The Manchurian Candidate movie (2004) is a tale of behind-the-scenes maneuvering during a presidential campaign. The stars, Denzel Washington, Meryl Streep, Liev Schreiber, Jon Voight, and Jeffrey Wright, play their roles to the hilt. As a result, Oscar may have nominations here, especially for Meryl Streep as the person you would not want to have as a mother.
Composer Rachel Portman, who won an Academy Award for the Emma music, compiles rock selections for this soundtrack. Unfortunately, this is not a memorable soundtrack, and any incidental music by Portman is not on the CD. Instead, there are eighteen artists--Dead Kennedys, Wyclef Jean, Alejandro Escovedo, Fountains of Wayne, Gang of Four, TV On The Radio, Mission of Burma, The Walkmen, Bravo Silva, Savage Republic, Calla, It's Immaterial, Trini, The Prats, The End of the World, The Secret Machines, Sport of Kings, and Jah Wobble & The Invaders of the Heart.
The mood is Desert Storm, which is where the story begins, and the rock selections are to emphasize the brainwashing and resulting effects going on in soldiers' minds. Wyclef Jean's "Fortunate Son" is especially well done, as is "Gravity Falling Down Again" by Escovedo. The Walkmen's "Thinking of a Dream I Had" is relevant because of the blinding dreams the brainwashed soldiers are having. The end piece, Jah Wobble's "Invaders of the Heart Mix 2" is reminiscent of an early David Bowie.
All in all, the music was a bit of a disappointment, both for the selections, which began to sound the same by track 6, and by Portman's less-than-memorable theme music which is in the film but not on the soundtrack.
2.5 tocks
