You'd think that after two encounters with dinosaurs, man would be smart enough to steer clear of any island where dinosaurs are known to roam. I guess mankind isn't that smart yet because another group of hapless morsels...er... travelers has found their way back to the original island from the first Jurassic Park. Although John Williams did return to score the first sequel, this time around he joined Spielberg and pulled a bit away from the project leaving his name attached but not solely responsible. Is it a good thing? Well it depends. As I write this, the opening weekend has come and gone and the film is number one. But will it stay there? Only time will tell. In any case, I'm here to review the music, so let's get on with it.
I read that a third Jurassic Park was coming out, almost two years ago. Since that time, the rumors swirled as to whether John Williams would be returning or not. I was hoping that he would mainly because I'm one of his fans but also because I wanted there to be some continuity in terms of the scores of all the films in the series. I was dreading the possibility of a Batman-esque incident where Elfman's themes were forgotten by Goldenthal and completely new themes were created. A sort of compromise in my mind was the fact that John Williams decided to serve as a consultant to Don Davis. Don Davis did a fairly decent job on The Matrix and it proved he was capable of writing a suspense filled action score. What pleased me most about this score was the fact that he seems to have taken whatever John Williams may have told him straight to heart. Why do I say that? Well, one listen to the score and you'll know.
Although not exactly the same as what John Williams would have done, the score is quite a close copy of what Williams could have done. Much as with Silvestri's take on Goldsmith's original concepts for The Mummy Returns, Davis has created a score that has many of the elements of a Williams score. Not only that, Davis has used many of Williams's original themes throughout the score. From the main theme of the first Jurassic Park to the ominous theme of the raptors, this score covers them all. That's not to say that the score lacks any new themes. In fact, the portions of the score that do deal with original material not incorporating any of Williams's themes are among some of the best written.
Davis has come in on the heels of one of the more popular composers in movie history and rather than shying away from that fact, he has done a remarkable job in creating his own sound as well as bringing back memories of Williams. Most of the tracks deal with the more exciting portions of the film and so there is almost never a dull moment. The one drawback is the Randy Newman song. While Randy Newman isn't bad at writing songs or composing, it just seems a bit out of place on this type of album. I admit I have to still see the film and see in what context the song goes, but still, it is kind of odd. On the whole, this score has many elements that will appeal to fans of Williams, but will also serve as an introduction for many to the rising popularity of Don Davis.
Total time: 54:25