Published on Mar 28, 2001
This is one of my most favorite soundtracks. When the movie came
out, I was unsure of whether I’d like it or not. After seeing it, I
liked it immensely. However, it was the soundtrack by newcomer
David Arnold that really stuck with me. It managed to lift what was
a decent movie and make it into a great one-which is the highest
compliment I can give it. But, let’s delve into it a little
deeper.
Like I said before,
Stargate was the big debut for Arnold in the world of movie
scoring. Having done the soundtrack to a small British film, Arnold
was then tapped by director Roland Emmerich for his new
science-fiction movie,
Stargate. Working with the Sinfonia of London, Arnold then
proceeded to turn in one of the strongest scores of the last ten
years.
The music begins with the “Stargate Overture.” Playing over the
credits, the music sets up the main
Stargate theme and deftly uses it as a lovely adventure
piece before ending on a horror-movie streak of music. This also
does set up the various dichotomies of the score. On the one hand,
there is a lot of wide-eyed adventure music-much like the main
theme. There’s also a lot of action cues and music and, to top it
all of, there is a dash of horror-movie style music in there as
well.
From the “Stargate Overture,” the first half of the album can be
described as the adventurous side. Tracks like “Giza, 1928,” “The
Stargate Opens” and “Entering The Stargate” are full of adventure
and wonder. There are even hints of romance with “Daniel And
Shauri.” This is the wide-eyed and wonder-filled side of the
soundtrack. After all, everything is new and exciting. They are
breaking codes, passing through space and meeting new
civilizations.
However, with the track “Sarcophagus Opens,” the track takes a
quick turn into horror. From “Ra – The Sun God” to “Myth, Faith,
Belief,” the villains are set up and the music is filled with tense
strings and a feeling of dread becomes prevalent. While it’s only
temporary, this is important to give the feeling and mood that the
bad guys establish in the movie. Arnold capably captures that with
his music.
From this point forward, the soundtrack becomes an action score.
Tracks like “Slave Rebellion,” “Battle At The Pyramid,” and “Kasuf
Surrenders” combine the
Stargate theme with action music that comes just this close
of rivaling the work of master composer John Williams. This is an
amazing feat, considering that this was Arnold’s second score ever.
The final track, “Going Home” easily wraps the entire score and
sends us off.
While Arnold has somewhat moved into a combination of
traditional scoring with electronic sounds (like
The World Is Not Enough), it’s great to hear where he began.
More than that, this is one of those scores that is full of
adventure and action and is really enjoyable. While it is easy to
knock the Emmerich/Dean Devlin movies, their choice of a composer
cannot be questioned. Arnold’s music easily lifts their movie.