Alexandre Desplat

Whether or not you see the movie, which is also beautiful (by the way), this is a soundtrack you MUST NOT MISS. Without going into detail of each piece, let me say, it is delicious and splendid. Make sure you can enjoy it with as much "noise-reduction" as possible, so as not to miss the delicate, yet powerful, tones of each instrument. You will find yourself softly humming the haunting theme over and over. This is a masterpiece.

'Sunrise on Lake Pontchartrain', 'Children Games', 'Benjamin and Daisy' and 'Alone at Night' are achingly wistful, exquisite pieces. Such beauty should not be overlooked.

Having not seen the movie yet, I'm sure my interpretation of the music will change. The score is beautiful and different than I expected - it's not brooding or as achingly melancholic as the score for 'Atonement,' but there's a delicate quality about the music here. Early tracks play a little more upbeat and almost have a mysterious quality to them, like the track 'Love in Mourmansk." As the story of Benjamin and Daisy unfolds, the music grows more complex and sad - in parallel to the emotional journey that the two lovers go through. Well, I've said enough. It's a beautiful soundtrack, there are many great tracks throughout, "Meeting Again" is simply but beautiful track with intricate piano work that I strongly recommend.

This music is good for meditation!!
Whenever I listened to this music, I feel like at the movie.
I really enjoyed the edward norton's acting.

This CD has very beautiful music. I remember thinking while watching the movie, that I must remember to buy the soundtrack. My sons (who are in their twenties) asked what it was when they were over to dinner one evening. It is just splendid.

This is a nice, soft score. It makes for good background music. I can't say how it helps or hurts the movie, since I've not seen it. The music itself, though, is quite beautiful.

Alexandre Desplat's music is gorgeous, dazzling, sensuous, and exciting, and Lang Lang's pianistic abilities are on full display. The music perfectly matches the film. See the movie, then enjoy the music over and over again.

i was lucky enough to hear desplat's score for 'the luzhin defence' about five years ago when a friend lent me her copy. i was immediately taken by the beauty of his work and i count myself among his ever-growing list of followers.

i'm hardly qualified to discuss the score's technical merits, but i am qualified to tell you how the score hit me emotionally. what i like about desplat's scores, and particularly 'the painted veil,' is its understatedness. desplat understands, perhaps better than anyone else, that the listener doesn't need to hit over the head with a score for it to be effective and emotional [take note, hollywood composers]. it's probably relatively easy, i imagine, to write bombastic or syrupy scores that queue the listener what to feel and when to feel it. desplat's scores, on the other hand, embellish the films instead of trying to dictate them. and in a character-driven movie like 'the painted veil,' the score *should* be understated and restrained as to not take away from, but rather subtley enhance, what are arguably two of the finest acting performances i've ever seen [watts and norton, respectively]. so i tip my hat to him. well done! i don't know who approached desplat about scoring the film, but it was coup and i hope that person won a prize or two.

'the painted veil' was one of my favorite films from last year. if you've not seen it, see it. if you've not heard the score, buy it. alexandre desplat, for my money, is the simply the best composer out there right now, film scores or otherwise.

as a side note, the title track's melody is almost note for note identical to the synth line on new order's 'touched by the hand of god.' funny, that.

The 25th anniversary collection was fabulous so I ordered this the minute I heard it was released...it does not disappoint. It covers the last 5 years gamut of films from lightweight to challenging musicalities. (personal favorite the more exotic disc 2). It is almost overwhelming trying to take in so many different films and guessing the composers to match the soundtracks. Thank you for also including a track from Lost - a real surprise. Producers - please don't make us wait another 5 years for another one!

The two previous "25th anniversary celebrations" from Varèse Sarabande are a must in any music library, not to mention if one likes cinema music (the real contemporary symphonic music, in my opinion). I was a little reluctant about this one at first, as it covers a very short time span (only five years), and many of the movies are unheard of...at least for me (I do confess I have disappointedly abandoned Western cinema for Far East one for quite some time now). However, the quality of the music is simply breathtaking. Virtually every track is worth to be listend to attentively. Pure musical enjoyment. Get it while supply lasts!!

This is truly a beautiful soundtrack. Like the film, it is probably not very well known by many people, but a gem nonetheless. It has several themes that are played with variation throughout the soundtrack. Overall, the sound is very consistent; delicate strings and piano, slightly melancholy and mysterious at times. It is a little repetitive, but you won't care because the melodies are so exquisitely crafted. This is the kind of cd that you can just sit and listen to and let your mind wander, or read to and not have to worry about one track being calm and quiet and the next being loud and blaring. For such a short movie, you have a good amount of playing time to feast your ears on.

