Michael Bay’s distinct style of film-making is well documented, and most people can decide for themselves whether his movies are something to enjoy or to avoid. But when it comes to the music for his films, his regular collaborator, Steve Jablonsky, seems to have a habit of musically underachieving.
Whether or not “underachieving” is actually a valid term is open for debate, but the fact remains that for such projects as The Island and the two Transformers films, Jablonsky’s music has been generic, formulaic, uninspiring, or downright bland. And in the worst situations, such as Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, the music is a combination of all these things.
Underachieving, Functional Score by Steve Jablonsky
Two things are undeniable when considering such a statement: first, Jablonsky is a talented and capable composer (anyone who has heard his wonderful score to Steamboy can attest to that). Second, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen is certainly a loud score which pushes all the necessary dramatic buttons for its film. In a word, it is a functional score.
But why should a composer with Jablonsky’s talent be writing merely functional scores? And if the answer is because Michael Bay insists on such unoriginal and insipid music for his films, then why does Michael Bay insist on such unoriginal and insipid music for his films?
Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen Soundtrack is Accessible to a Fault
To its credit, the album for Jablonsky’s score is well structured and the music is, at the very least, a perfect representation of every aspect of the Media Ventures/Remote Control Productions “sound” (as the original Transformers score was before it, ironically).