Amazon.co.uk Review
Elliot Goldenthal's score for the watery sci-fi thriller
Sphere (1998) is an exercise in musical contrasts that is perhaps a little too reminiscent of his similar work on
Alien 3 (1992) and
Batman Forever (1995). Overall, the score's strength lies in Goldenthal's ability to capture the mystery, threat and darkness surrounding the Sphere and its effects on the crew through his often spartan orchestrations. The plot revelation that the main characters possess the ability for anything they imagine to come true is suggested by Goldenthal's use of a simple theme for piano and strings contrasted with deep brass and subtle use of synths, best heard in the cue "The Gift". For a score with few memorable themes, it never makes for dull listening, especially in the action cues which are as fast and furious as their counterparts in
Alien 3. Although the album is reasonably short at 35 minutes, it includes all the important cues from the film and once again shows Goldenthal's mastery of the science fiction genre.
--Colin Neal