The Last Airbender (soundtrack)
Acclaimed score for a negatively reviewed film.
The soundtrack for The Last Airbender, the fantasy adventure film directed by M. Night Shyamalan, features a score by James Newton Howard. Lakeshore Records released the album on June 29, 2010. While the film itself received near-universal negative reviews, the score was widely praised. Christian Clemmensen of Filmtracks.com awarded it a perfect five stars, and Jonathan Broxton of MovieMusicUK also gave it five stars, calling it one of the most satisfying musical experiences of summer 2010. James Southall of Movie-Wave rated it four stars, and Tom Hoover of ScoreNotes gave it a 9.5 out of 10, calling it the best collaboration between Howard and Shyamalan. Some criticism targeted the commercial album’s non-chronological track order, which disrupted the narrative flow, and the reported removal of choral elements due to reuse fees. However, Broxton noted that after seeing the film, the missing choir was not especially missed on the CD, and the final track, “Flow Like Water,” sounded identical to its theatrical version. The soundtrack earned two International Film Music Critics Association nominations in 2010: Best Original Score for a Fantasy/Science Fiction/Horror Film and Film Music Composition of the Year for “Flow Like Water.”
Quick Facts
- Artist
- James Newton Howard
- Released
- June 29, 2010
- Recorded
- 2009–2010
- Genre
- Film score
- Length
- 66:46
- Label
- Lakeshore Records
- Producer
- James Newton Howard; M. Night Shyamalan
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
The soundtrack for The Last Airbender was composed by James Newton Howard, marking another collaboration with director M. Night Shyamalan. It was released on June 29, 2010, by Lakeshore Records. The album's track listing presents the music in a non-chronological order, a choice that drew criticism for lacking narrative flow. Additionally, some choral elements heard in the film were reportedly edited out of the commercial release due to re-use fees, though one reviewer noted that the missing choral parts were not especially missed on the CD.
Reader's Guide
Despite the universally negative reception of the film itself, the soundtrack for The Last Airbender received critical acclaim. Reviewers from Filmtracks.com and MovieMusicUK both awarded it a full five-star rating, with the latter describing it as one of the most satisfying musical experiences of the 2010 summer season. Other outlets gave it four stars or a 9.5/10 rating. The score was nominated for two International Film Music Critics Association awards in 2010: Best Original Score for a Fantasy/Science Fiction/Horror Film and Film Music Composition of the Year for the track 'Flow Like Water'. The album's significance lies in its stark contrast to the film's reception, standing as a highly praised work that has been called the best collaboration between Howard and Shyamalan.
Track listing
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Airbender Suite | 11:16 |
| 2 | Earthbenders | 5:53 |
| 3 | The Avatar Has Returned | 4:42 |
| 4 | The Four Elements Test | 5:30 |
| 5 | Journey to the Northern Water Tribe | 4:01 |
| 6 | Hall of Avatars | 3:40 |
| 7 | Prologue | 2:43 |
| 8 | The Blue Spirit | 7:17 |
| 9 | The Spirit World | 5:18 |
| 10 | We Could Be Friends | 4:08 |
| 11 | We Are Now the Gods | 5:46 |
| 12 | Flow Like Water | 6:32 |
| Total length | 66:46 | |
Track listing from the source article.
Elsewhere in Avatar The Last Airbender
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