John Scott: Lionheart (1990) Suite / Munich Symphony Orchestra

ABOUT THE SCORE: The 1990 Jean-Claude Van Damme actioner “Lionheart“ allowed composer John Scott to pen a varied score, addressing both the urban setting of the film with (for the time) contemporary music elements and integrating them into a large-scale symphonic tapestry. The film is essentially a street-fighting saga and Scott responds with what one might deem an analog for his career what “Rocky“ is to Bill Conti’s - an incredibly spirited and noble title theme that emphasizes the lofty, tender-hearted nature of Van Damme’s character as opposed to playing up the “cool“ factor of his violent exploits. Heard at the outset of this suite on resonant celli beneath an insist electric bass line, the theme segues into a gorgeous secondary identity at 0:54, a melody represents a budding love interest of Van Damme’s and said love interest’s daughter. These two themes form the thematic heart of the score and their variations to follow are filled with all the requisite creativity one expects of this composer; Van Damme’s character’s theme is given a particular workout (pun intended) throughout as nervous, tragic or sweeping minor-key renditions weave around darker, muscular action material. And what action music there is - see the utterly adrenal and addictive Celtic-flavored action of “Fighting the Scot“ at 12:36, whose pulsating horns and slamming percussion create a perfect musical depiction of mano-y-mano violence. Scott pushes his large-scale Munich Symphony players to the limits of bombast at times, conjuring the same degree of fury and scope as he did with his stunning “King Kong Lives“ score a few years prior. While darkness and uncertainty built toward the conclusion amidst the show-stopping action of “Wrong Bet“ (21:18 and 25:41), Scott wraps up Van Damme’s journey with triumph, penning exhilarating finale and end title cues to conclude the musical journey. This is an absolute knockout of a score, and one that not only functions as a fantastic stand-alone listen but also imbues the silly, if harmless, film with a real sense of heart and gravitas. DISCLAIMER: I do not own the music included in my channel and make no claims as such. All videos have been uploaded for EDUCATIONAL purposes only to make the public aware of obscure and forgotten works by deserving composers who would otherwise find no online audience whatsoever. Please purchase the music on CD or via digital retailers or streamers whenever possible!