This
release from Toho Music contains the full score
to the 1961 production Daredevil in the Castle.
Composed by maestro Akira
Ifukube, this CD marks the first time the entire
score has ever been available. In regards to the
music, Ifukube does a good job with the material.
It's not one of his better scores, but is an interesting
entry in his long career none the same. The compositions
typically range on the more subtle side, which
is a little unusual for Ifukube who often "hijacks"
sequences in movie's with his rousing marches. The
energy does pick up a bit closer to the closure
of the score, though, as the composer produces a
couple of nice marches such as "Breaking Through
the Enemy Line". "Mohei's Plan II" is another
good example of this, as the cue has a nice band-march-like
beat to it. Many will also be familiar with the theme
as it was later reworked, with a faster pace,
and reused as the Super-X3 theme for Godzilla
vs. Destoroyah (1995). A couple of cues on
this release are quite unique for the composer, though.
For example, the almost celtic-like vibe a couple
give off, such as the "Save
Senhime"
cue which has a lot of string instrument work. Overall,
the score is a nice stand alone body of work that
tends to grow on the listener overtime.
Now, the Daredevil in the Castle soundtrack
is less than 50 minutes in length. To compensate for
this, Toho Music has added over 25 minutes of bonus
music, which is actually a small compilation of themes
from three other movies. These soundtracks include
the two "Yagyu Secret Scroll" movies, Yagyu
Confidential (1957) and Ninjitsu
(1958), along with the 1959 film Samurai
Saga. The music for the two "Yagyu Secret
Scroll" productions is decent. "Tasaburo
and Yuhime" makes a good closure theme for Yagyu
Confidential (1957), as Ifukube shows his
continued talent for making great closing pieces even
though they do sound somewhat close to one another.
The "Main Title" Ninjitsu
(1958) is also nice, with a more upbeat tempo than
the other work in these two films.
The gem from these bonus tracks, though, is actually
the work compiled from Samurai
Saga (1959). "The Duel of Matsubara"
is particularly great, with excellent pacing and great
trumpet work. Many will probably recognize it for
its use in the Atragon
(1963) trailer, while portions of the cue were also
later adapted into the Heisei series Godzilla theme
from Ifukube. The "Main Title" is also another
nice cue from this film, sounding a little more traditional
for a Japanese score, but with Ifukube adding his
own touch to the proceedings. In the end, it's a shame
more music from this film isn't available, outside
of what little else is found on the The Film Works by Akira Ifukube·3 release (SLCS-5052). Given the short runtimes of
these scores, with each of them being less than 20
cues, it would have been nice to see them all compiled
with Daredevil in the Castle across two discs.
However, no such luck, and in the end these cues do
a nice job of padding the runtime of the CD to make
it feel like a more well rounded purchase.
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