The Chronicles Of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch And The Wardrobe Meadville PA

The books and movie are considered controversial fortheir use of indigenous mythic images of the British Isles inpresenting Christian allegory, but you'll be glad the soundtrackdoes the same thing by bridging modern orchestral sensibilities toancient melodic themes. Some critics complain about the music beinga little too modern, unfavorably comparing it to the meticulouslyresearched and constructed score for the Lord Of The Ringstrilogy, but this critic thinks it has a place on the shelves ofmany music lovers who balk at Wagner and are attuned to morevisceral melodies and faster pacing.

Music has always been important in Disney movies,providing a crucial dimension to their trademark "family magic" ineach of their wide-release movies. The score, composed by HarryGregson-Williams (The Tigger Movie, Shrek... wait aminute, Shrek had a score?), deftly guides the theatergoerthrough the emotional changes of the on screen characters, such asLucy's surprise and fear upon meeting a faun into wonder andfriendliness in "Lucy Meets Mr. Tumnus" and the several strategicand emotional perspectives of the battle scene in "The Battle."

The music not only complements the action but isvital to it, as the movie adaptation accelerates the plot found inthe book, and the changes need to seem genuine and not rushed(despite its length, the movie version of Harry Potter And TheGoblet of Fire sped through the plot like a summarized versionof itself). Part of what makes this movie successful in that regardis the subtle, evocative score.

The album, however, is ruined by the obligatory poptracks at the end of the album, ostensibly included to aid in thecross-platform promotion of this whole franchise, but I don't thinkyou'll see Alanis Morissette's out-of-my-element "Wunderkind" onMTV a lot this season. Imogen Heap's tedious mess of a song isbland and forgettable, and the presence of Tim Finn's depressing"Winter Light" is inexplicable; I thought they threw outEvanescence's contribution for this project because it was toodark. There's a bonus track called "Where" by Lisbeth Scott whichis slightly more tolerable, but most listeners probably gave up bythe time they got to it.