I love this soundtrack! It stands alone as beautiful, haunting, alluring, and innocent--just as Griet herself was in the film. Desplat perfectly captured the spirit of the story, enhanced and deepened a plot that was less than stellar.

Scarlett Johanssen's acting is superb, as well as Essie Davis and Colin Firth. The story, though, was a bit tired--pretty housemaid/jealous wife/do-nothing husband. Its portrayal of Vermeer and his wife was a disservice to the real people, even though it is a fictionalized account.

The two best tracks on this album are 'Griet's Theme' and 'Colours in the Clouds'. While I'm not keen on seeing the film again, this soundtrack is a treasure. It's a real work of art, second only to Vermeer's work.

a fine film of one man's fantasy of a vermeer painting. Strictly fiction based on an actual work of art. I enjoyed the film, though not a great film. Vermeer's character remined basically unchanged or developed during the film. Still a worthwhile fine movie. Remember, it is all fiction, except for the lovely work which thankfully is real. Who knows? She was lovely.

Earlier this winter I saw "Girl With a Pearl Earring" in the movie theater. I loved the concept of taking a famous painting and turning it into a fictional story like author Tracy Chevalier did with Johanne's painting of a girl with a pearl earring. The film was a stunning piece of work. Colin Firth as Vermeer and Scarlett Johansson as Griet put in excellent performances as did the supporting cast. What really made the film for me was the haunting film score. The music really shaped the mood of the film. I finally found a copy of the soundtrack for "Girl With a Pearl Earring" today. I knew right away that I had to buy it. Listening to the music sent chills down my spine. Alexandre Desplat did an amazing job as composure as well as conductor for the film score. It brought back images of the film. I agree with the other reviewer, Alexandre's film score should have received an Oscar nod. It is truly one of the best film scores I have ever heard in my 30 years of life (well, almost 30 years in a few months). The music isn't bombastic and loud like a lot of film scores tends to be. It is very subtle and breathtaking to this music lover's ears. Anyone who has seen and loved the movie, get this soundtrack. It is a nice reminder of one of the best art house films ever made.

I first saw Girl with a Pearl Earring at Telluride by the Sea in late September 2003.
Immediately, the score struck me as something beautiful and unique. It was lovely against the gorgeous spectrum of the film.
I immediately wanted to purchase it,
but only until six months later is it now available.
I highly suggest purchasing this disc, even if you have not seen the film.
The score was robbed of an Academy Award nomination
and shouldn't be overlooked by anyone.

this is magorium's first debut album under the record label wonder emporium and i think its an incredible euphorium after listsening to mr. magoriums wonder emporoium muted and dysphoriam i like cars

This is an amazing soundtrack. It's truly a masterpiece and I am so glad I bought it. I've been recommending it to all my friends and co-workers.

This score is very quickly becoming one of my favorites! This music was so wonderfully written to where you don't need to see the movie to know what it is about! Nevertheless, the score does its job and adds character and magic to the film and the film itself was already very entertaining and inspiring...
The music is quirky, fun, inspiring and sad. All in one album. The only unfortunate thing about it is..which is always the case with Varese Sarabande records...many of the tracks very short as the album as a whole.

Perception is everything in this world. The story of Mr. Magorium is partly one of the archetypal American legend who inspired a generation to carry on dreaming. It is significant that Kermit makes an appearance in the film as Jim Henson was one such figure who inspired the films philosophy no doubt, few men of his generation were so influential to the children of the world and these men like Magorium set an example not by what they said so much but by what they did with their lives. Inspiration reverberates for generations and the wisdom which comes from that inspiration will hopefully always lead us towards the lights until ultimately we have a legacy like Magorium's to pass on. This idea of finding faith in past childhood wisdom in order to regain direction in ones life is largely the journey Molly Mahoney must grasp in the film until she understands the strength of her perception and how she can do some good in this world.

This recording tells the story wonderfully, it was a treat listening to it again and letting my imagination run free with each harmony. An inspiration.

Beautiful. I've seen Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emprorium 2 times in theaters, and on both occasions, was brought to tears. Alexandre Desplat(The Queen) and Aaron Zigman(Bridge to Terrabithia) decided to team up and create a heart-wrenching masterpiece. The score to this movie is phenomenal. Never in my life have I experienced something so pure, or listened to something so astounding, as this CD. The world is rapidly changing around us, and as humans, we have found ways to occupy our time. Business meetings, kids soccer games, and (for me) school classes, are just a few of our daily agendas that take our time away from us. Stress is always present, gnawing at the back of our necks, reminding us of everything that needs to be accomplished. With maturity, comes great responsibility. Every day, the simple and pure things in life go unnoticed, and imagination is buried under layers of tedious work and cause for pressure. I never believed it to be possible, but the score to Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium made me feel like a kid again. And oh, what a wonderful feeling it is...

