-key (and darkly beautiful) score for Public Enemies, a dark, broiling, and romantic score which unfortunately suffers from an abbreviated album release.

Anticipation for Goldenthal's Score to Public Enemies

It would be a gross understatement to call Elliot Goldenthal’s return to film scoring a highly anticipated event. His bold, massive scores for such films as Alien 3, Michael Collins, Titus, S.W.A.T. and Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within has caused him to develop an extremely devoted fan base, and the hype surrounding his new score to Michael Mann’s newest film (his first significant film score in years) was astonishing.

Hopes were high that the score would reflect that style of Goldenthal which was so brilliantly displayed in scores such as Cobb and Titus, but the result was instead an intriguingly subdued work of distant beauty and heavy, grayscale drama.

Distinct Elliot Goldenthal Sound in Public Enemies Soundtrack

The score is absolutely saturated in Goldenthal’s distinct style. It is impossible to mistake this score as being composed by anyone else. His heavy, minor-key melodies and extremely low-range textures are on full display, but rarely at any kind of increased volume.

The cues “Billie’s Arrest,” “Plane to Chicago” and “JD Dies” are good examples of Goldenthal’s louder, more propulsive moments on the album, with the other score cues (such as “Drive to Bohemia” and “Love in the Dunes”) maintaining an almost icy distance in their strained, weighty and romantic constructs.

Diluted Treatment of Public Enemies Score on Album

Unfortunately, the excellence and attractiveness of the orchestral compositions are somewhat lost in the soundtrack’s album presentation, which also features an abundance of period songs, two modern blues numbers and a couple of modern jazz recordings.

This, combined with the fact that Goldenthal’s music amounts to only 16 minutes on the commercial soundtrack album, means that anyone pursuing Goldenthal’s score should be prepared to tolerate that score (made of mostly shorter cues) being sprinkled throughout the generous song material.

To its credit, the soundtrack album does a wonderful job of representing the music heard in the film, and the collection of songs used is an intriguing and entertaining combination of genres and eras which works quite well as a listening experience, but Goldenthal’s somber, almost ambient score does admittedly suffer somewhat from its scattered arrangement on the disc, necessitating the construction of a single, lengthy suite for the score to be fully enjoyed and appreciated.

Conclusion

Overall, like many of the soundtrack albums for Michael Mann’s films, the soundtrack serves as more of a well-produced musical sampler or souvenir of the film, although the musical choices are well-selected and complement each other nicely, serving as a fine and diverse listening experience. Goldenthal’s score is rich, romantic and dramatic in its own right, although unexpectedly somber and restrained. Its only fault on album is its abbreviated length.

Fans of Goldenthal should not hesitate to acquire this score, but they should also be prepared to pay close attention to a low-volume, less-than-desirable amount of score on the commercial release.

The copyright of the article Public Enemies Soundtrack Review in Classical Music is owned by David Abraham Dueck. Permission to republish Public Enemies Soundtrack Review in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.

Public Enemies Album Cover