Terminator 3 is most likely the final chapter in the Terminator saga and it succeeds in furthering the saga rather than ripping off the second and first instalment. T3 has a number of differences that distinguish it from the other films, for the first time the series creator, James Cameron is absent from the directorial seat and is replaced with John Mostow, second, the film features many hundreds instead of one or two Terminators and third Brad Fiedel has not scored for the film.
Whilst this has ditched the original sound of T1 and T2 and eliminated the Fiedel Terminator theme the new composer, Marco Beltrami has added a more richly emotional feel to the music of the Terminator saga.
Beltrami creates his own, new themes for the score but still in places can�t resist using elements of Fiedel�s own pounding percussion motif. For the most part Beltrami uses a different arrangement of the percussion but in tracks such as �Terminator Tangle� he suddenly although briefly allows a flourish of Fiedel�s original motif.
There is a lot of percussion pounding throughout the score and a lot of frantic strings and blaring brass. Unfortunately this does not do much for the score. The action music sounds flat and subdued and nowhere approaching scary or even exciting. The action cues are more to accompany the mood and atmosphere of the onscreen action rather than set it. Only in tracks �TX�s Hot Tail� and �Terminator Tangle� does the music pick up creative pace and gather excitement with the use of less percussion and more orchestral driven motifs. Even here the orchestra sounds as though it has little enthusiasm for the music it�s playing although the performance in the mentioned tracks is slightly more powerful and rich sounding than others although this subdued sounding orchestra may just be down to recording quality it still diminishes the impact of the score.
In the end it is the character tracks that offer the best music. The prominent �JC Theme� is one of the highlights of the score though not for its performance in the actual �JC Theme� cue. In that track the theme is played well however a few obvious mistakes by the players in the string section leave the listener cringing as several key notes are played jarringly off key. The best performance is in �Radio� where the theme gets a massive performance with choral backing and a powerful full orchestra.
Add to that the end credits where all the themes including a return of Fiedel�s percussion theme and a new rendition of the JC Theme with more brass are given one last blast and it is possible to feel satisfied with the T3 score.
The complete final performance of Brad Fiedel�s theme is the perfect act of redemption for the CD and Beltrami�s score. Here Beltrami gives the theme full orchestral treatment along with choral backing this is what everyone�s been waiting for.
The re-done theme is by far the most stylish and full sounding track on the CD and the orchestra attack the piece with power and bite making stunning ending.
However, you can�t help but feel that that should have been what the entire score sounded like.
Overall the T3 score is far more diverse and superior to Fiedel�s original two scores. The action music is mostly drab and neither scary nor exciting although there are a few tracks where the performances have bite and the music has energy and power. The emotional tracks are enjoyable enough and at the end of the score, stunning. The full orchestra version of Brad Fiedel�s Original is fantastic and the songs are, although out of place on the CD, enjoyable. The score doesn�t kick arse but there is enough reasonably good action music to enjoy and the non-action cues a mixture of great and okay.
***
2. Hooked on Multiphonics (1:48)
3. Blonde Behind the Wheel (2:08)
4. JC Theme (3:35)
5. Starting T1 (1:51)
6. Hearse Rent a Car (1:49)
7. TX's Hot Tail (3:40)
8. Graveyard Shootout (1:32)
9. More Deep Thoughts (0:59)
10. Dual Terminator (0:51)
11. Kicked in the Can (2:03)
12. Magnetic Personality (4:36)
13. Termina-Tricks (2:13)
14. Flying Lessons (0:57)
15. What Do You Want on your Tombstone? (1:20)
16. Terminator Tangle (3:21)
17. Radio (2:21)
18. T3 (3:15)
19. The Terminator (from the Motion Picture The Terminator Composed by Brad Fiedel) (2:17)
Bonus Tracks:
20. Open to Me - Performed by Dillon Dixon (3:48)
21. I Told You - Performed by Mia Julia (3:12)