Tracks 9 (Pirates) & 10 (Earring) on disk 4 are indeed reversed. I hope that Amazon will take a look to fix this.

I bought this as a gift for my husband. He wasn't expecting this; usually he gives me a list and I choose from it. I saw this while looking for one of his other selections and thought he'd like it. I figured, even if he doesn't, I will. We both love it! Great for listening on long drives up the turnpike!

Over the past thirty years, my father and I have been collecting film music on various formats--vinyl, tape, reel-to-reel, CD, recording it from the movie, even. This collection is a great starter for someone who wants to start owning movie music. Lots of big hitters, including Hermann, Barry, Conti, Mancini, and Goldsmith as well as some contemporary scores that are great, too. This is the type of collection I would make for a friend who asks "what scores should I start with?"

This is film music for the classical music lover. The City of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra presents excellent arrangements of a number of classic film themes (although several pieces of the 56 film classics selected for this 4 CD set are not orchestral arrangements, but rather specialty arrangements). Besides great film composers such as John Williams, Elmer Bernstein, Ennio Morricone, and James Horner, classical composers such as Richard Strauss and Pietro Mascagni make an appearance. On several of the numbers the Crouch End Festival Chorus adds the human voice to the power of the full symphonic orchestra to create true movie magic. If you like the sound of a full symphony orchestra playing some of the most recognized themes ever written, you'll love these CDs.

Silva Screen Records, based in England, has been issuing some fine collections of film scores, more in one box than we have the right to expect. This four-CD box contains scores by many of the best writers, including Max Steiner, Bernard Herrmann, Dimitri Tomkin, Kenneth J. Alford (The Bridge on the River Kwai), Elmer Bernstein, Maurice Jarre, Ennio Marricone, John Barry, Nino Rota, John Williams, James Horner, and more. We can all think of additional film scores we wished were included, but then there's no way this collection could be all-inclusive. The City of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra, supplemented by Crouch End Festival Chorus on some numbers, does a very competent job...The liner notes give the basic information without any commentary, and as far as I can see, contain only one error. Am I wrong or are tracks 9 and 10 on the fourth CD mislabeled? Track 9, which runs 7:33, seems to have the excitement of "Pirates of the Caribbean" (which I did not see) and track 10, which runs 4:22, the more sedate "The Girl with the Pearl Earring (which I also did not see). Listings seem to have them reversed.

The Golden Compass soundtrack is pretty solid. I would recommend buying it if you liked the music while watching the film.

However, there is one major problem: it seems as if Desplat was trying too hard on many of the tracks to make the music "epic" or more bombastic. As a result there are some tracks and many parts of tracks that bring this album down. Why is this bad, you ask? Well, the problem with trying too hard is that when you attempt to make something more bombastic, often the music suffers on account of it. As a result, it becomes more generic or just too much because there's no longer that emotional impact to the song anymore. The epic bomastic beats can draw you out of a piece that you were enjoying. Unfortunately this occured on more tracks then I wished.

Let's begin with "Sky Ferry". Now don't get me wrong, the song is great. It just seemed like they were trying to layer too many instruments on top of each other for a louder sound. It could've done without that. It's still a nice song overall; but there are times were it seems they added too much. "Lyra Escapes" is one I looked forward to; but the supposed energetic instruments pounding when she runs away ruins getting into the piece. It seems to detract tension overall rather then create it. After that, it's alright; but the intro ruins the piece somewhat. "Lee Scoresby's Airship Adventure" is another major one. I loved it until 0:43. Then the music becomes extremely generic trying to bring the epic sound as the ship sails over the water. It almost ruins the beautiful interlude before it. Maybe it's unfair to include "Iorek Byrnison" in there since I love most of the song. But, the same thing happens. Until 4:50 it's a fine piece, but when it becomes epic I get thrown out fo the piece because it's the same intruments pounding the same notes - which is great for a movie but not when you're listening to the soundtrack and want variety. "Lyra, Roger and Billy" was another one that I felt could be improved upon as well. Nice piece overall, but it tries too hard.

I sound like I'm whining here - but let me say that some of the music was a let-down in that sense. Maybe I'm just too picky.

