By Darren Allison, Cinema Retro Soundtrack Editor
When
considering the scores for movie Westerns, film music collectors often refer to
classics such as Max Steiner's The Searchers, Dimitri Tiomkin's Rio Bravo or Victor
Young's Shane, all of which are, of course, fabulous scores. Monstrous Movie Music
have again, (and in keeping with their refreshing style), ventured into new
territories with the release of Paul Dunlap’s Western score to Hellgate (1952)
(MMM-1972). Rather surprisingly, this CD marks the first full release to
feature Dunlap’s film music. The composer was incredibly prolific throughout
his career scoring diverse projects which spanned from many of The Three
Stooges movies to the cult classic AIP horrors including the Teenage
Frankenstein/Werewolf series of films. For a B movie western, there was something
a little different about Hellgate – it was really rather good! Hellgate was
directed by Charles Marquis Warren, a tough all-rounder who would go on to
produce the popular TV series Rawhide. The film boasted a strong, testosterone
fuelled cast featuring Sterling Hayden, James Arness and Ward Bond. Hayden plays a veterinarian who is wrongly
convicted of guerrilla activities shortly after the Civil War. The prison camp is tough and he has to survive
the sadistic commandant (Bond), a cruel guard (Robert Wilke), and deceitful
prisoners like Arness. Throw in some Pima Indians (who patrol the canyon walls)
in order to catch any escapees for a reward, prisoner punishment that involves
being baked in metal coffins or whipped within an inch of their lives and you
have a Western story that is well above the expected standard of Poverty Row
Lippert Pictures. Dunlap’s music is incredibly dramatic throughout, but it
isn’t your regular western score. His main theme begins with heavy brass and
drums, but slips into a more solemn, string based theme before it builds gently
and provides a sense of hope. It sets the tone perfectly and emphasises the
film’s opposing themes of hatred vs. forgiveness. Tracks such as “Kearne Makes
Lunge at Nye†illustrate Dunlap’s ability to create genuine excitement by
employing his full range of brass and string sections. Quality, for the best
part of this score, is highly acceptable. MMM took the decision to release
Dunlap’s original recordings in place of re-recording his score, which I
believe was the correct option. Whilst there is some minor noise (from the
surviving acetates) evident on a handful of tracks, it does not detract or
spoil the acoustic soundscape and naturally maintains the composer’s original
work. As a bonus, Monstrous movie music has generously included Dunlap’s excellent
score for The Lost Continent (1951). A simple enough story, The Lost Continent
successfully merged two fantasy elements, combining rocket ships with roaming
dinosaurs on a south pacific island. Making good use of an increased budget,
Dunlap was able to employ a 47 piece orchestra, and it was warranted – given
the enormity of aircraft, rockets, natural disasters and battling monsters that
confronted the composer. The result was a highly enjoyable score, and whilst
some of the music has been lost in time, the 28mins of music included here make
this a CD that is hard to ignore. We can only hope that there is a lot more of
Paul Dunlap’s music to come. Included is a great 20 page booklet that covers
just about every aspect of the music, composer and the film, all written (in
exquisite detail) by David Schecter.
Click here to order
Click here to read review of Hellgate DVD