Mission: Impossible 2

Composer: Hans Zimmer
Lable (Release Year): Hollywood Records (2000)
Availability: ****
Rating: ***1/2

Mission: Impossible 2 is one of the most anticipated movies and scores this summer. While the stylish director John Woo delivered what most of the movie goers want, Hans Zimmer's electronic heavy score did not satisfy many score fans. After a few scenes of the movie (especially after the main titles scene), it's very clear what direction the score is heading. I was disappointed that many action scenes are scored with somewhat noisy electronic rock music, instead of a well-balanced orchestral and electronic score. You can barely hear any orchestral stuff in the film. By the way, I saw The Gladiator right before M:I2. So I had a strange feeling when I heard Lisa Gerrard's vocal is used very much like in The Gladiator.

The CD starts off with a Drop Zone like action piece "Hijack". Although the track is quite standard, it is still enjoyable. There is a short electric guitar motif in Hijack that is used occasionally in the action sequences. I suppose it is for the villain and is not very dominant. Other than the villain motif, Zimmer did not compose any other action motif or action theme. Why do you need to when you have Schifrin's theme? The song "Souca Na Na", played when Ethan Hunt is rock climbing, is appropriately included as track 2. The song blends very well with the score. Although the score is quite noisy, two soft themes stand out very much in the film. The first one is a Spanish guitar theme for Nyah. The theme is poignantly romantic and appeared throughout the score. "Serville" is a very enjoyable Spanish dance music rendition of the theme. This cue probably stands out the most in the film. The music blends so well with the cinematography. The concluding track "Nyah and Ethan" is a more sentimental guitar rendition of the theme. An upbeat and joyful theme is introduced briefly in the next track "Nyah". It reminds me of a theme in The Rock. The theme will appear fully again in "Mission Accomplished". After the joyful theme, Nyah theme returns in a guitar solo form. Surprisingly, it isn't "Mission: Impossible Theme" 's turn until track 5. And it is a short one too! Actually it is a good thing that it is short as the electronic rock rendition is not my cup of tea. After the hip and goofy track "The Heist", the vintage Zimmer returns in "Imbrose". If you don't pay attention, you probably would think you are listening to Crimson Tide because of the use of chorale. "Bio-Techno": self-explanatory. "Injection" introduces the second theme. It is the first track that Lisa Gerrard's vocal is fully used. Think of it as an electronic version of a Lisa Gerrard track in The Gladiator. If you like her tracks in The Gladiator, you probably will enjoy the track very much. "Bare Island" begins with the Bram Stoker's Dracula type gothic chorale. The track concludes with a heavy electronic rock rendition of the "Mission: Impossible Theme" and the villain motif. "Mano a Mano" is a track merged with Lisa Gerrard's theme and a heavy timpani rhythm. It is also quite enjoyable.

Although the score is far from Zimmer's best, I do enjoy the score presented here. This CD is well produced. Obviously they did not include much noisy rock music as heard in film. I don't see this as an essential score for a film score fan. It has enjoyable moments but is quite standard in general.



    Track Listing:
  1. Hijack (4:03)
  2. Zap Mama - Iko-Iko (3:21)
  3. Seville (4:32)
  4. Nyah [Film Version] (Hans Zimmer featuring Heitor Pereira) (2:20)
  5. "Mission: Impossible Theme" (Written by Lalo Schifrin) (0:38)
  6. The Heist (2:22)
  7. Ambrose (2:36)
  8. Bio-Techno (1:42)
  9. Injection (4:48)
  10. Bare Island* (5:29)
  11. Chimera (1:42)
  12. The Bait* (1:00)
  13. Mann a Mano (4:21)
  14. Mission: Accomplished (1:42)
  15. Nyah and Ethan (5:09)

    *Contains excerpts from "Mission: Impossible Theme" written by Lalo Schifrin

    Total Time: 45:46
Review Date: 7/9/00

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