The Shadow

Out of all the big-budget 1990's superhero films to have suffered from comparisons to Tim Burton's BATMAN (and its first sequel), none perhaps suffered as much as THE SHADOW, a 1994 adaptation of the character created by Walter B. Gibson that was directed by Russell Mulcahy (HIGHLANDER) and starred Alec Baldwin in the title role. The irony here is that The Shadow as a character predated the Dark Knight in media (such as pulp magazines and radio shows) as being the first brooding and mysterious dark-cloaked nocturnal avenger. Not only that, but both this character and Zorro were inspirations for the creation of that more famous caped crusader. That being said, the similarities to Burton's films are there from the lavish set design, the neo-noir atmosphere, the exuberant tone and even having Bob Ringwood as the film's costume designer. Unfortunately, it didn't mix the sincerity with the silliness as well as Burton's film did. Most unfortunate was that its lead and solid supporting cast (which included Penelope Ann Miller, John Lone, Tim Curry, Peter Boyle, Jonathan Winters and Sir Ian McKellan) all gave stilted performances as they were handicapped by a juvenile script with underwritten characters, painful one-liners and unfunny jokes and are lost in a movie with bad CGI and set pieces both idiotic and anticlimactic (although in the film's defense, an earthquake destroyed some of the sets that were to be used in the finale). All this woe made for a film that was dull, unremarkable and forgettable as a result which made it no surprise that it got trashed in its release and sunk at the box office (also adding insult to injury was the added irony that Sam Raimi's Shadow-inspired DARKMAN from four years prior turned out to be the better movie).

Another BATMAN-related criticism the film faced was the score written by the late Jerry Goldsmith, with The Washington Post calling it 'an ersatz-Danny Elfman score'. I can understand where that's coming from in that both scores have an aura of gothic melodrama; but that's only a superficial similarity. Goldsmith, versatile though he was, was his own man at the end of the day and his musical personality is embedded all throughout this score. In fact, this score reminds me of his work for Paul Verhoeven at the time with the frenzied, high-powered action and synthesizer work reminding me of TOTAL RECALL and the histrionic noir elements resembling BASIC INSTINCT (another movie with pulp sensibilities), but more mischievous than malevolent.

But what is a superhero score without a few good themes? 'The Poppy Fields' introduces the main theme, first softly with harp, woodwinds, and what's described in the liner notes as a 'synth howl' to suggest the mystery of our hero before bursting out with full-blown brass and synthesizers. It's a mysterious and brooding but heroic theme and Goldsmith gets a lot of mileage out of it throughout the score, sometimes to the detriment of both the film and the album. That's a minor complaint however, as Goldsmith probably knew the only way this film was going to be even remotely memorable was if he made the theme stand out, and it does. It might not have the iconic quality of Elfman's BATMAN theme or John Williams' theme for SUPERMAN, but its great in it's own way and I'd probably rank it a notch below those and a notch or two above Elliot Goldenthal's underrated theme for BATMAN FOREVER. Interestingly enough, the theme for the villain of the piece, Shiwan Khan (Lone) is actually an inverse of the hero's theme, which is first heard in 'Don't Open It' where he makes his grand entrance. Since both characters possess the same power (the ability to cloud men's minds), it makes sense that their themes are similar in design (with Khan also getting block percussion and a bass slide whistle to represent his Eastern origins). It might not sound like a genius idea on paper, but Goldsmith's wealth of skills makes it one. There is also a love theme for the romance between the hero and Margo Lane (Miller), but its appearances are few and far between as this is primarily an action score.

As an action score, it does what the best of them do: emphasize the danger and the tension of the action at hand as opposed to the fistfights and explosions. But, this being a superhero movie, it exaggerates those feelings to give the film its large-than-life effect. Upon hearing this score, it's easy to ascertain how Goldsmith was a master at making an action sequence that was obviously silly or uneventful seem riveting and give it weight without lapsing into self-importance. For instance, tracks like 'The Clouded Mind', 'I'll Be There', 'Chest Pains', 'The Knife', and 'The Tank' all give their ridiculous scenes their necessary intensity without bludgeoning one over the head. In the film's climax, 'The Hotel' and 'Fight Like a Man' build excitement to a showdown with Khan that turns out to be pretty lame, with 'The Mirrors' (and an alternate take on that cue, which immediately follows it for some reason) serving as the conclusion. The finale, 'Frontal Lobotomy', wraps everything thing up nicely with all the thematic ideas coming together and ending everything on a high note to set the stage for the franchise that never materialized.

Intrada ought to be commended for bringing this score to its fullest. The original album release from Arista Records did the score a great injustice by only showcasing a quarter of the score and featured an excerpt of the radio show, a limp big-band track, and not one but two (!) versions of the horrible Taylor Dayne single 'Original Sin' (which sound exactly the same). Thankfully, justice has been served and Intrada have issued the complete score, as well as having source cues and that original album fill out the remainder of the second disc (which makes for a good compare and contrast). It's an excellent presentation overall with descriptive liner notes and a great sound mix that Goldsmith fans would do well to purchase if they haven't already. If you are a fan of superhero scores, then definitely purchase this one as I think its easily one of the genre's best with a fabulous main theme and exciting action music that's imbued with an impish dark side.

Listening to this, I can say that it's a shame Goldsmith only lived to experience the first half of the real superhero movie explosion that would dominate the next decade and beyond (he passed away in 2004). His creativity and dramatic sensibilities would have certainly been welcome in a genre that by its very nature demands it and I can only imagine what he would have written for mind-numbing turds like GREEN LANTERN or enjoyable romps like THE AVENGERS. Hopefully, whoever scores the 'dark, gritty, and realistic' reboot (its only a matter of time before one gets made and will probably feature a pseudo Hans Zimmer score) will make an effort as fantastic as this one. After all, who knew a thing or two about helping to ensure the longevity of a movie (good or bad) better than most? Jerry Goldsmith knew! HA HA HA HA HA!!!

(Sorry, couldn't resist...)