One of the best scores for one of the best movies of the early 90's, Poledouris once again provides a masculine soundtrack to his efforts. Poledouris uses a Russian male chorus, speaking Russian, to musically show us Marco Ramius's journey from Russia to America and all the mayhem that occurs in between. A fully orchestra score that uses a synthesized beat combine to create one of the best submarine action scores since Ice Station Zebra.
I enjoy the main titles very much simply for their power and sound. It is a very catchy tune that I find myself humming every now and then. Course Two-Five-Zero is heard repeatedly throughout moments in the movie. However, on the soundtrack itself, it is only heard this one time. Such moving pieces are a perfect match for the graceful movements of the submarines in the ocean on screen. Red Route I is another such piece.
Chopper is one of the more tense pieces in the soundtrack and is heard in the film when Jack Ryan (Alec Baldwin) is being lowered to the Dallas via a helicopter. It is an exciting piece, but not quite as effective without the action going on on screen. But the same can't be said of Kaboom! which, besides the Hymn to Red October, is my favorite track on the soundtrack. The action is never more intense and rhythmic than in this last track that culminates in the destruction of the enemy.
It is a short soundtrack that could have had more music as some pieces from the film were not included in the soundtrack. But there is one piece that is included that was cut from the final version of the film. It is entitled Two Wives and would most likely have been heard when Ramius speaks of his wife and his second wife, the sea. It is a good moody piece that could have worked well if it had been used in the film. A decent score, but try to get it cheap since it is a fairly short score.
Total time: 30:11
1: Hymn to Red October (Main Titles) (5:04)
2: Nuclear Scam (7:17)
3: Putin's Demise (0:54)
4: Course Two-Five-Zero (0:21)
5: Ancestral Aid (2:10)
6: Chopper (2:52)
7: Two Wives (2:41)
8: Red Route I (3:28)
9: Plane Crash (1:46)
10: Kaboom!!! (3:15)