It is interesting how much the 1985 movie Legend, directed by Ridley Scott, is like a fantasy genre counterpart to another cult movie of the 80s, namely Disney's sci-fi adventure Tron. Both films were initial box office failures that have since gone on to acquire a devoted following. Both films were weak in the dialogue department, but made up for that with visual effects and set designs that while unarguably primitive by today's standards, at the same time have held up very well, if not better, because of that fact (much like such technological totems as the Moog and mellotron have). Both films had wooden protagonists squaring off against a larger-than-life baddie played by a British actor. Both had Biblical allusions embedded in their storyline (i.e., the redeeming Christ figure for Tron, the fall from Paradise for Legend). Finally, like Wendy Carlos' soundtrack to Tron, the score of Legend utilized a fine integration of orchestra, choir, and an ensemble of keyboards. But at this point, it might be good to identify which score of Legend that I am actually talking about.For you see, Legend is one of those unusual instances of a film that actually had two completely different film scores. The original one, written by veteran Hollywood film composer Jerry Goldsmith, was released with the movie's initial run in Europe through 20th Century Fox, though it was ravaged by the indiscriminate inclusion of irrelevant music from other sources. By the time the film reached the United States, however, Universal Studios, which owned the North American rights, decided to scrap Goldsmith's score and called in Europeans Tangerine Dream to complete a new score.
As a result, debate over the two film scores has raged throughout the years among fans of the movie, each side with its defenders. First coming to this debate from the Tangerine Dream side of the fence, I was a hardened skeptic when I had heard over the years that Goldsmith's score was superior. When a DVD release containing both versions of the film finally came out a few years ago, including the Director's Cut with Goldsmith's score now fully restored, I knew I had to check it out and examine the evidence for myself.
After watching it, I would have to begrudgingly acknowledge that Goldsmith's is indeed the better of the two scores, at least from a traditional point of view. The surging Romanticism of this music is plainly better suited to match Ridley Scott's incredible visuals of a beatific forest in suspension, with cottonwood fluff drifting by in slow motion. Two of the pieces, "My True Love's Eyes" and "Bumps & Hollows," have lyrics (courtesy of John Bettis) which were even included as part of the script. These are lullabies with sumptuous, open melodies that perfectly capture the innocence of the forest where the heroes of the story live. With the recurrence of these vocal motifs throughout the film as sung by Princess Lily (Mia Sara) to woodsman Jack (Tom Cruise), the melodies bolstered by sweeping strings, these become a simply inseparable part of the movie. To remove these vital elements shows the extent of the Universal's executives' cluelessness and arrogance. Ironically, nowadays the studio system of Hollywood would know better. On hearing a melody as breathtakingly good as "True Love's Eyes," they'd latch onto it like a mosquito, gloss it up with a modern arrangement and call in Celine Dion, tack it on to the end credits, and suck as much blood out of it as they could manage... we'd doubtlessly be force-fed the results over the radio for the next 3 years. But what makes this score succeed is that Goldsmith does not merely settle for saccharine. His score is very subtle in its use of orchestration and dissonance. Typically dull synthesizers from the day such as the Yamaha DX-7, Roland JP-8, Oberheim, and Prophet are actually put to good use here in providing color, particularly in the goblin motif that frequently frustrates "My True Love's Eyes," and also the sound effects for the woods. Goldsmith also fills in the corners with a Seven Dwarfs-type song ("Sing the Wee") and a "Fairie Dance" for a cut scene in the movie, though these are lesser moments.
This CD release of Goldsmith's score, released to accompany the DVD, has an interesting story to it as well. Work to prepare this new CD master was done in 1992, though the original album master had been lost by then. So, this edition was prepared from a set of mixed-down, 2-track digital tapes that the original recording engineer thoughtfully stored away, knowing it would one day come in handy. The tapes were from the original sessions but were complete takes, cues, and alternative takes. These needed to be re-edited and were sequenced entirely by ear (for apparently the original sheet music to the score is also long gone), to be as close as possible to the way the music would have appeared in the longest version of the film had all the ultimately deleted scenes been retained.
As with most film scores, if you haven't seen Legend, then you are missing a good portion of the context needed to make this one click. However, for anyone who is a fan of the film, this one satisfies and satisfies quite nicely. It is regarded by many, and quite justly, as one of Goldsmith's best.
But what about Tangerine Dream's score, you ask? Well, to be continued...
review by Joe McGlinchey — 6-2-05 —
