Have you ever wondered what Jerry Goldsmith would have done with the score to Aliens had he been brought back rather than passing the reigns to James Horner? Well wonder no longer. No, Leviathan isn't a sequel to Aliens or anything like that but you could safely call it Aliens underwater. With that description in mind you have a rough idea of what the movie is about.
In any case, Goldsmith turns out another stellar score with a couple of experimental techniques thrown in for good measure. The music starts off simply enough with the first track Underwater Camp covering the opening titles and scenes. Since this movie takes place in the depths of the ocean, Goldsmith uses whalesongs to back up the orchestra. This combination of music and whalesong provides for an unusual duo and works surprisingly well. The track finally builds to it's crescendo and gives us a final triumphant burst of the main theme, which by the way is rather good.
The rest of the tracks are in the same vein as a lot of Jerry Goldsmith's action scores, but his use of synthesized sounds are thrown in for a slightly eerie sound. Portions of this score seem to resurface in some of his later works, namely The Mummy. It's easy to see why since the music sucessfully manages to evoke feelings of tension and suspense. Oh to think of what Goldsmith could potentially have done with Aliens.
The main theme is used often in this score. In the opening track it is presented in a slowed down version to express the tranquility and majesty of the ocean's depths. In the fourth track One of Us, Goldsmith presents a nice piano version of the main theme that is used as the film's love theme. The final track is the best track on the entire soundtrack. Again presenting a variation on the main theme, A Lot Better plays the main theme at full tempo and it races along to it's conclusion. Overall this is an above average score that led me to seek out some more of his scores, reviews of which are forthcoming. This one is worth looking into. Although not quite as loud and action-packed as The Mummy or Total Recall, it has its moments.
Total time: 39:16
1: Underwater Camp (3:23)
2: Decompression (3:16)
3: Discovery (5:24)
4: One of Us (1:41)
5: The Body Within (4:33)
6: Escape Bubbles (5:37)
7: Can We Fix It (3:25)
8: Situation Under Control (1:49)
9: It's Growing (3:10)
10: Too Hot (3:27)
11: A Lot Better (3:31)