A careful look at the credits is always a good move on a Zimmer score given his preponderance for roping in Media Venture colleagues to help out, but in this case the only credit seems to be for "Additional Arrangements and Programming" by Messrs Geoff Zanelli, Blake Neely (also conducting) and Clever Trevor Morris. Nice how that scans there. As per usual, the album is sequenced with a few fairly substantial tracks, particularly at the beginning and the end. A Way of Life introduces what is ostensibly the main theme which is a long lined, elegiac melody that is nice enough, but doesn't quite capture either the location, period or nobility of the film's characters. Not entirely characterless, but a few more pentatonic scales might have given it a stronger flavour. However, this rather basic opening is built upon fairly effectively.
The film contains a number of battles, but Spectres in the Fog covers Cruise's first encounter with the Samurai (initially fighting for the other side) and, perhaps as expected, Zimmer breaks out the Taiko drums which bang along dramatically. According to the press notes, the composer manipulated 10,000 Taiko drum samples and then picked "the best ones by their emotional resonance." Erm, OK Hans. Whatever the convoluted route to their appearance in the score, they are undoubtedly effective and of course, make a nice gesture to the location. However, the action highlight is Red Warrior with chanting chorus, more booming percussion, racing string figures and, perhaps becoming something of a Zimmer cliché, this is all set against a broad melody in the horns. However, the swirling background materials drive the music hard toward an abrupt conclusion before a quieter interlude leads into more action during The Way of the Sword.
About the only point where the music picks up without action is the martial finale to Idyll's End, although at times it comes a little close to Crimson Tide. Despite numerous fine moments, I am somewhat undecided about The Last Samurai. It's a rare event that I see the film before hearing the album, but just the case here and for my money, the score didn't leave much of an impression after seeing the film. Zimmer's extended, low key melodies coming close to aural wallpaper on occasion, but they are undeniably well suited wallpaper and the action pumps up nicely when necessary. It doesn't reach the dramatic peaks of The Thin Red Line or the variety of Gladiator. Some of the low key tracks threaten to drag a touch, but there is enough variety to sustain the running time and the athletic bursts of action are undeniably exciting. Good, but not quite top drawer Zimmer.
Rating ~ 
Total Time ~ 59:46