[Rumble Fish soundtrack album cover courtesy of All Music Guide.]
Before the pervasive inanity of the "music from and inspired by" phenomenon of the 1990's took hold, the world of film had shown us many a movie enhanced by a soundtrack. Two examples from the decade prior to the one mentioned above immediately come to mind: Birdy (1984; directed by Alan Parker, music by Peter Gabriel) and our all-time favorite soundtrack, that of Rumble Fish (1983; directed by Francis Ford Coppola), written and performed by the former Police drummer, composer Stewart Copeland.
One expects many a low-budget film to be hampered by a misguided or inappropriate score, due to many reasons: financial constraints, a lack of time to properly get the job done, etc etc. But when a big Hollywood flick with A-list talent both in the directing and lead acting departments succumbs to this hindrance, one has to inevitably scratch the old scalp and wonder.
Case in point: another film from the the same decade as the two previously mentioned films, 1989's Family Business, starring Sean Connery, Dustin Hoffman and Matthew Broderick. The legendary Sidney Lumet of 12 Angry Men, Serpico, Dog Day Afternoon fame, directed.
Family Business is a generally enjoyable film about three generations of men of the same family who come together to pull off a caper that ends badly. In his review, Roger Ebert insisted the movie's main fault was "to play it down the middle, when it probably should have jumped in one direction or the other, toward a pure caper or toward a family drama." We wouldn't disagree with that statement, but what really jarred us was how, for the most part, the score drew attention to itself in a negative way, taking one's attention away from the screen in a confusing, and at times uncomfortable manner. A big no-no, if there ever was one.
Calling Family Business' score--composed by Cy Coleman--"puzzling, wildly inappropriate," the All Movie Guide's Karl Williams wonders how perhaps "the true story behind the soundtrack's creation and employment must be a fascinating one, so utterly wrong in tone, style, and usage is it for the material. More than a handful of wonderfully written, acted, and shot scenes in the film are sabotaged by the dippy, simple-minded tunes that overwhelm everything in their trite path. If Jaws (1976) is one of the best examples of how much a great, coherent score can add to a film, then this is one of the finest examples of how bad compositions can ruin one."
Watch for yourself. It might be quite the learning experience if there are any aspiring soundtrack composers out there.
