A Perfect Place - Dark Publications

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Album Description
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

Customer Reviews: Read 10 more reviews...

4 out of 5 stars

Straight film score, nicely packaged with the film. March 18, 2008
8 out of 10 found this review helpful

"A Perfect Place" is (to my knowledge) the first soundtrack recording by Mike Patton, packaged together with a DVD of the film. I'll tackle the score first, since it was the reason I (and I assume most others) chose to purchase this.

Patton's score, performed largely by the composer (with the exception of percussion performances on a couple tracks by Danny Heifetz and William Winant), is seeped in the sounds of many of the great film score composers. Like Morricone, Patton develops a single theme, which comes swirling in and out over and over again to great effect. Like Barry, Patton mixes in swaggering horns and latin percussion ("Main Title" and particularly "Batucada"). And like Zorn, he keeps twisting and turning, building senses of mystery with simple instrumental arrangements (the vibes-driven "Seriously Disturbed", the groaning sounds mixed with the delicate synths on theme restatement "Another Perfect Place") and a seemingly endless series of influences and genres (check the downright authentic church organ strains of "Catholic Tribe").

Along the way, we also get a trio of vocal features-- "A Perfect Twist" gives Patton a chance for a pop workout over a chugging swing rhythm, while "A Dream of Roses" shows off his straightahead swing chops. The latter, featured coming out of the radio of an elderly woman in the movie, is particularly engaging, Patton's effort for period authenticity is staggering in its success, right down to the gentle analog noise consistent with older recordings. Patton also takes a stab at a straightahead opera sound on "Il Cupo Delore", which, while perhaps not the best piece ever, shows a vocal side of him we've yet to see and is staggering if nothing else in the effectiveness of his voice.

All in all, the score is fairly engaging and well worth a listen-- I have questions whether it's the kind of thing I'll find myself coming back to, but in the past couple days as I've played it, I've rather enjoyed it.

The film itself, written and directed by Derrick Scocchera and starring character actor Mark Boone, Jr. (Memento, Batman Begins (Two-Disc Deluxe Edition)) and Bill Moseley (any number of horror films, from The Devil's Rejects to The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2) , is, if nothing else, a fine illustration into the glories of black and white cinematography. Using monochrome along with Patton's score to generate a beautiful noir scape, the film tells the story of an accidental murder and the attempt to hide the evidence. Rife with moral ambiguity and an ever-deepening sensation of staggering incompetence on the part of the main characters, it is engaging and has that feeling of ending where it began. Boone is perfect in the role of straight man, Moseley plays with a bit of an edginess to his character that at times threatens to compromise the role, but but pull off their parts well and really, I can't say enough about the film's production value-- it is beautifully
shot and looks just fantastic.

Bottom line-- this is a nice package, glad I picked it up. Recommended.

5 out of 5 stars

good stuff March 15, 2008
5 out of 7 found this review helpful

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.

5 out of 5 stars

It's about time! May 3, 2008
5 out of 5 found this review helpful

So, I'm a Mike Patton junkie....but I'm one of those junkies that can admit when something he does sucks, so I don't feel too biased in saying that this is brilliant...

The fact that the film and the score come together, makes this one of the most sensible purchases of the year. The film is exactly what you'd expect, It looks gorgeous, and holds your interest, The performances are great, and it's a shame that this is essentially coming into the world as a cult film, because more people should be able to see it.

The score is one Patton fans have waited for for years...it's the type of score that can be used as background music when you're driving, or cleaning the house, but that also begs to have you sit down with a glass of wine and just absorb it all, every note, and every sound. Rare is the music that lets you do both of those things with it.

3 out of 5 stars

Deja Vu? March 31, 2008
4 out of 7 found this review helpful

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.

4 out of 5 stars

Very nice work from Mr. Patton March 14, 2008
3 out of 6 found this review helpful

I'm gonna keep this short and sweet. I'm a huge Mike Patton fan. I became a fan the first time I saw the video for Epic back in 1990. That said, the man is not immune to being....shall we say "indulgent". Though much of his work is brilliant, Patton can occasionally produce music that seems to be intentionally confounding. Anyway, my point is that I never truly know what to expect from a new Mike patton project. Hence, I was pleasantly surprised when I picked this disc up (Almost as surprised as the fact that I could purchase it at a local record store without having to special order it.) and gave it a listen. I'll admit I'm not a huge fan of listening to soundtracks. At times they seem to be lacking without the visual that accompanies them. But this particular soundtrack is short and varied enough that it holds my attention. There are moments where I'm tempted to skip forward here and there but as a whole it's a well-composed work that proves Mr. Patton really is a great songwriter and producer. Those who are accustomed to Mike's forays into the bizarre might be a bit caught off gaurd as this is a bit more "traditional" in nature, but it's rewarding nonetheless.

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