1 |
Main Title |
2 |
David's
Concern |
3 |
David And Harlee |
4 |
Dennis
In David's Yard |
5 |
Hangin'
Upside Down |
6 |
At the Supermarket |
| 7 |
Flomar
Dies |
8 |
New
School |
9 |
Remembering
Mary |
10 |
Harlee
And Dennis |
11 |
I
Eat Lucky Charms |
12 |
David's
Frustration |
13 |
Waiting
|
14 |
Dennis Runs Away |
15 |
Magic |
16 |
At
the Park |
17 |
Breaking
Dishes |
18 |
Flashback |
19 |
Another School |
20 |
Christmas Night |
21 |
Tasting Color |
22 |
Inspection |
23 |
Getting To Know Each Other |
24 |
Hot Coffee |
25 |
At the Observatory |
26 |
In the Box |
27 |
David Waits |
28 |
Dennis Explains the Stars |
29 |
At the Adoption Agency |
30 |
Hearts Open Wide |
ALBUM REVIEW:
The premise of this Menno Meyjes-directed drama sounds extremely
heartfelt: A science fiction writer whose wife just died gets
in touch with his emotions when he meets a socially awkward
boy who believes that he is from Mars. Get ready your hankies
to wipe away those tears. And for a movie with such a plot,
BMI Film Music Award winner Aaron Zigman has composed a really
warm and expressive underscore which can relax your uptight
senses.
Opening
the soundtrack is “Main Titles”, which introduces
us to the main theme which will be frequently heard throughout
the 54-minute album. The two-minute track also sets the mood
to come for your entire listening experience. The soft, laidback
and sometimes melancholic feel of the music is reminiscent
of Thomas Newman’s more affecting compositions for films
like American Beauty (1999) and Road to Perdition (2002).
The recurring use of piano (played by the composer himself)
and the xylophones accompanied by violins in the background
is easy on the ears.
However,
the album is not too memorable in terms of musicality. The
repeated approach of unhurried and unexceptional cues may
unintentionally make the inattentive listener doze off. It
doesn’t help that somewhere halfway into the disc, the
duration of the tracks run at barely over a minute on average
– while it’s nice to have the music in short pleasant
spurts, it does not leave much of an impression unless you
give it repeated listens.
There
isn’t much variation here except the biggest dramatic
change in “Dennis Runs Away” (guess the track
name speaks for itself), and occasional energetic and comic
moments in tracks like “I Eat Lucky Charms” and
“Breaking Dishes”. The music on the rest of the
album seems to merge nicely together as one long cyclical
track that plays nicely in the background when you are reading
a book, which may actually be a good thing for some.
To
the impatient listener or those who like their music blasting
with action, this warm collection of music may not be your
cup of tea. But do yourself a favor, slow down your hurried
pace and give this comfortably calm soundtrack a chance: “Hearts
Open Wide”, which nicely sums up the album in five serene
minutes.
ALBUM
RATING:
Recommended Track: (30) Hearts Open Wide
Review
by John Li
|
