[flickr id=”6324504025″ thumbnail=”medium” overlay=”true” size=”original” group=”” align=”none”]

This post will review the wonderful score for The Brothers Bloom (2008).  If you haven’t seen this movie, do it now.  You’re welcome.

The Movie

The Brothers Bloom centers around two brothers (Adrien Brody and Mark Ruffalo), con men who run a long-con on a millionaire widow (Rachel Weisz).

[flickr id=”6324511365″ thumbnail=”medium” overlay=”true” size=”original” group=”” align=”none”]

It is a film filled with fun and heart, with a gripping story that takes them all over the world, including Prague, Russia, and Mexico.  Without giving anything away, the end of the story comes as quite a surprise.  The characters themselves act and speak in a sort of timeless way–if not for the cars they drive it would be difficult to tell what decade they are really in.

The Artists

The score for this film is simply wonderful.  Not only does it function perfectly as dramatic underscore, but it is equally fun to listen to independently.  This last quality is not always true for film scores, and is a definite plus in this situation.  The music is written by Nathan Johnson and performed by the Cinematic Underground.

[flickr id=”6325275638″ thumbnail=”medium” overlay=”true” size=”original” group=”” align=”none”]

Recording scores with a group that already plays together lends a more cohesive sound then one might get if recording session players that have never met before.  This certainly depends on a case-by-case basis, but one can definitely hear it here.

The Music

The heart of the music in The Brothers Bloom is in the instrumentation.  The Cinematic Underground play some awesome instruments, and they ALL at one paint have some sort of lead melodic role in the score.  This keeps the music sounding very, very fresh and allows for impressive thematic development throughout the film.

[flickr id=”6324528135″ thumbnail=”medium” overlay=”true” size=”original” group=”” align=”none”]

For those keeping score, this film uses upright & grand pianos, wurlitzer, drum kit/various percussion, wine-o-phone (?), acoustic guitar, electric guitar, classical guitar, trumpet, melodica, clarinet, flute, Hammond organ, Mellotron, electric bass, upright bass, cello, violin, viola, bass clarinet, French horn, prepared piano, glockenspiel, and The Section Quartet.  These instruments combine to form a folksy, upbeat, and emotional score.

Nathan Johnson wrote several themes for characters in this film.  The above instruments play them all in a wide array of emotions.  For my money, it doesn’t get any better than Penelope’s theme.  It is playful and beautiful in its simplicity, both in melodic content and orchestration.  The Section Quartet blends wonderfully here.

[flickr id=”6325296768″ thumbnail=”medium” overlay=”true” size=”original” group=”” align=”none”]

And if you want to hear the themes interacting with each other, take a listen to The Perfect Con.  **Spoiler Alert**  In less than 7 minutes the music takes us on an emotional roller coaster, starting with Steven’s death and ending with Bloom and Penelope’s happy reunion.  I am literally listening to it right now.  And by now I hope you are too.

[flickr id=”6324550573″ thumbnail=”medium” overlay=”true” size=”original” group=”” align=”none”]