The Final Fanfare (Star Wars: Episode III: John Williams - Soundtrack)

Member Name: Frankingsteins

Product:	Star Wars: Episode III: John Williams - Soundtrack
Date:	28/10/05 (291 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Sets itself apart from its brethren; doesn't rely on past achievements; value for money

Disadvantages: Doesn't always keep the listener's interest; can't live up to the originals

The final instalment of one of the most successful and popular film franchises, ‘Revenge of the Sith’ also marked the last time John Williams would produce the beloved accompanying music (video games and future spin-offs excluded). The music for Episode III unsurprisingly follows the same style as the previous five films, but Williams continues to experiment to a small degree.

The recent trilogy is already noticeably set apart from its predecessors, visually in terms of the extravagant computer generated special effects and audibly in terms of the acting, and this permits Williams to occasionally try out something a little different than the bombastic symphonies the films are famed for. For once, even the legendary fanfare of the opening and closing titles is shuffled around a little – the scrolling title theme isn’t allowed time to dissolve before the action begins here, as the music is edited to jump straight to the first scene. An unusual choice, especially as it breaks continuity somewhat, but it at least demonstrates that thought was put into this collection.

1. Star Wars and the Revenge of the Sith
2. Anakin’s Dream
3. Battle of the Heroes
4. Anakin’s Betrayal
5. General Grievous
6. Palpatine’s Teachings
7. Grievous and the Droids
8. Padme’s Ruminations
9. Anakin vs. Obi-Wan
10. Anakin’s Dark Deeds
11. Enter Lord Vader
12. The Immolation Scene
13. Grievous Speaks to Lord Sidious
14. The Birth of the Twins and Padme’s Destiny
15. A New Hope and End Credits

The soundtrack comes on a single disc that lasts 72 minutes and includes all fifteen compositions from the film in full. There are no excerpts of dialogue or sound effects that may be present on other best-selling soundtracks, as Williams’ music really can sell albums without such gimmicks. The music is symphonic and orchestral throughout, but alternates between explosive themes and quieter, more melancholy or reflective pieces to suit the darker nature of this instalment. As such, themes do not repeat themselves to the degree of the Episode IV, V and VI soundtracks, although recognisable compositions from the first film and ‘The Empire Strikes Back’ will give Star Wars fans a great rush. Williams does succeed in creating characters through his music, the sombre mood of Anakin becoming increasingly sinister and evil as the character spirals downward in the chronologically-arranged album, and even Luke and Leia’s themes from the original trilogy reappear at the end. Not to give a thirty-year-old plot away or anything.

Ignoring the controversy over ‘The Phantom Menace’ as a film, the soundtrack was still an excellent release, including the memorable ‘Duel of the Fates.’ Episodes II and III haven’t featured original pieces to rival that epic, but ‘Battle of the Heroes’ comes close here: with an operatic chorus and an exciting, building orchestra it follows the same style and will certainly stand out for me and make me appreciate its accompanying scene more when I get round to watching the film again. This piece, along with many of the others, also comes in at a very radio-friendly three and a half minutes’ running length, adding to the commercial nature of this soundtrack album as it doesn’t alienate listeners with overlong extensions of songs. Other tracks featuring Grievous are similarly action-packed, although sadly not to the extent that they become memorable and distinctive in the manner of Episode V’s conflicts.

‘Palpatine’s Teachings,’ ‘Padme’s Ruminations,’ ‘Anakin’s Dark Deeds’ and ‘The Birth of the Twins…’ are the most interesting pieces here, in terms of their originality within the series. All are very bleak and haunting scores, dominated by bass sounds and commonly complimented by a vocal chorus. ‘Dark Deeds’ is the meanest of the lot, the perfect accompaniment to the relevant scenes in the film as Anakin commits some dastardly dark deeds, but ‘Ruminations’ is the oddest. Performed on what sounds like a synthesiser creating some subdued exotic melodies, this is very different from the acoustic purity of the series but makes this a more interesting soundtrack as a result.

I commend John Williams, and perhaps even George Lucas if this was his call, that the music for Episode III was allowed to be different and didn’t simply rely on past glories to sell fans the same music they already own. The opening theme is excitingly cut and the end credits incorporate many contrasting elements in a thirteen-minute swan song, closing with the ‘medals scene’ from ‘Star Wars’ (or, if you prefer, and I don’t, ‘A New Hope.’)

‘Battle of the Heroes’ is the best track, despite it sounding pretty much identical to every loud symphony/choir combo in Basil Poledouris’ soundtrack to ‘Conan the Barbarian,’ while the themes of evil, betrayal and death that permeate this make it less light listening than the other soundtracks, especially the contrastingly happy ‘Return of the Jedi.’

The cover shown is from Amazon's limited edition of the soundtrack; the regular international release features, as usual, the film poster featuring the characters. Episode III was a necessarily dark film and the soundtrack reflects this blackness perfectly, even making for an uncomfortable listening experience in parts. It’s far from being the best, but it’s more worthwhile than the soundtracks for Episodes I and II. Just don’t buy this in anticipation of the Vader tracks containing the ‘Imperial March’: once you accept that it isn’t here, you can relax and enjoy the excitement and horror.

Summary: John Williams' original sountrack to Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith (2005)