The Wild

You wait years for a CGI film about escaped zoo animals trying to find their buddy/buddies and then two come along at once (like films about bugs, asteroid impacts, etc.). OK, maybe the world wasn't that desperate for The Wild, but it looks a darn site better than Madagascar (although some reviews have noted that the vastly more realistic animals here are actually rather creepy compared to the stylized ones of Madagascar). Whatever the case, one truly risible aspect of Madagascar was 'Hans Zimmer's' score and the hideously awful and tight fisted album that mostly consisted of random tracks chosen to fit spoof moments from the film that should have no place together on CD. Fortunately, Disney have a touch more class (for a change) and Alan Silvestri is on board to write the score and gets a perfectly respectable selection on disc.

Alan Silvestri is very well suited to family films and scores them better than almost anyone else. Unlike others (not mentioning John Debney), Silvestri has a distinctive style that just happens to fit this kind of scoring, coupled with an ample gift for melody. Having said that, The Wild does not feature top tier Silvestri melodies, only two having an above average impact. The heart warming theme appears on a number of occasions and is actually very lovely without being too cloying, indeed one could argue it almost needs a little more mushy oomph. The second teeters on the brink of Williams' Villain March from Superman, but with a distinctive Silvestrian twist. However, compared to, say, Mouse Hunt or Richie Rich, The Wild's melodies don't quite cut it. Of course, a score doesn't necessarily need a grand melody, but for this kind of film, one does hope for a catchy riff or two. One thing that Silvestri does take to heart is the 'wild' aspect of The Wild and some of the action is surprisingly serious, To the Wild and Tales from the Wild are genuinely dramatic and hugely exciting, beefed up with some expected jungle drums.

Comedy moments are surprisingly few, but Silvestri does make occasional effortless switches between serious action and more light hearted (but no less impressively written) ideas. The aforementioned To the Wild is a prime example, cleverly packing in more ideas during four minutes than Zimmer managed in the entire of Madagascar. The handful of songs are tolerable, but take up only a modest proportion of the album, leaving Silvestri with just over half an hour. The underscore is bookended by Eric Idle's curious, brief, but enjoyable Really Nice Day which I suspect makes more sense in the film than it does on its own. If they wanted an enjoyable comedy song, it's disappointing Silvestri didn't contribute, one imagines something along the lines of John Powell's impressive Sing-a-Longs from Ice Age 2, with lots of jungle percussion, would have been a nice addition. Not quite one of Silvestri's best family scores, but unfailingly enjoyable none the less.