Just Visiting

by Evan CaterJust Visiting was John Powell's second score for a medieval adventure comedy in less than a year, so it's impressive that the music he composed for this American remake of the 1993 French blockbuster Les Visiteurs bears little in common with his score for Shrek. And though the animated fairy tale was far funnier and much more original than this often mind-numbingly stupid slapstick farce, Powell's work on Just Visiting is actually of comparable quality. Powell's music frequently contributes to the comedy by juxtaposing credulously sweeping, medieval-inflected adventure film melodies with the scatological hijinx of the Keystone knight protagonists. After the 12th century heroes are transported to present day Chicago, Powell also plays with anachronistic contrasts, pitting strings and lutes against synthesizers and drum machines. It's an obvious conceit, but it works well. Powell uses the same idea in the obligatory end credit pop song, "Your Time Has Come" (get it?), which he co-wrote with Gavin Greenaway and Jeff Pescetto. The song has R&B vocalist Kudson Kai belting vaguely medieval "la di da"s in the chorus of an up-tempo Top 40 tune. It's not much of a song, but it's reasonably effective as a high energy audience send-off, and it caps off Powell's solid musical contribution to a mediocre Hollywood comedy.