That doesn't mean I don't love many of the tracks though. "The Golden Compass" is a very nice intro into the movie. It's a favourite of mine. "Letters from Bolvanger" is comprised of a piano ballad. It's a very calming, sweet piece of music. "Mrs. Coulter" was a great musical intro for the character - I've always liked it. "Dust" is a great track, I consider to be perfect for the movie. Similarly, "Serafina Pekkala" is another nice one. "Riding Iorek" manages to go into epic territory for the first little bit, but not too generic, then dies down with suspensful instrumentals as Lyra enters the cabin on the lake. "Ragnar Sturlusson" is overall pleasant. "The Ice Bridge" manages to build up appropriate tension without appearing to try too hard. It finishes on a perfect note. "Intercision" is another favourite of mine that perfectly matches the mood of the movie. "Rescuing the Children" and "Mother" are both very calming tracks, though I wish the latter was easier to hear at the beginning. "Iorek's Victory" is another nice one."Epilogue" is still a nice ending piece, even though it can be a bit bombastic at times, but not annoyingly so.

Other good tracks:

Lyra - Some of the chorus lyrics are a bit generic; but it's still a great song. Kate Bush sings it well.
Lord Faa, King Of The Gyptians - It's a tad mellow but there are some great instrumentals in it.
Samoyed Attack - Still good even though the sound can be generic. It's enjoyable.

The rest of the tracks, however: The Magisterium, Lord Asriel, Ice Bear Combat, Battle With The Tarters, and The Golden Monkey (though the ending to it is great) are generally throwaway tracks.

Overall, it's a recommended soundtrack with a mix of good and bad. Luckily the good overshadows the bad, but I just thought you'd like to know what you're in for if you're considering buying the music.

I think the music is solid, well crafted. And Kate Bush's song Lyra is an excellent cap to the album. :)

Alexandre Desplat writes lush, idiosyncratic scores, mostly for small films. Okay, "The Painted Veil" wasn't exactly small, but it certainly wasn't a $180 million behemoth like "The Golden Compass." I'm a big fan of his work, so I was curious to see if he could pull off the kind of epic grandeur we've come to expect from a Howard Shore or a John Williams. And he does, quite admirably. I thought the score was perfect for the film when I saw it, and I've gotten great enjoyment listening to it at home. If I have an objection, it would have to be that at moments there's something of the generic big movie score about the work. But it's a very, very good big movie score, so it's a minor reservation. Oh, and I don't care for the Kate Bush song at all, it's embarrassing, frankly. So check out "The Golden Compass." If you already like Desplat, I think you'll be pleasantly surprised at this other side of him. And if you're just into sweeping movie music, you'll certainly be well satisfied.

The sound track of this movie (Lust Caution), is not the original track from the movie as shown in the USA.

Considering that 50% of the emotional impact of the movie comes from the music,is disappointing to see the manufacurers have introduced a cheap change for an economic reason of their own.

This is a first-class soundtrack and one of Desplat's best pieces of work. Repeated listening pays off.

Highly recommended.

I have not seen the movie but the score is so moving and intuitive that you find the intrigue, the romance, the passion to be your own. You may even want to check your passport to see whether or not you have really been there after experiencing this beautifully captivating masterpiece. Alexandre Desplat has become a favorite of mine.

If you have seen the movie, the score has even more relevance and beauty. The music takes you into elegiac bliss--as oxymoronic as the title of the film! I have used the music to assist myself in writing and in feeling the way that the heart resurects in pain. I thoroughly recommend this soundtrack.

The score is beautifully and sensitively written - and the piano pieces (Track 2, 3, 21, & 22) have a strong romantic yearning in them. You could just play them over and over again. But seriously, this soundtrack complement's Ang Lee's understated and very nuanced movie. I would recommend that you watch the show and then buy the soundtrack. FIVE STARS for both!

I thought I was ordering the movie BUT I got two audio CD's. The music is great but I wanted the movie.

I enjoyed the soundtrack of the film as I watched it so much I had to buy it immediately. When I close my eyes during many of the pieces I feel transported to a different time and place. Not only is the music beautiful on its own, as you watch the film it enhances the experience because it so perfectly fits.

I reviewed the movie "Marie Antoinette" and gave it a terrible rating in part because of the score. It is the polar opposite of "Casanova". Where the score for "Casanova" complements the film, the music in "Marie Antoinette" felt like an intrusion to me and ruined my enjoyment (or caused the lack thereof) of the film. That said, if you are a fan of classical music, you will enjoy this CD even if you have not seen the film.

For those that purchased this CD, I need not get into how masterfully infectious the movie was. After the first viewing, I found it charming, but after the second, I was hooked by the witty, clever story holding fun twists all along the way. So while I could go on and on about the movie and all of its wonderful aspects, the score was simply priceless. Apt in every scene, and all done with incredible baroque music that I had never had the opportunity of hearing before the film.

