Amores Perros

Argentine producer/musician Gustavo Santaolalla has compiled a soundtrack that's almost as groundbreaking as Mexican director Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu's remarkable debut, Amores Perros. The Oscar-nominated film has been compared to the work of Quentin Tarantino, Krzysztof Kieslowski, and Luis Bunuel. Just as Inarritu, a former DJ, has smoothly woven together three seemingly disparate stories of passion, desperation, violence -- and dogs -- in contemporary Mexico City, Santaolalla has smoothly woven together pop, rap, techno, and other styles of music from an array of international talent (including legendary Cuban vocalist Celia Cruz) into a surprisingly cohesive whole, which, like the movie, is possibly longer than necessary -- but never boring. Most of the selections are performed in Spanish, with the exception of Santaolalla's gentle guitar-based instrumental interludes, British band Hollies' 1971 hit "Long Cool Woman (In a Black Dress)," and Spanish rock group Dover's "Love Is a Bitch" (a loose translation of the film's title). Highlights include Control Machete's funky "Si Senor" and Titan's catchy, Michael Franti-produced "Corazon," with the repeated (Carole King-credited) lyrics "yo te quiero/mi corazon" set to a sample-heavy beat (like Inarritu, both groups hail from Mexico). Disc one features music from the film, whereas disc two features music inspired by it (and includes a few of the same artists). If the first is more successful, the second works better than the concept might indicate -- most of the pieces specifically refer to dogs, include samples of barking, etc. -- and represents an even wider variety of modern Latin musical styles. ~ Kathleen C. Fennessy

『アモーレス・ペロス』（２０００） サウンドトラック２枚組（アメリカ盤） 音楽監督　グスタフォ・サンタオラヤ 監督　アレハンドロ・ゴンザレス・イニャリトゥ 全世界をあっといわせた、メキシカン・ニュー・ ウェーブ・ムービーのサウンドトラック。 敏腕プロデューサー、サンタオラヤが 仕切った、さすがネオ・ラテン・パワーの コネクションならではの、ラテン・ロック・シーンから 強力なメンツが参加。イリヤ・クルヤキ、 カフェ・タクーバといった2大ラテン・ロックの大物たち 以下の、ラテンの概念を覆すかっこよさのクールな ナンバーが目白押す。未来のかっこいいサントラを 探している方は、ぜひ！！ (C)馬場敏裕