Soundtrack Review: Frost/Nixon (2008)

This is a review of the motion picture score Frost/Nixon by Hans Zimmer.

“It’s a sub-standard Zimmer effort, but then again his standards are pretty high.”

Who here thought when they saw the scoring assignments for Frost/Nixon that there was a misprint somewhere? Hans Zimmer, the Remote Control Productions inspirational leader doing a historical drama movie is something you don’t see very often. Usually he does his own things and is perhaps knows best for his immense action scores. This movie is a dramatic re-telling of the Watergate scandal based on television interviews between Richard Nixon and David Frost. Does Zimmer have the dramatic balls to make this more interesting, just because he is Hans Zimmer?

Track List

1. Watergate (****)
   
2. The Numbers (***)
3. Hello, Good Evening and Welcome (****)
   
4. Pardon the Phlebitis (****)
   
5. Status (****)
   
6. Beverly Hilton (****)
7. Money (***)
8. Frost Despondent (***)
9. Insanely Risky (***)
10. Cambodia (***)
11. Research Montage (***)
12. The Final Interview (***)
13. Nixon Defeated (****)
    
14. First Ideas (**)

Zimmer Drama

First of all, forget about Pirates of the Caribbean, Gladiator or Madagascar, this is a whole new ball game as Hans Zimmer steps on unproven grounds. The movie is apparently very dramatic and interesting but the 43 minutes soundtrack is not that dramatic, and far less interesting than one would hope. I applaud Zimmer for giving this genre a try and I sincerely hope he does more of these in the future, I really do, but please give us something to think about!

Light and Dark

We already start at the famous Watergate with the cue ‘Watergate‘ which is one of the best cues of the soundtrack. It has a light and fast violin motif with a darker underscoring. It set an uncanny pace which Hans Zimmer struggles to maintain, at least in the latter parts of the score. The main theme heard here and later in cues like ‘Nixon Defeated’ is unfortunately bleak at best which is a shame because Zimmer can do amazing themes. ‘Hello, Good Evening and Welcome’ is a very good cue in which the pacing is as fast as ‘Watergate‘, at least halfway. It has a whimsical sound to it, almost like a light comedy. ‘Beverly Hilton’ continues on the same premise as ‘Hello, Good Evening and Welcome’. It’s relatively fast paced and has that same whimsical feel to it.

There is a fine mix between the light and the dark on this soundtrack, but so far we have only explored the lighter side. The darker side is most clearly heard in the cue ‘Pardon the Phlebitis’ and also the best cue on the album called ‘Status‘. ‘Pardon the Phlebitis’ is like a Dark Night light. It uses some electronic instruments, although it has to be said that this score is mostly orchestral. ‘Status‘ is perhaps the best cue on the Frost/Nixon soundtrack. It starts in ominous fashion with a darker motif which then goes on to be perhaps lighter than Zimmer had thought initially.

Nothing Special

As you get really into this score wondering if there is anything special about it, then you sadly realize that there isn’t. It is quite an anonymous effort by Mr. Zimmer and I’m not saying that because I like action-Zimmer. I do like this kind of score when it works, when it’s something I can really feel, that carves up emotions. This score doesn’t do that, but struggles to find its own identity. Cues like ‘The Numbers’ and the almost 10 minutes long ‘First Ideas’ illustrates the problem with the Frost/Nixon soundtrack. There simply isn’t enough to care about. I personally feel that Hans Zimmer has let me down a bit and I just know that for example Carter Burwell would have delivered a much more solid score.

Conclusion

When all is said and done, there’s nothing to see here, move along. Hans Zimmer has delivered a score which hardly touches the surface of the interesting and exciting story of Nixon/Frost. I have to say (with a saddened heart) that it’s a sub-standard Zimmer effort, but then again his standards are pretty high. If you want a more dramatic Zimmer, a moving and emotional one, you should get The Thin Red Line instead.

Listen to Frost/Nixon by Hans Zimmer below: