Soundtrack Review: Flash of Genius (2008)

Posted by Jorn Tillnes

March 17, 2009

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012309 0836 soundtrackr1 Soundtrack Review: Flash of Genius (2008) This is a review of the motion picture score Flash of Genius by Aaron Zigman.

“Zigman’s style is perfect for the movie and it is a great partnership”

Aaron Zigman has had a variable year, in fact I variable career with some great ones and some less than great ones. In the drama movie Flash of Genius he is back on my good side with a surprisingly powerful score. In Flash of Genius is based on a true story about a college professor and a part-time inventor who invents an amazing contraption used in every car today. The automobile industry doesn’t give him credit however and he faces an endless legal battle. In other words a heartfelt drama which would suit Aaron Zigman’s talents. Can he pull it off?

Track List

The Warehouse (***)
Mustangs (***)
Drive To Previc’s (****)
Back Home (****)
Pray For Rain (****)
Losing It (****)
Dennis Returns (*****)
Get Out (***)
Testimony Montage (*****)
Take The Deal (***)
It’s Not Over Yet (****)
Breakup (****)
Patent Library (***)
Make Another Kid (***)
The Diner (*****)
It’s Alive (****)
Phylis & Jean (****)
The Porch (****)
The Letter (****)
Dafao’s Final Offer (****)
Last Pill (***)
Piece Of Crap (***)
The Verdict (*****)
Vis Vitae (***)

The Themes

It starts off with ‘The Warehouse’ and ‘Mustang‘ which both are very serious cues and uses a horn as main instruments. I think Zigman meant for it to be the main theme as it is used several times on this score. It’s not a very good theme, but it works ok in this context. The good stuff start with a cue called ‘Drive to Previc’s’ which is a quiet ambient kind of track with some sense of urgency. Uses mostly piano and feels a little jazzy at times. ‘Back Home’ is the premiere of the second theme which in my opinion is better than the first one. With a chunky organ and the ever so delightful plucky guitar sound it works well.

‘Pray for Rain’ is a totally different kind of cue which almost is the start of a news broadcast bulletin, but it’s a refreshing and very good cue. It dances away quite lightly and brash. ‘Losing It’ is a stark contrast to ‘Pray for Rain’, not in quality but in sound. It has a deeply dark and disturbing sound and uses the first theme lightly. What I like most about this cue is that it changes all the time, sometimes light, sometimes dark, sometimes jazzy, sometimes funky. All in all a very good cue.

The Really Good Stuff

The really good stuff starts with ‘Dennis Returns’. It feels very nostalgic, as I’m sure I’ve heard it in some 80s song which I can’t remember. What it does do is in a very simple way play on my emotions. It’s a very simple cue which just uses strings as background music with piano as main instrument. The piano is very simple in itself, but after listening to movie music in soon 20 years I know what I like best and it’s cues like this. ‘Testimony Montage’ has a wonderful rushed classic piano played upon a chunky organ sound. It’s just too short untfortunately at under 1 minute, but I smile every time I hear it. Such a wonderful cue. ‘The Diner‘ is in my favorite pool as well. With simple pluck of the guitar it starts off slow, but ends up using the second theme which in my opinion is much better than the first one. What I like about this piece is the tempo as it is a bit faster than average.

It all ends on an average note, first with the excellent ‘The Verdict’ in which Aaron Zigman quite clearly plays on anticipation until about 42 seconds in where victory and pride ensues with a oscar montage type theme. It never fails when used correctly and I’m sure this must be a very powerful moment in the movie, one which I will enjoy on many levels. ‘Vis Vitae’ is the longest cue on this score and it ends the soundtrack. It feels like one of those classical jazzy tracks, and at one point it’s even highly experimental jazz. It’s not one of my favorites and I feel it clearly distracts the big picture.

Conclusion

What a pleasant surprise this score was. Zigman’s style is perfect for the movie and it is a great partnership. Aaron Zigman has a very varied track record, and this is possibly his best work yet. It clearly ranks high in many top scores of 2008 lists, at least it does mine and if this trend continues in 2009 and he will have a tremendous year to look forward to (as do we).

012309 0836 soundtrackr2 Soundtrack Review: Flash of Genius (2008)