The Predator: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack is the score album to the 2018 film of the same name directed by Shane Black, who wrote the script with Fred Dekker, and is the fourth installment in the Predator franchise. The film is scored by Henry Jackman, the third composer to score for the franchise.^{[lower-alpha 1]} Jackman also incorporated original themes composed by Alan Silvestri from the 1987 film. The album was released by Lakeshore Records digitally on September 28, 2018 and through physical formats on October 5, 2018.^[1]

Background and production

In March 2018, Henry Jackman was announced to compose the musical score for the film.^[2] In an interview, Jackman recalled the connection with the 1987 film, after watching the bootleg version of the film in school and listened to the original score by Alan Silvestri, which was a combination of sophisticated harmony and "a very dangerous and scary sounding version of jazz".^[3] Compared to future instalments on not referencing the themes from the predecessor, Jackman asked director Shane Black and the producer John Davis, on how critical to capture the spirit of the first film, and weave Silvestri's themes with his original cues, while also coming with fresh cues for the score; he called it as "a personal mission" to bring Silvestri's themes together as he wanted to "celebrate the score rather than avoiding it".^[3]

The symphony orchestra was the primary part of the film's score, which consisted variety of instruments: violins, violas, double bass, woodwinds, trombones, brass, cimbasso, temp and bass drums, and huge orchestral choir. On referencing Predator's score, Jackman noticed the use of harp in the score, adding "A lot of people mistakenly believe the harp is always going to be gentle, pretty and used explicitly for pastoral or sensitive moments. If you listen to the first Predator score, nothing can be further from the truth. There's quite a lot of marimba and harp used in scary ways, but that’s due to how the harmony works. It’s used to create tension to great effect."^[3] The use of electronic production and samplers, were not invasive as Jackman did not want to lose the primary force of the orchestra, but used in the crucial moments of the film. He further opined on using acoustic instruments and symphony, which would be tough and tricky to balance both the sounds.^[3]

Jackman wanted to deviate from the color and instrumentation to look at the fabric of the music, helping to be serious on the narrative and not rely on the texture. He also included the "Half Dirty Dozen Theme" which was different from the Predator theme, and woven into the score, to "distinguish from the constant scariness".^[3] He further added "It was for a moment in the film that had to do with all the crazies trying to come to the rescue, that thematic layer created contrast with the predator focused stuff."^[3]

Track listing

Reception

The Predator's score received critical acclaim, praising Jackman's composition and integration of Silvestri's themes into the score. Zanobard Reviews gave 8/10 to the album, saying "Henry Jackman’s score to The Predator is a wonderful throwback to Alan Silvestri’s original themes and style, with some very faithful adaptations of said themes as well as some very nice imitations of his classic action brass. The only negative thing is we feel Jackman uses Silvestri’s themes a little too much, especially since his music for the Predators and particularly the humans is actually quite good and so could have used a little more time on this album. We think, they probably could have carried a little more of the music on their own if Jackman had perhaps toned down the Silvestri just a little. Still, what we do have here is a pretty fantastic soundtrack, and a welcome return to that 1987 score we all know and love."^[4] Film Music Central wrote "Henry Jackman’s score makes The Predator a better film than it would have been without it. Of course good music can only take a film so far, but Jackman certain put in a very good effort."^[5]

James Southall of Movie Wave wrote "The bulk of the score is either action or suspense-bordering-on-action and Jackman keeps things going on at a fast and furious pace most of the time.  He does quote liberally from the Silvestri score (and from Back to the Future at times too) and even when he doesn’t, he is imitating the other composer (which makes me wonder why they didn’t just ask him to score it himself – well, maybe they did) but in any case, it’s entertaining throughout and probably the best thing I’ve heard from him for a big blockbuster."^[6] Filmtracks.com wrote "When taken as a whole, however, the score seems like an exercise in checking certain boxes of needs rather than really collecting all of these disparate parts into a fully functional score. The references to the franchise's main theme remain unsatisfactory despite any joy one might have in their mere existence. The percussion isn't quite as impressive as in Silvestri's two scores (the best main theme performance remains in Predator 2), and the mixing is not quite as expansive as needed for the topic, a problem that plagued Debney's music for the prior film. This one will entertain in parts but won't leave a truly lasting, positive impression."^[7]

Personnel

Credits adapted from AllMusic^[8]

Release history

Notes

References