Photo credit: amazon.com
The score and soundtrack to the eagerly anticipated New Moon — which is a sequel to the teen vampire romance Twilight — is dark, brooding, and haunting like one would expect from this genre of film.
In Twilight, we were enchanted by the epic romance between Bella Swan (Kristen Stewart) and Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson). Bella’s opening narration, “I’ve never given much thought to how I would die, but dying in the place of someone I love seems like a good way to go,” is the mantra not only for Twilight but New Moon as well. The score matches the fervor of the romantic yet forbidden story line, with a fiery of squelching electric guitars, riveting chamber music, and pulsating percussion beats.
Composer Carter Burwell, who has worked on films such as “No Country For Old Men” and “Where the Wild Things Are,” provided a bittersweet atmosphere for the first film. Amidst haunting tunes and marauding notes, chimes a piano motif that plays the heartstrings. The soft, tranquil piano serenade that Edward played for Bella, which signifies their love, is echoed throughout the film as Edward’s enchantment and devotion towards Bella grows and vice versa. “Bella’s Lullaby” is the heart of the film with a role all its own, keeping the viewer engaged and sympathetic towards the forlorn lovers.
For the sequel, the film’s director, Chris Weitz sought the talent of French composer Alexandre Desplat, whom he worked with on his film “The Golden Compass.” This change in composers means that we may have to bid adieu to “Bella’s Lullaby.” But, Desplat has written his own prelude to this romantic saga called “New Moon (The Meadow).” His piano ballad resembles the chase of Beethoven’s “Fur Elise” in its rapid succession of notes that die down to a soft flutter. It is a classical nod to a forgone period and the possible departing of star-crossed lovers, which are alluded to with Bella’s flashbacks and visions of Edward in the trailer.
If the trailer is any indication of the drama to unfold, then the soundtrack is a fitting accompaniment. Ok Go’s “Shooting the Moon” with its tribal beats and growling sound effects is an obvious homage to the role of the wolf in the sequel. In rhythm with the moody theme of the sequel, the soundtrack has a bit more edge than the first film’s soundtrack, with tracks like Thom Yorke’s “Hearing Damage,” Hurricane Bell’s “Monsters,” and Bon Iver & St. Vincent’s song “Rosyln” with its unworldly voices and acoustic guitars. Just as Twilight revamped the lore of vampires, the New Moon soundtrack ushers in an eerie apocalyptic vibe with its indie tunes.
Chicly Yours,
The Chic Spy
