HUNTSMAN: WINTER'S WAR SCORE Soundtrack.

Description

Original score to the 2016 motion picture composed by James Newton Howard. The fantastical world of Snow White And The Huntsman expands to reveal how the fates of The Huntsman Eric and Queen Ravenna are deeply and dangerously intertwined. Chris Hemsworth and Oscar winner Charlize Theron return to their roles in The Huntsman: Winter's War, an epic action-adventure in which they are joined by Emily Blunt and Jessica Chastain, as well as director Cedric Nicolas-Troyan. Producer Joe Roth (Maleficent, Alice in Wonderland) once again leads the team in a breathtaking new tale nested in the legendary saga. Long before the evil Queen Ravenna (Theron) was thought vanquished by Snow White's blade, she watched silently as her sister, Freya (Blunt), suffered a heartbreaking betrayal and fled their kingdom. With Freya's ability to freeze any enemy, the young ice queen has spent decades in a remote wintry palace raising a legion of deadly huntsmen-including Eric (Hemsworth) and warrior Sara (Chastain)-only to find that her prized two defied her one demand: Forever harden your hearts to love. When Freya learns of her sister's demise, she summons her remaining soldiers to bring the Magic Mirror home to the only sorceress left who can harness it's power. But once she discovers Ravenna can be resurrected from its golden depths, the wicked sisters threaten this enchanted land with twice the darkest force it's ever seen. Now, their amassing army shall prove undefeatable... unless the banished huntsmen who broke their queen's cardinal rule can fight their way back to one another. Review: Howard knows fantasy music - One of the things that I've been impressed about with some of James Newton Howard's scores is his ability in creating some very good musical imagery with his film soundtracks. This was especially true with his "Maleficent" score Maleficent and he does so again with this one for "Huntsman: Winter's War". Howard's music becomes very story like in it's ability to enable the listener to replay a scene from the movie or to visualize something new entirely. Howard has an impressive career within film music and he has crafted quite a few scores that just fit so well with the various stories and characters he has composed for. His film scoring debut began in 1985 with "Head Office" and in time he would compose for plenty of Hollywood block busters. Although some of the films that Howard composed for might not have been critically well received, I've always found many of these scores to be outstanding on their own. Some of my personal favorites are: "The Man in the Moon" (1991) Man in the Moon , "Falling Down" (1993) Falling Down (Original Soundtrack) , "Wyatt Earp" (1994) (La La Land Records did an outstanding 3 disc limited release of this score), and "Waterworld" (1995) Waterworld . "Huntsman Winter's War" is a film that I haven't personally seen yet and it appears that the critics didn't care for it very much. It's a prequel for the film "Snow White and the Huntsman" (2012), which was also scored by Howard. The score begins with "The Huntsman" (track 1) and the lone horn seems to be very representative of a huntsman indeed. Howard has inserted a few different movements within this one opening cue. Moving from the idyllic imagery of a huntsman in a forest, there is a brief hint of ominous evil lurking, and then another shift into something a bit more sad. This opening music begins to establish a magical and beautiful place, but of course, all is not well as the piece moves back and forth throughout. A theme is introduced through this track as well and it's one that reappears most often in the more sentimental music throughout the score. Musical stories can be found throughout the score and one of my favorites is the piece entitled "The Children Arrive" (track 4). Whether you've seen the film or not, you can close your eyes and let a piece like this tell it's own story. Wonderfully orchestrated, pieces like this tend to be directly involved with the story rather than merely providing ambience in the background. Howard does an excellent job or picking the right instruments to establish a fantasy/magical feel for the work as well. His use of the woodwind instruments like flutes, oboes, and clarinets really start to give the landscape an almost "Skyrim" (popular video game with one of the best game scores ever) kind of feel. He also demonstrates great skill in crafting some of the more epic pieces in the story like the three sequential cues dealing with a journey through the land of the goblins. "The Goblin Forest" (12), "Goblin King" (13), and "The Goblin Fight" (14) are musical pieces that do all the work for as you sit back and let the music unfold a story to your imagination. Howard unleashes the massive sound of the orchestra in the more dynamic tension building moments within the score and the thunderous rhythms and thematic heroics usually has my finger tapping right along with the musicians. There is plenty of lovely sentimental music throughout the score as well. Pieces like "Where's my Horse" (10) and "We Are Worthy of Each Other" (15) are very well done and return us to the imagery of a world that we can only daydream of...or see in the movies. The main theme from the film usually pops in throughout these points and it keeps everything connected to what was established at the beginning of the score. Howard also makes wonderful use of a choir throughout the score. He actually uses two different choirs, The London Voices and The Trinity Boys' Choir. "Lacrimosa" (track 2) is a wonderful piece using male voices and you'll hear the The Trinity Boys' Choir is cues such as "Ravenna Returns" (track 18). The use of the choirs can be heard in some of the more epic sounding action music but Howard also tinkers with them to spice up some cues with a fantasy magic effect that really works. This technique continues to paint this score within the realms of the fantasy world and as a listener you are never allowed to forget that. Howard's score remains consistent throughout and the music demonstrates his ability to transport us to this place and connect us with a story and it's characters. Howard certainly has a good grasp with these fantasy scores and I hope he has more opportunities to explore this genre even further into the future. The CD version of the score is released through Back Lot Music and contains 22 tracks with a running time of 1 hour and 14 minutes. The score also contains a song performed by the artist Halsey entitled "Castle" (22). The CD is a digipak and contains a 16 page insert that has photos from the film, track listing, Orchestra/choir credits, production credits, and a small "Thank You" section from composer James Newton Howard. I recommend. Review: James Newton Howard: an American treasure - James Newton Howard is an American treasure. His scores are incredible flights of wonder. This score is no different. When heard with the film, he instructs you soul in what exactly to feel at every frame. Separately, it stands alone as a series of musical vignettes, of individual fantasias. Listen to this or any Howard score and be enveloped in the wonder of the Hollywood musical style.