MOVIE MUSIC UK

Original Review by Jonathan Broxton

Possibly one of the most mis-marketed movie in history, director Michael Katleman’s film Primeval had the tag-line “inspired by the true story of the most prolific serial killer in history” – and actually turned out to be about a giant crocodile in South Africa attacking a news crew who are in town to cover the story. The film which stars Dominic Purcell, Brooke Langton, Orlando Jones and a slumming Jürgen Prochnow, was generally badly received, and did very little business at the international box office.

Composer Frizzell’s score is actually very effective and ominous, considering its tawdry subject matter, blending traditional orchestral and electronic writing with the traditional Burundian musical story-telling technique inanga chochotee, where a soloist plays a low pitched harp and whispers in an ominous tone, as well as powerful Burundian drumming. Several tracks overlay African vocals over a tumultuous orchestral performance to create a sense of action and menace, while cues such as “Shaman’s Blessing” use the Burundian drumming and vocals to unnerving effect.

Some of the action cues – “Jojo Alive” for example – are also pretty exciting, often overlaying rapid electronic beats over the orchestra. However, for all its geographical authenticity and despite the great effort Frizzell clearly made to make his score appropriate, its difficult to shake the feeling that Primeval is still little more than a fairly run-of-the-mill action/thriller score, with very little true originality to offer the listener.

The soundtrack for Primeval was not released commercially, but was made available as an 18-track promo by Frizzell’s publicists at Costa Communications.

Rating: **½

Track Listing:

• Mass Graves (2:04)
• Peace Keeper (1:26)
• Happy Village (0:44)
• At Krieg’s House (1:30)
• Krieg’s Pain (1:19)
• Shaman’s Blessing (2:21)
• Humping Cage (1:00)
• The Dart (2:54)
• Shaman’s Head (2:57)
• Jojo Alive (2:11)
• What Happened? (1:27)
• Krieg Shot (2:23)
• Lekker Fish (1:26)
• Matt Gets Killed (1:04)
• I Hate Africa (2:56)
• Mr. T vs. Mr. Man (1:33)
• Beeper Speeds (1:42)
• Flying Home (1:04)

Running Time: 31 minutes 46 seconds

Promo (2007)