Black Swan (Soundtrack) by Clint Mansell - Review

Dance of the Psycho-Plum Fairy

Review by Christopher Coleman

Director Darren Aronofsky has become one of those directors whose every project has fans waiting with bated breath. The auteur has certainly earned such expectations with memorable works like THE WRESTLER, REQUIEM FOR A DREAM, AND PI (and I'll throw THE FOUNTAIN in there too, as I thought it quite a work). Aronofsky's latest project has come attached with no less expectation. Joined to the director's creative-hip is, once again, composer CLINT MANSELL. Collaborators since his first, full-length film, PI, the duo dive into another emotional, mind-bender with BLACK SWAN.

On one had, Aronofsky's propensity to weave numerous meta-threads throughout his films usually makes CLINT MANSELL a suitable choice. Mansell's post-modern, minimalism is perfectly suited for Aronofsky's films, but would that hold true for a story based around the psychological-dance of a ballerina?  Natalie Portman portrays the repressed dancer, Nina, who has long struggled to nail the lead role in one of her troupes ballets. Having finally done so, she must both battle with (and yet embrace) both inner and outer "demons." And simply performing well is not enough.  She is bent on attaining perfection in the performances of the white-swan princess and the black swan alike. What is ultimately delivered on-screen, via Portman's award-worthy acting and Aronofsky's sublime direction is quite the erotic-psycho-thriller.

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Faster (Soundtrack) by Clint Mansell - Review

The Faster, The Better?
Review by Richard Buxton

Clint Mansell has built an impressive and wide-ranging filmography in his twelve years in the industry. From being Aronofsky’s go-to-composer to scoring the likes of SAHARA and DOOM, no matter what shortcomings he might have, he has always shown diversity. Despite such a range of projects, Mansell has gained recognition through individual tracks from two or three films, though it is the track “Lux Aeterna” from REQUIEM FOR A DREAM that stands out from the rest as being the piece that gave the world its first glimpse of his talents. The standout piece of the FASTER score was re-recorded by Corner Stone Cues for use as trailer music. Since then a number of Mansell’s compositions have been utilised in motion picture advertising such as “Together With Live Forever” from THE FOUNTAIN and the sublime “Dead Reckoning” from SMOKIN’ ACES. With Mansell’s clear ability to compose powerful and memorable self-contained pieces it is perhaps easy to forget that he regularly produces solid entire scores that do justice to the film they compliment

So, it comes as no surprise that Mansell has been employed as the composer to FASTER, the latest film to star Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson. FASTER is a film of the revenge variety, in which previously incarcerated Driver (Johnson) sets out on a mission to avenge the death of his brother. While Mansell’s diverse background in scoring results no surprise in his appointment, the same cannot be said of the director George Tillman Jr. who has been at the helm of films such as NOTORIOUS, MEN OF HONOR and SOUL FOOD. Therefore, directing an action-revenge film comes as somewhat of a surprise.

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Composer Clint Mansell and the Sonus Quartet to perform at Ghent

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Clint Mansell and Sonus Quartet to Perform Cult Director Darren Aronofsky Film Tracks at 35th Annual Ghent International Film Festival

Ghent, Belgium (July 8, 2008) For the 35th edition of the Ghent International Film Festival (October 7th -18th), Clint Mansell and Sonus Quartet will be performing atmospheric tunes from Darren Aronofsky films (Pi, Requiem For A Dream, The Fountain). Like Aronofsky in the film world, Mansell has garnered an immense cult following for his soundtrack work, known for its dark, hypnotic beauty. The concert will be held on October 16th in the theatre hall at the Vooruit.

Clint Mansell started out as the front man for British electronica-punk group Pop Will Eat Itself. He broke into the world of scoring when his friend, director Darren Aronofsky, hired him to write the soundtrack for Pi, his debut feature film. Since then, Mansell has scored Aronofsky’s two other films, Requiem for a Dream and The Fountain. Mansell’s unique sense of style is difficult to pin down, a mix of anything in the minor-key palette available to him, from swelling strings to heavy electric guitar and tribal drums. For his work on The Fountain, he teamed up with Scottish post-rock band Mogwai and Kronos Quartet to produce the most exquisite, powerful soundtrack experience of 2007. Not only did it win him Best Original Soundtrack at the World Soundtrack Awards, but also the Public Choice Award, voted by film music fans from around the world. For his concert in Ghent, Mansell will be bringing a few special guests along: a rock band and Sonus Quartet, a string ensemble. They will be performing Aronofsky film tracks, complete with film clips pulsating in the background.

With its focus on film music, the Ghent International Film Festival has carved out its own unique niche on the international circuit. True to form, the 35th edition has another three music concerts on the menu. On October 15th, Gabriel Yared will be kicking things off with music from Anthony Minghella films (The English Patient, The Talented Mr Ripley), followed by a concert with Darren Aronofsky composer Clint Mansell (The Fountain, Requiem for a Dream) on October 16th. On October 17th , folk rock sensation Kadril will be performing tracks from Brokeback Mountain, Shakespeare in Love, Walk the Line, Barry Lyndon and Black Cat White Cat. It all comes to a close on October 18th with the World Soundtrack Awards ceremony, followed by a concert with Tuur Florizoone (Moscow, Belgium), Oscar winner Dario Marianelli (Atonement) and David Lynch composer Angelo Badalamenti (Twin Peaks, the City of Lost Children, Mulholland Drive).

Concert tickets available from Fnac: www.fnac.be - 0900 00 600 (€0.45/min) and www.vooruit.be

For more information, go to www.filmfestival.be .

New I AM LEGEND trailer

A new, much more interesting trailer for Will Smith's upcoming flick, I AM LEGEND was recently released. It offers quite a bit more than the first teaser trailer. I actually am intrigued by this film now. A major departure from the book seems to be that the "ghoulies" are not necessarily vampires. I, for one, don't mind this departure one "bloody" bit. I'd be quite content to see the vampire-genre bathed in perpetual light - ie. I'm quite sick of them and wouldn't mind if another one was ever made again..but as long as audiences keep emptying their pockets to watch them...they'll keep coming. Personal kudos to the filmmakers for showing a little creativity.

Anyway, I AM LEGEND appears as if it wants to give some rationale (an infection) behind the exisitence of Robert Neville's (Will Smith) ghoulie friends. I guess I can go with that. The big thing is...I love German Shepherd's so...that there dog better survive!...but I have a bad feeling.

Anyway, check out the trailer - I haven't identified the music used in it, but the climactic piece bares resemblence to Clint Mansell's oft-used trailer piece. The original score is to be provided by JAMES NEWTON HOWARD, so there good reason for hope in that regard. Perhaps you recognize it. Feel free to enlighten us with your comment.

Check out the trailer at the film's Myspace page.