Soundtrack Review: In Treatment (2011)
| Reviewer: JØrn Tillnes |
In Treatment Soundtrack Review: This is a review of the television score In Treatment by Richard Marvin.
"Richard Marvin has done well to implement any music at all at this level because a show like this could easily been done with far less"
In Treatment isn't your normal television show. For one, it's not a weekly show like everything else, but it's an ongoing daily experience. Still I wouldn't call it a daytime drama either as it is too high profile with some excellent actors and good directing. I watched a few episodes of it in the beginning and it was quite good, but I couldn't commit watching it on a daily basis. In every episode there are certain characters who come to a psychologist for help. Each and every character has a sound, but I have to admit I didn't hear much of it when I watched it.
Track List
| 1. Walter - Week 4 - Season 2 | *** |
| 2. Sophie (Theme) - Week 2 - Season 1 | ***** |
| 3. Oliver - Week 1 - Season 2 | *** |
| 4. Jake & Amy (Theme) - Week 1 - Season 1 | **** |
| 5. Laura - Week 3 - Season 1 | **** |
| 6. Oliver - Week 2 - Season 2 | *** |
| 7. Gina - Week 1 - Season 1 | *** |
| 8. Gina - Week 6 - Season 2 | **** |
| 9. Mia - Week 6 - Season 2 | *** |
| 10. Laura - Week 5 - Season 1 | *** |
| 11. April - Week 2- Season 2 | ** |
| 12. Gina - Week 3 - Season 2 | **** |
| 13. Oliver - Week 4 - Season 2 | ***** |
| 14. Mia - Week 1 - Season 2 | **** |
| 15. Oliver - Week 4 - Season 2 | ***** |
| 16. Gina - Week 6 - Season 1 | *** |
| 17. Gina - Week 5 - Season 2 | *** |
| 18. Paul Follows Laura - Week 9 - Season 1 | *** |
| 19. Gina - Week 1 - Season 2 | *** |
| 20. Oliver - Week 2 - Season 2 | *** |
With so many characters, you would think themes abound, but you would be mistaken. I wouldn't call the character music specially theme driven and sometimes it's even hard to tell them apart.
Little Drama
Mostly the music to each character is very basic, simple and elegant. There's little drama here, even though the show is full of it.
A character driven show like this doesn't require that much pizazz to be honest and it that it succeed. There is no way Richard Marvin could sneak in some bold orchestral scoring or some power themes in there, except for maybe some flashbacks. It is how the show is written and I'm sure the creators of the show couldn't ask for more than this.
As a standalone listen it fails to captivate me. Even If you are a fan of the show, I'm sure you won't remember much of the music and so I am surprised it was releases. I am glad it was though as I think every film or TV show should have a score release at some point.
What Richard Marvin does right for me as the listener is with cues like 'Sophie (theme) - Week 2 - Season 1'. It's a beautiful piano piece with ambient underscoring and has a subtle but a great theme. There's so much drama in a piece like this even thought I would hardly call it dramatic.
Oliver get's a similar treatment in the cue 'Oliver - Week 4 - Season 2' where it obviously playing for an emotional moment, maybe a breakthrough? It works wonders off-screen and I'm sure with the right scene it must shine. Oliver get a second chance to shine with the cue 'Oliver - Week 4 - Season 2', otherwise known as track 15. I know they have the same name, which I found rather odd, but the music tells a story, a continuation. It's more of this I wanted for this score.
Conclusion
Richard Marvin has done well to implement any music at all at this level because a show like this could easily been done with far less. As a listener who bought the score and listened to it without watching much of the show, it falls a bit flat, understandably so. More emotional drive is what this score needs, but it probably won't happen.
CUE RATING: 70
->Buy the MP3 Album on Amazon<-
Listen to the In Treatment soundtrack by Richard Marvin below:
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