The disc walks you through the movie with no changes that I could tell from the original score. The only omission I found was that the song dubbed "Casanova's Theme" is played in much greater length in the closing credits, and that didn't seem to make it to the CD. Not a terrible loss.

As an avid baroque music listener and performer, I can attest to the delightfully pleasing performances on the soundtrack as well as the painstakingly accurate performance practices utilized in the recording of this soundtrack.

The producers of this film fortunately went to the trouble of hiring some of the top period performance musician-specialists in the country (perhaps in the entire world) to record the soundtrack to Casanova. I know, because several of them were faculty members of the Oberlin Conservatory Baroque Performance Institute who went AWOL to Hollywood in June 2005 for the recording sessions. We all forgave them, and were actually quite excited that period music performance was having its day on the silver screen.

Do not miss this exquisite potpourri of wonderful baroque composers' works performed as closely as humanly possible to the way that they heard their works during their lifetimes! The film may not have been intended to be historically accurate (part of the fun), but the music certainly ended up that way. Not only that, but it sounds heavenly (unlike Casanova's antics) and up-to-date, not musty and old as if it were sealed in a museum case.

Lots of interesting baroque music unknown to me and
put together in dramatic sequences that add zest and
class to the listening experience. Also wonderful to
play in auto while driving thru boring country or in
slow moving traffic!
This CD will get a lot of play from me.
5 Stars!

I saw the movie 4 times, and realized that I liked the music even better than the film! This is one of my favorite CD's and I listen to it all the time!

Alexandre Desplat's minimalist score fitly accompanies the taut psychological drama that is THE QUEEN. This 2007 motion picture imaginatively chronicles the tectonic shifts that were occurring in the royal family behind closed doors in the wake of Diana's tragic death in a Paris highway tunnel. Alternately brooding and winsome, Desplat produces a soundtrack that underscores Queen Elizabeth II's rather heroic change of mind regarding her family's role vis-à-vis 'the people'.

The people were in the streets, not exactly manning the barricades but rather shedding tears that astonished themselves and challenged the stern facades of Buckingham and Balmoral. Desplat's music is almost spritely, as though hinting at a lightness of heart that would see the Queen through.

The London Symphony Orchestra manages its task exquisitely. No one--neither composer nor ensemble--overpowers the dramatic screen images. Rather, they suggest, they illuminate, they hint at matters of the heart, as soundtracks and their performers are meant to do.

This is not likely music you'll be playing for your grandchildren, obliging them to feel what *you* felt back then. Yet it *is* music perfectly adapted to its place. The staccato keyboard and the bubbling clarinet of track three ('People's Princess I') hint that such restraint will be the order of the day throughout. What follows does not disappoint.

Fine writing, in a genre that is meant always to play a subdominant role, behind the curtain, off in the wings, subtly from the margins.

Fitting, at moments, for a queen.

I enjoyed the film, "The Queen" a great deal and so decided to purchase the soundtrack, and I wasn't disappointed. I like the meditative, almost mournful tone of some of the soundtracks, but then others have a certain lightness and sense of humor to them, such as the songs entitled "Tony & Elizabeth" or "Elizabeth & Tony." The music conveys the almost mystified confusion The Queen finds herself feeling at times, but, in the end, there is a feeling of overriding sympathy for her, for the beautiful stag she spots while on her grounds in Scotland and, really, for any of us who have been dismayed or unsettled by our lives at times. Of course, there is also a majestic pride that pervades the whole soundtrack and lends it its moody, powerful textures. I return to Alexandra Desplat over and over again for his sensitive, romantic, but then also probing and, at times, wistful soundtracks.

I liked seeing the human side of the royals. I think we all look for that everytime we see them. Getting ready for bed, watching tv, liking to take walks. Wanting to drive the jeep herself, then calling herself "stupid and foolish" when she gets stuck in the river.

I thought it was particularly poignant when she saw the stag and found him so beautiful, and shooed him off as she heard the hunters approach. Then was so personally taken aback when she found out he'd been killed and insisted on going to to see him. Her need to touch him...broke my heart. It felt to me like an interesting irony that she wasn't saddened by Diana's death, but was stricken by the death of this deer. By the loss of beauty and freedom, which was what Diana was as well.

There were only hints of her past here and there, and I was really hoping for more in depth of her life and how she came to be the person she is. That was my only disappointment.

I would have chosen a different actor for Prince Charles--in person he is not handsome! If the story is true to life, shame on the whole family. The Queen Mother always seemed to be a sweet old lady. In this film she definitely not sweet. I have been anxious to see this movie and was not disappointed. But still, I would like to know how true the story was.