Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle (soundtrack)

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Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
Film score by
ReleasedDecember 7, 2018
Genre Film score
Length72:12
Label WaterTower Music
Producer Nitin Sawhney
Nitin Sawhney chronology
Breathe
(2017)
Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle
(2018)
Traitors
(2019)

Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) is the soundtrack to the 2018 film of the same name directed by Andy Serkis. The original score is composed by Nitin Sawhney, who previously worked with Serkis in Breathe (2017). The album consists of 29 tracks from Sawhney's score and an original song "Changes" performed by Kara Marni, which has three alternative versions. WaterTower Music released the soundtrack on December 7, 2018, coinciding with the Netflix premiere.

Contents

Development

Serkis intended to search "Mowgli's tone, heart, pulse and rhythm" who thought that he wanted Nitin Sawhney to create the score which was intended to "hopefully become a visceral and immersive adaption of Kipling's novel. [1] Sawhney previously collaborated with Serkis' on the latter's directorial debut film Breathe (2017). [2]

In an interview to GoldDerby , he rebuked the rumours of the film being Disney's 2016 adaptation of the novel, while claiming it as "Andy [Serkis] going back to the original source material and finding a world that is about Andy's vision of this and interpretation of it". He wanted to capture the essence of Mowgli as the character "comes to terms with his identity at puberty between the world of animals and men". [3]

While the score needed to "appeal the mass audience", he also wanted to retain that authenticity with the Indian classical tradition. Hence, he used several region-specific instruments and combined with the 87-piece orchestra to extend the musical palette of the musical sounds. [3]

In addition to composing the original music, he also wrote the song "Changes" performed by Kara Marni, to capture the narrative and feeling of the titular character in the music and lyrics. He reprised the main orchestral theme from the film "to create that kind of melody and the flavor of the song". [3]

Track listing

No.TitleArtistLength
1."The Wolf Boy" 1:19
2."Changes"Kara Marni3:53
3."Invocation" 1:03
4."Khan's Attack" 0:29
5."Bagheera Finds Mowgli" 2:30
6."Of Course You're Different / Straight Back To the Caves" 2:58
7."This Is the Jungle / Practice Running" 2:16
8."The Monkey" 0:42
9."Give Him To the Tiger" 1:19
10."You Are a Man Cub" 2:28
11."The Calm Before Khan / Stalking the Man Cub / The True Kings\" 4:00
12."You Belong" 2:00
13."The Running of the Pack" 2:55
14."Mowgli's Failure" 1:48
15."The Monkeys Kidnap Mowgli" 1:46
16."Khan's Arrival In the Lair / Baloo and Bagheera Save Mowgli" 2:58
17."We're Not Special" 1:22
18."Kaa's Lair" 3:53
19."Khan's Takeover" 2:07
20."Mowgli's Banishment" 1:38
21."Bagheera's Visit" 4:18
22."Village Life" 2:40
23."Come Home" 1:48
24."Holi Festival" 1:37
25."Campfire" 1:36
26."Hathi's Tusk" 1:52
27."The Next Day" 0:39
28."Challenging Khan / The Fight / There's the Hunter" 4:48
29."Khan's End" 1:46
30."Lori" (Lullaby)Nicki Wells1:04
31."Changes" (Slow Burner Mix)Kara Marni3:34
32."Changes" (Reprise)Kara Marni3:06
Total length:72:12

Reception

Sampada Sharma of The Indian Express wrote that "the music by Nitin Sawhney uses a lot of instruments that are usually associated with India, like the flute. But in places, Nitin goes a little overboard and we consciously feel like this is the work of an outsider who is trying too hard to remind us that the film has Indian roots". [4] The Upcoming-based Guy Lambert wrote: "When paired with a formidable Nitin Sawhney soundtrack, the picture bounces off the screen in an immersive wave, transporting the audience effortlessly into the dense Indian undergrowth". [5] Critic based at Irish Cinephile wrote that the score by Nitin Sawhney felt "great throughout the film". [6]

Credits

Credits adapted from CD liner notes: [7]

Instruments
Orchestra
Management

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References

  1. Hasty, Katie. "Exclusive: Hear two wild tracks from 'Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle'". EW.com. Archived from the original on August 2, 2019. Retrieved August 2, 2023.
  2. "Nitin Sawhney on Going from Breathe to Mowgli with Andy Serkis". Collider. December 13, 2018. Archived from the original on February 13, 2019. Retrieved August 2, 2023.
  3. 1 2 3 Laws, Zach (December 4, 2018). "Nitin Sawhney ('Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle' composer) could relate to the struggle of 'coming to terms with identity' [EXCLUSIVE VIDEO INTERVIEW]". GoldDerby. Archived from the original on December 3, 2020. Retrieved August 2, 2023.
  4. "Mowgli Legend of the Jungle review: Mowgli's existential crisis is not meant for kids". The Indian Express. December 7, 2018. Archived from the original on December 7, 2018. Retrieved August 2, 2023.
  5. Lambert, Guy (December 5, 2018). "Mowgli | Movie review". The Upcoming. Archived from the original on March 15, 2019. Retrieved August 2, 2023.
  6. Cinephile, Irish (December 20, 2018). "Film Review – Mowgli: Legend Of The Jungle". Irish Cinephile. Archived from the original on August 2, 2023. Retrieved August 2, 2023.
  7. "Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)". WaterTower Music. Archived from the original on August 2, 2023. Retrieved August 2, 2023.