Customer Reviews
Contains my favourite Zimmer moment! - By: Alexander J. Dunn, 18 Jan 2008 
I absolutely adore this film. I can still remember the evening I went to see it expecting to be presented with a mediocre Gladiator rip-off and, instead, walking out having been incredibly moved by a very poignant story. The music plays a big part in the overalll tone of the film, with it only occasionallly being the main focus. I think to write that sort of music, stuff which influences the audience's emotions without bombarding them with theme after theme, is very hard & requires restraint & a lot of compositional skill.
But I've just got to say this - There is a melody that is played on some sort of violin that comes in at 1.11 on the track 'A Way Of Life' that, for me, is the best thing I've ever heard from Hans Zimmer. He knows exactly what he's doing!
Average but not bad. - By: Musicfan, 21 Nov 2007 
Zimmer's Gladiator is superb & I was looking forward to this CD, even more so after reading the reviews. It goes to show that a review is a matter of opinion & personal taste. I found it took a long time to warm up & the early tracks are relatively slow & gentle. When it did get going, it was good. Overalll, I found it uninspiring & unexciting. At times I found it rather boring. It is a relaxing listen but comes nowhere near Gladiator for power & emotion. I was disappointed.
Imagine Gladiator, only immeasurably better. - By: Dave, 03 Jul 2006 One of Zimmer's better works, & considering his unequivocal position as the best & most prolific composer of our time, that clearly says something. The easy blend of traditional, Japanese & electronic instruments makes for interesting listening. 'Way of the Sword' is undoubtedly one of the better tracks, opening with heartpounding, yet irresolutely sad, action music, moving on to emotional machine-gun sequence & closing with the quiet beauty of Katsumoto's seppuku. Other highlights include 'Spectres in the Fog,' which contains the first iteration of the Samurai's theme, a heroic yet grief-laden melody (consigned to the horns on this track), 'Red Warrior,' most famous for its much-criticised, yet strangely effective, shouting people, & 'A Smalll Measure of Peace.' Having said that however, nothing on this CD could qualify as a low point. It's beauty is utterly staggering, & the absence of a nomination from Oscar is inexplicable, far better as it was than Newman's 'Finding Nemo' & even Elfman's 'Big Fish.'
A staggering Zimmer work - By: gbenquiries, 06 Jun 2006 I loved the movie which is powerful anyway but with the soundtrack it is superb. I love Hans Zimmer's work in films generallly but I think this is one of his best. If you like emotional music that moves you then you reallly can't better this.
A Way of Life indeed... - By: A. Bryden-reid, 07 Feb 2006 Emotion & feeling are everywhere in music heard, but none so compare to that of Hans Zimmer's intrtinsic harmonies of The Last Samurai.
Intrigued with the film itself & quite mesmerized by the control of music & film combinations, i was in immediate search for the album as soon as i'd seen the film played in it's grand emotive glory on the silver screen.
I have spoken to many about The Last Samurai & have heard many "okays" & "alrights", but as far as i'm concerned it is a masterpiece through & through.
Edward Zwick (director) has a particular taste in directing terms & the film showed this, so it just might not be your cup of tea.
Tom Cruise has definately moved on, in terms of acting, since Top Gun & Ken Watanabe played a crucial role to the films success, but of course this is a music review, not a film review.
Hans Zimmer does make use of synthesizers as he did in Gladiator, but, i feel (As a more open-minded music listener), that it adds to the wanted effect set out for by the composer.
Zimmer goes through various emotions in this composition ranging from quiet, melancholic to loud & war-like sentiments.
Zimmer out-does himself in this composition & keeps the film together as much as any of the actors on the set or the labourers behind the cameras & in the studios.
All in alll a dramatic, wonderful album.
A must have!
