Francois Ozon’s 2002 offbeat, Douglas Sirk meets Agatha Christie style musical "8 Femmes” not only helped bring the French bad boy more into the international spotlight but also proved his diversity in his film work. In "8 Femmes”, the film revolves around eight women trapped in a home in France during the Christmas season in the 1950s as they each suspect each other for the murder of their male patriarch. In between the film’s heightened melodrama, mysterious subplots, and social character study, the film also included eight musical sequences performed individually by the eight actresses starring in Ozon’s quirky film.

The film’s soundtrack to eight not only includes the songs recorded from the movie by the eight actresses but also features the lush film score by composer Krishna Levy. Playing to the elegant, sweeping tone of the Douglas Sirk movies in its grand, orchestral sound, the soundtrack includes several French pop songs from the 1950s to the 1980s. The songs in the film each represent not only the personalities played by the actresses but also helps bring movement to the film’s story. Overall, the soundtrack to "8 Femmes” is a majestic, rich soundtrack to those who love quirky French humor and class.

The album begins with a sweeping introduction entitled "8 Femmes 8 Fleurs” (translated into "8 Women, 8 Flowers”) with Krishna Levy’s lush, elegant arrangements with its sweeping strings, grand sound of sprinkling chimes, and dense tone from the strings to encompass the film’s ominous and majestic tone in which the film has a beautiful feel with something dark underneath. The album’s first song is “Papa T’es Plus Dans L’Coup” (meaning “Papa, You Ain’t With The Times”) sung by Ozon regular Ludivine Sagnier as Catherine in this quirky, upbeat pop song. With its 60s rhythm and quirky lyrics about the father ain’t with the times, Sagnier sings the song with such frenetic energy and spunk as she is joined co-stars Catherine Deneuve and Virginie Ledoyen in the background vocals of the song’s chorus. The song’s catchy irreverence and Sagnier’s youthful personality makes the song a real standout in the soundtrack and film.

The next track is “Message Personnel” (“Personal Message”) from Isabelle Huppert as the uptight aunt, Augustine. The melancholic piano ballad performed by Huppert, who actually plays piano, is the longest track on the album with Huppert’s smooth, thick vocals as her character pines to be loved where in the first part of the song, she talks. Joined later in background vocals by Sagnier, Ledoyen, Firmine Richard, and Danielle Darrieux, Huppert sings the desperation of her troubled character as she later then sings with the piano playing denser, melancholic notes. “A Quoi Sert De Vivre Libre” is a smooth, mid-tempo jazz tune sung by Fanny Ardant as Pierrette, the sister of the film’s murder victim. The song has this nice, nightclub tone with Ardant bringing a cool personality as she celebrates her subversive, wild lifestyle in grand, classy style with a nice piano accompaniment and percussive backgrounds.

“Mon Amour Mon Ami” is another pop song sung by Virginie Ledoyen who plays Sagnier’s older sister Suzon. With its music box chimes and upbeat pop rhythms, the song celebrates Suzon’s new love and her upcoming pregnancy as the song displays Ledoyen’s thicker but angelic vocal range as she gives a mature, youthful personality to the song where in the film, she is joined by Sagnier in the dance number. Next is “Pour Ne Pas Vivre Seul” from Firmine Richard as the family maid Chanel, who sings this melancholic piano ballad. With Richard’s deeper, evocative vocals, Richard sings the sad tone of Chanel’s love for Pierrette that couldn’t be accepted at the time in 1950s where Richard brings a regality to the song’s melancholic tone that also includes a wonderful accordion accompaniment and orchestral arrangement.

“Pile Ou Face” is a nice pop tune sung by Emmanuelle Beart as the new maid Louise where she sings to Isabelle Huppert in this wonderful song about pursuing men. With the song starting out as a nice, angelic tone with Beart singing in her elegant vocals, the song then goes into an upbeat tone with Beart singing about how she seduces men with upbeat drums and saxophones. “Toi Jamais” is another jazz-driven number sung by Catherine Deneuve as Gaby in this slow, smooth jazz track about how men fall for her with Deneuve singing in her classy, regale vocals. The final song in the soundtrack that ends the film is “Il N’y A Pas D’Amour Heureux” by Danielle Darrieux as Gaby & Augustine’s mother in this poignant ballad. Accompanied by a piano, Darrieux brings her wise, haunting vocals in this song about how all of the women have destroyed the man who was murdered. The song really serves as a bridge that brings together all the characters at the end.

The next twelve tracks are orchestral compositions from composer Krishna Levy. First is “Theme 8 Femmes (Generique De Fin)” is a four-minute piano instrumental that is played during the final credits that is accompanied by its dense, mournful string arrangements as the track builds up to melancholic, ominous tone. “La Fenetre” is another smooth, string orchestra track that plays up to the film’s melancholia and sadness, notably in tone to the film’s melodrama. “Confession de Suzon” is an ominous two-and-a-half minute track where the strings build up the momentum to Suzon’s heartbreaking confession to her mother Gaby about her visit to her father about her pregnancy as the strings builds up the momentum to its emotional climax and the shock afterwards from its dense tone when Louise tells the women they’re trapped from the gates outside. “Augustine S’evanouit” is a faster track with an arrangement that plays up to Augustine’s jealousy towards her sister and how she’s considered to be the main suspect.

“Pierrette Suele” is a shorter track where the arrangement is played to melancholia as Pierrette learns about the death of her brother. “Augustine Suele” is a similar track with Augustine after learning about the truth of her father’s death is also played to its melancholy with its sweeping strings and sad arrangements. “Portrait De Gaby” is a swooning, eerie instrumental playing to Gaby’s sadness over the day and the death of her husband as she looks at herself feeling very old with the strings playing to its sadness and mystery. “Envie D’etre Belle” is an instrumental cut that shows the coming out of Augustine who after years of being uptight, shows her beauty to her nieces, sister, and Louise as the arrangements blossoms into this elegant, rich tone.

“Complicite Feminine” is a two-minute piece of dense, ominous string arrangements that reveals the trouble of the women where they begin to expose one another in this sad, melancholic arrangement. “Le Baiser” is track similar to the previous with its similar arrangements and tone while “La Machination” is a faster, more ominous track with its sweeping strings as the momentum builds up to the mystery to its climatic tone. “Fin” is the final track that is really an extended piece of the ending score piece with its melancholic piano and soft string arrangements.

While the soundtrack to "8 Femmes” is an excellent one, fans of the film will be disappointed by the way the album is sequenced when soundtrack purists will feel its best to make the soundtrack be sequenced in the same way the film is. Another disappointing factor of the soundtrack is the mixing of the songs in the album in comparison to the version that’s one film where the tracks by Sagnier, Beart, and Ledoyen seemed to have a higher pitch than the version that’s in the film and doesn’t play well when in comparison the film. Even though the songs are still amazing and included in the soundtrack are liner notes by Ozon but unfortunately they’re in French. In the end, the soundtrack to "8 Femmes” is an excellent soundtrack that is fitting companion to fans of the film while it’s a nice introduction to French pop music.

8 Women (2002):

http://www.epinions.com/content_129237159556



Recommended: Yes

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