Prior to 2007 I had never heard of film composer Javier Navarrete. Of course, he is only one of many whose names I do not know. However, it is a name that came to my attention with my viewing of Pan's Labyrinth, the beautiful masterpiece from director Guillermo Del Toro. That film is an absolute work of beauty, and if you have not seen it, what are you waiting for? One of the elements that helped make the film work as well as it does is the masterful score composed by Navarrete. So, when I saw that he provided the score for Mirrors, I knew I had to have a taste. I mean, it it is half as good as Pan's Labyrinth, it is bound to be worth listening to, right?Going into my listening of this score, I have not yet seen Mirrors, so I cannot say just how well it works. That said, I had hopes for the music, although I was sure to keep my expectations in check as it was surely not going to rise to those prior heights. This is nothing against Javier, it is just that the material, from what I have gleaned from the trailers just does not rise to the fantasy driven heights of Pan's Labyrinth.
All right, enough about Pan's Labyrinth (see the movie, get the score, you won't be disappointed).
For those of you who do not know what Mirrors is about, let's give a little background information. The film tells the story of an ex-cop, played by Kiefer Sutherland, who is currently working as a security guard in a burned out department store that is in the process of being rebuilt. While on the job, he discovers an evil force that manifests itself in the mirrors (duh!) and poses a deadly threat to him, his family, and his friends. Can he stop the evil in time?
On the surface, the film bears a striking resemblance to any number of J-horror remakes, which is a strike against the film considering how "good" those have been of late. What makes it worth checking out, at least for me, is the fact that Alexandre Aja is at the helm. He is the man behind Haute Tension and The Hills Have Eyes remake, plus the writer of the underrated P2. The man certainly makes compelling horror, hopefully this will keep up the trend.
Javier Navarrete is another name that makes me want to see the film, and after listening to this score album, I have good hopes that I will like it. The music is quite good. It is nothing particularly groundbreaking for a horror score, but it has plenty of flavor that will keep you interested. The album has a flow that is exactly what you would expect from this type of work. There are the low, menacing portions, followed by a build in volume and speed as the tension builds.
What I really like about Navarrete's composition here is the way he makes everything feel epic. The music has a large expansive feel. It is epic in a different way than the Pan's score, where that one had the fantasy element, this film (again, based on the limited footage I have seen) is more claustrophobic as the evil force closes in. Navarrete's music takes that claustrophobic feeling, and sets it to music that sounds closed in, yet has a quality that expands the field as it closes in.
The score brings in a lot of different elements, using strings, percussion, vocal, and other elements I could not readily identify to create a varied stage that follows the expected pattern, yet never bores.
Among the cues included here, my favorites include the menacing "First Night," the piano driver "Esseker," the dramatic "What Do You Want From Me?," "Extending Mirrors," and "Escape."
Bottomline. This is not a great score, but it is a very good one. Even without the film as a frame of reference, the music builds tension very effectively. Javier Navarrete is an interesting musical voice, and this shows a different side than his last high profile work. Definitely worth looking into for score fans.
Recommended.
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