Soundtrack Review: 127 Hours (2010)
| Reviewer: JØrn Tillnes |
"I would love it if he explored more of the melancholic side of things."
The Oscar countdown continues with 127 Hours by A.R. Rahman. 127 Hours is the incredible true story of the mountain climber Aron Ralston who falls literally between a rock and a hard place and his struggles to save his life. Trapped when no one is around, no one to help, he has to save himself and for 127 Hours he tries to do exactly that. A.R. Rahman created the score and is nominated both for Best Score and Best Song with 127 Hours.
Track List
| 2. The Canyon | **** |
| 3. Liberation Begins | *** |
| 4. Touch of the Sun | ***** |
| 8. Liberation in a Dream | **** |
| 11. R.I.P | ***** |
| 12. Liberation | **** |
A.R. Rahman is another name that The Academy loves and he earns yet another nomination for 127 Hours. He is certainly a very versatile composer whose name pop up when the awards come around. In 2008 he won for Slumdog Millionaire if you remember, a very interesting score to say the least.
Almost a Documentary Score
127 Hours require a completely different score. It could almost be a documentary score as Rahman explore the torment that mountain climber Aron Ralston had to go through. Rahman doesn't go over the top as he rarely does, but it's a thoughtful, not thought-provoking score.
With cues like 'Touch of the Sun' and my favorite cue 'R.I.P', he is venturing in a sort of melancholic state that he doesn't consistenly hold throughout this very short score. This is where you'll find the real beauty of the score, and I just wished it would be more like it.
The liberation theme is quite interesting, there are three cues 'Liberation Begins', 'Liberation in a Dream' and finally 'Liberation'. All has a much harsher sound and rightly so. Especially 'Liberation in a Dream' and 'Liberation' thrives on excitement, but lacks the little extra to get top marks from me.
Conclusion
I would say this is a "safe" score by A.R. Rahman, but I wish it was more. I would love it if he explored more of the melancholic side of things, but perhaps the full "For Your Consideration" score contains more material. I unfortunately only have access to the official release that only has 6 tracks. It is not a score I will visit often, but it is definitely above average and the two cues 'Touch of the Sun' and 'R.I.P.' is certainly worthy of a run in my ever-growing playlist.
CUE RATING: 83.3
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Listen to 127 Hours by A.R. Rahman below:
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