CD Review: Hitman - Original Motion Picture Soundtrack: Music Composed by Geoff Zanelli

The Thanksgiving Holiday of 2007 brought us the instant classic action film Hitman. From its wild, over-the-top action to the icy, precise, and inhuman portrayal of Agent 47 by Timothy Olyphant, this is a video game adaptation that is bound to go down in history as one of the finest adaptations yet. Wait, what am I talking about? Hitman was one of the worst films of 2007 and is destined to be forgotten and lost to the sands of time. The source could definitely be adapted to an exciting slice of action cinema with an interesting story to boot. However, that would have required some time and effort be placed into the writing, some work done on building the mythology to draw us to the character, kind of like what they did in the trailer, which seemed to be advertising a different movie. What we got was a film featuring a lead character that is a bad guy, pure and simple. He was no anti-hero, in fact we would probably be better off without him; let him die. All I can hope is that the failure of the movie to deliver anything worth watching will not prematurely sink the career of composer Geoff Zanelli, who turns in some nice work.

I am not familiar with Zanelli's work, but a quick glance at his filmography on IMDB reveals a few films he worked on that I have seen, including Secret Window and last year's surprise hit Disturbia. So, considering how well the latter was received, any thought of an early exit for Zanelli seems to be a hasty one. This especially true considering he has three films in the pipeline for this year, including the animated feature Delgo and the Ricky Gervais starring Ghost Town.

Not being a veteran of the Hitman game series, I have to rely on outside sources that inform me that none of the music has been adapted from the game series (composed by Jesper Kyd). So, aside from the arrangement of "Ave Maria," Hitman the movie is filled with original music. Despite the lack of adapted music, there is still a distinct videogame-like feel to the score. It sounds like the videogame got together with John Powell's music for the Bourne series. The music is a mixture of electronic elements and traditional strings. The end result is a pulsing, throbbing score that pushes forward with a strong sense of urgency.

Despite the fact that I enjoy the score far more than the film, I cannot say that there is anything particularly special about it. It is not one that you are going to listen to if you are searching for themes and nuance. Rather, this is the kind of score that you will put on as background music and get pulled into from time to time as that sense of musical urgency kicks in. There is one main theme that gets played to death throughout while there is almost always a rock song-like chugging. It is that constant chugging that keeps the score moving forward, like someone leaning further and further onto their toes until he/she has no choice but to take a step forward.

It almost seems like there was a conscious effort to try and not let the quality of the music overshadow the, um, quality of the script. Sort of like Geoff Zanelli held back from using everything at his disposal, or he was not afforded the time to properly develop the few themes that he has.

In the face of this potential rush job, there are still a few cues that demonstrate what he could have done had my perceived impediments not been there. Among those standout cues are the opening Middle Eastern tinged "I Take Out the Trash," the incessant "A Random Complication," and the understated tension of "Rubber Duckie." Now, there are even a couple of tracks that threaten to involve the emotions such as "My Number is 47," and "Undress Me."

Book ending the score are two versions of "Ave Maria." The first features a truly haunting arrangement that sets a rather eerie tone. The second features vocalist Christina England and is lesser than the first. This one features great singing, but there is something a bit too "bright" about it. I believe it was this second one that was featured in the trailer.

Bottomline. Not a great score, but there is something fun about it. It is fast moving, urgent, and the primary theme is catchy. If you are a fan of action movie scores, or enjoy Powell's Bourne work, take a look at this to fill the void until the next lively score rears its ugly head.

Recommended.