The Passion of the Christ, original soundtrack by John Debney

Among my cd collection, subgroup “movie soundtracks”, is a little album from a little movie that came out way back in 2004 to little acclaim. This film, THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST, directed by a nobody named Mel Gibson, told the story of another little-known figure named Jesus. One day Jesus made enemies of the wrong people and they beat him within an inch of his life, hung him on a cross, made a martyr out of him, and pretty much changed the world. This is a review of the music that accompanied that particular event.

Composed by John Debney, THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST was a cd I bought used for, maybe, $2. It’s probably one of my least-played soundtracks, definitely the one I’m least-familiar with, and absolutely the one most likely to be forgotten again once I’ve finished the review. That’s not to say there’s anything wrong with this soundtrack, but the strangest thing happens when I’m playing it. I enjoy the songs, I love the passion behind the drums in “Jesus Arrested”, the mix of tribal and choir, the pace, the mood set by the song. But I know that once this song is over I won’t be able to recall one thing about it. Same thing with “Peter Denies Jesus”, “Simon is Dismissed”, and “Raising the Cross” (and “Raising the Cross” is probably the best song on here, there’s an intensity to it that’s undeniable). THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST soundtrack is one of the most anonymous cds I’ve ever heard.

I’ve tried and tried to drill this thing into my head, to know these songs, to try to differentiate between them and become familiar with them, but I’m just having no luck in that area. Composer John Debney is an old pro and his work on this soundtrack gained an Academy Award nomination, so I’ve always felt it was something lacking in ME that kept these tracks from standing out like those on, say, 300 did. But for me, every time I play it, it starts, I hear it, and before I know it, it’s over. There seems to be little between songs that distinguishes one from another and, for all its worth, the disc may as well have been tracked as one continuous song. The drums and pipes in “Simon is Dismissed” could very well be the same as those heard in “Jesus Arrested” four songs earlier.

I’ve only seen the movie once, so I’m unable to use that as a reference point to keeping the songs in mind, even though some are titled appropriately enough to recall their place in the film. Some, however, like “Flagellation/Dark Choir/Disciples” is harder to place, as is “It Is Done” and “Peaceful but Primitive Procession”, even though by the titles I SHOULD be able to figure it out. I mean, I can figure out where in the story they fit, but using specifics of the scene to recall the music, no that doesn’t help.

THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST soundtrack is, for me, nothing special at all. There’s nothing on here I can’t find in some other, more interesting and memorable form, on another soundtrack, whether 300, CITY OF ANGELS, or even THE GODFATHER. And I believe that makes my disappoint even greater because I wanted SO much to love this one. I’ve rarely been more eager to listen to a new soundtrack immediately after buying it. And I’ve also rarely been more disappointed in how utterly mundane a soundtrack has turned out to be.

You listen to THE GODFATHER, you know it’s some big, brash Italiano partying going on. You listen to INDEPENDENCE DAY, you know some extreme valor is about to go down in the face of an impossible enemy. You listen to THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST, the choir backing a few songs here and there, like “Crucifixion”, gives some hint of a heavenly presence, but nothing that really cries out “The Savior is dying for your sins! REPENT!” I just think more could have been done. I’m sure Debney just wanted to write a good accompanying score that complimented the movie without overpowering it, but when taken on its own, without the visual to back it up, the score is really pretty average. For all the fuss and hype surrounding the movie, I expected a little more from the soundtrack.


Other Soundtracks in My Collection:
10 Things I Hate About You
300
Boogie Nights
City of Angels
Daredevil
Death Proof
From Dusk Till Dawn
Garden State
Godfather Trilogy
Grosse Point Blank
Independence Day
Jackie Brown
Juno
Kill Bill Vol. 1
Kill Bill Vol. 2
Napoleon Dynamite
Natural Born Killers

Recommended: