A Perfect Place

Mike Patton creates a film score that would make the geniuses like Ennio Morricone and Angelo Badalamenti (both of whom he covered with Fantomas on their fantastic Director's Cut), proud. A new release from Patton is always cause for excitement and, as with so many of his projects, this one doesn't disappoint. As a bonus, it comes with a DVD of the movie that it was made for. A must for any Mike Patton fan.

Great album; very postmodern and catchy. I was pleased to find a movie included in the case as well.

as soundtracks go, this feels a little more right on the line of traditional and listenable, typical Patton work. i have a few soundtracks that get very few listens, not because they're not good, but listening to a score driving to work for 15 minutes isn't typical. scores are maybe for road trips or longer drives, background music (it's intention) behind conversation. point being, this would probably get more play because it is "short-trip" listenable. the songs are generally short and to the point, not drug out instrumentals (again not that that's a bad thing, for a 2 hour movie you need 'em). you can tell a verse/chorus/verse composer did it, not a "Conductor" or something, you know? nothing against either type of composer, both are very relevant. it does not sound "novice" or "beginner" or anything, but a fan of Mike Patton's would probably like it more than a Hans Zimmer fan.
fans of FANTOMAS' the directors cut would probably enjoy this. fans of MR. BUNGLE's california (not that it's anything like it, but something reminds me of it comparitively. MR. BUNGLE's drummer and their touring percussionist do guest on a couple tracks) or THE TRIPLETS OF BELLEVILLE soundtrack as well (french animated film). it's nice to hear Mike Patton exploring new avenues and pulling it off. there are two vocal tracks (one of which may be sung in Italian), i believe, two interesting "what it sounds like radio channel surfing" tracks, different interpretations of the main movie riff, and also other moody instrumentals to round it all out. i'd like to explore similar types of music, i've always liked it but don't know where to begin. what "genre" is it? "ragtime" or something? the FANTOMAS delerium cordia in-between-sets music was similar, cartoony, percussive, JOHNNY DANGEROUSLY era music. what is that style?!?!?!
never purchased anything like this, where there's a short film AND it's soundtrack packaged together, hope to do it again.
as for the film, even after reading how short it was, i was still shocked how short it really was. i think that that's a compliment because you end up wanting more. if it was a bad short film, you might say it was too long, i guess. it is definitely enjoyable and worth the bargain price. the trailer is a special feature, which is cool, because that may be the coolest track off of the soundtrack. oddly the song that's played over the end credits is not Mike Patton's and is not on the soundtrack. the film is shot nicely and the acting is good. some darker humor, a little suspense or curiosity. i mean, you are wanting to see how it ends, which says a lot for any good film. you may find, however, that watching the film first would be a better experience because i had listened to the soundtrack 2 or 3 times first and i regret it. the music was almost distracting while watching the film, because that's all you're looking for. i would suggest maybe watching the film, give the soundtrack a listen and then watching the film again. that way you can try to focus on just the actual film. i feel some guilt for buying this for the soundtrack first and the movie second, because it seems unfair to the writer/director who, without him - this project wouldn't exist. Mike Patton is just a hired hand, after all.
maybe the only "complaints" would be more special features, maybe some info on the director, but i'm not complaining by any means.
for the $$$ you'll receive a short film you may watch a couple times and a soundtrack that's probably listenable monthly. that's all i really wanted, although both the film and soundtrack exceeded my expectations.

The movie is not worth the time, but that is not why you would buy this CD/DVD. The soundtrack is out of place and is used on several occations as source music. The characters are listening to the music on the radio, it is not at all intended to underscore actions or enhance the mood of the film. If you are looking for Mike Patton's premier film score this is not it, he did not "compose" a film score because the filmmaker failed to use music in such a way. So is it good quality Mike Patton music? Yeah maybe but so what; after you watch the film you wont care about any of that because what you thought was going to Patton's debut film score was nothing but a few typical Patton formulas played over acting.

...but an admirable foray into the realm of motion picture soundtracks. There aren't any real stand-out tracks, but as a record (am I the only person who still listens to entire records?), this soundtrack works. Definitely better than the soundtracks for Footloose or Muriel's Wedding. Let's hear it for the boy!

If you are a fan of Patton's work, you've heard this before. It's difficult for an artist to eventually not beginning to sound recycled and remain original at the same time, but Patton does it while pulling heavily from his previous work, both in terms of Fantomas and some sounds that hearken back to the earlier Bungle era. Unlike many other artists, a Patton re-mash is better than a lot of other music out there. The very bright spot is the vocal track "A Perfect Twist" which is so poppy by Patton's standards you'd almost expect a single. Notables include the track Batucada, which despite it's name, sounds less like a percussion jam and more like a big band with up-tempo and has a great fun feel to it. "Il Cupo Dolore" has an interesting quasi-operatic flavor which makes for interesting listening as does "Another Perfect Place" which is in many ways a perfect Hitchcock-imagery piece.

A Perfect Place is a great score, especially for those Patton lovers who can't get enough of the same, but if you have been listening to the man for a while now and are looking for something really out of left field, you might want to pass on this one.

DVD short & CD score

A tragic comedy starring Mark Boone Junior (Batman Begins, Trees Lounge) and Bill Moseley (The Devil's Rejects), photographed in B&W Panavision by Hiro Narita, ASC (Never Cry Wolf), with music by Mike Patton (Peeping Tom, Faith No More, Mr. Bungle).

25 minutes Black & White 35mm Anamorphic Panavision