Carried Away

by Jason AnkenyCarried Away represents the most oppressively dark and melancholy music of Bruce Broughton's career, and while it's difficult not to commend the composer for writing a score that makes so few concessions to Hollywood conventions, there's also no denying the impenetrability of the work as a whole. While the orchestrations are as intricate and lovely as previous Broughton efforts, what's missing from Carried Away is the melodic complexity that is the hallmark of his finest work -- there's little distinction between the score's central themes, and thus little for the listener's head to wrap around.