RED KROKODIL - Alexander Cimini
Alexander Cimini creates a richly layered score that fuses three main scoring elements together: the use of solo instruments, full orchestra and digital sound sets; and all to good effect. This score is a ‘beauty and the beast’ of composition. The score to Red Krokodil is a real hidden gem that I would thoroughly recommend searching out for its hauntingly evocative motifs, esoteric structure and overall listening experience. Another superb example of European composition for a film that questions our own moral servitude and those life changing decisions.
Synopsis
Red Krokodil portrays the story of a Krokodil addict that suddenly finds himself alone in post-nuclear city reminiscing about the fall of Chernobyl. The physical decay to his body caused by the massive intake of drugs develops parallel to that of his inner world. This neorealist hallucinatory film by acclaimed visionary director Domiziano Cristopharo was inspired by an unpublished tale written by Francesco Scardone.
Cimini manages this abstract visual material incredibly well through the use of his soft and platonic fusion of instrumentation. Maybe the fact that the composer is also a director allows a very different appreciation and interpretation of the material and the processes involved in scoring a picture such as this. The score is a journey that lets the listener venture through life; we hear the joy of being a child through soft dreamy sequences, the turmoil of adulthood in the hard electronic cues and we have the joy of looking back in the deep orchestral reflective passages. This is not an economic score by any stretch of the imagination as we are treated to beautiful violin solos that will simply transport you into the heartache and destruction of the central character HIM, whilst alongside we have the dream like escapism of gentle piano solos. What Alexander Cimini has done with his score is create an aural journey that leads the listener into a nightmarish landscape where we feel at odds and uneasy with the path ahead before bringing us through to the other side and constructing an enlightened and calming texture. This is a story about emancipation from society, history and personal struggle and through putting us into the psyche of the films characters, scenery and sounds we react to the music in a very different manner; it becomes personal.
The score opens with an electronic soundscape C_age which may not be to everyone’s listening pleasure but this is the key to opening your mind to what lies ahead and is a very cleverly constructed cue that in essence clears your mind ready to appreciate the next 30+ minutes. Cimini uses this brash and unsettling electronica to good effect and interestingly the cues that do feature the progressive digital technique are from previous compositions that Cimini has incorporated into this project; namely C_age, M.A.R.C.O. and W(t)omb.
The way that the score works reminds me of the earlier scores composed by Giorgio Moroder and Pino Donaggio and it strikes me that Cimini has really studied his wealth of talented musical forefathers to craft his own sounds whilst paying homage to these greats of Italian composition. High open strings that effortlessly drop into piano melodies is something the European composers use naturally and to good effect. There is also a quality that reminds the listener of early Eric Serra scores to the Besson pictures La Dernier Combat and Subway (perhaps this is due to the post apocolyptic vision of the world that the films have in common). In keeping with the subject matter and location of the movie we are not led down a clichéd ethnic path; with the only flavour of the soviet heritage coming from a gentle cimbalom that acts as the foundation stone for what we are listening. It would have been easy for a Director or Producer to request ethnic instrumentation throughout the score but this subtle hint is just enough to put us at ease and to remind us of the landscape (political and social).
Standout tracks from the album would be the Red Krokodil (Main Theme), Alone, My Little Green Crocodile and The Window due to their use of violin, cello and piano alongside a strong orchestral base; very beautiful pieces of music to listen to. The last track The Window develops into an almost waltz like melody that encompasses everything that we have listened to previously and finishes the score on a high and leaving the listener wanting more.
Luckily we are treated to more, in the form of the 7 minute cue Passion And Love? which is certainly an apt title. This cue was from the film Hyde’s Secret Nightmare (that was scored by fellow Italian Kristian Sensini) but not included on the soundtrack release. Thankfully we are treated to this cue on this album and it is exactly why I found film music so powerful as a youngster. This is sweeping, soft, progressive and a whirling frenzy of instrumentation that employs romantic counterpoint techniques in all the right places to make the cue work.
This is an award winning score and Alexander Cimini is quickly building a reputation in an ever growing field of composers and upon listening to a number of his other cues on SoundCloud I am sure that we will see his name on a number of high profile European releases over the coming years. Red Krokodil is a score that will definitely attract attention from the right people and fans of film music should give this score a listen to appreciate European art at the top of its game.
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