Christopher Young - Runaway Jury (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) (2003)

In much the same way that Runaway Jury felt like it was assembled from bits of other legal thrillers, Christopher Young's score for the film sounds like a collage of music from other likeminded sources. The moody, contemporary-sounding piano, synths, prickly rhythm guitars, and vocals from "Runaway Jury" recall both Lisa Gerrard and Pieter Bourke's music for The Insider as well as the work of Thomas Newman, but the score may owe its biggest debt to Mike Post's music for Law & Order. The heavy reliance on electric pianos, muted guitars, and fretless bass on tracks like "Dumb Witness," "Voir Dire," "Habeas Corpus," and "Cheaper By the Dozen" certainly sets a mood, but it also sounds dated and overly familiar. Hints of Lalo Schifrin and Newman also color the percussive "Shark Tactics" and the more ethereal "Jury for Sale" and "Erase Her from My Heart"; at least Young only borrows from the best. A slightly cheesy feel mars the soundtrack as well, particularly on "The Divine Komeda," "Easter's Con," and "Fayeth in Fate No More," but later on in the score Young delivers some redeeming moments. "Rankin Fitch" is an unobtrusive but tense piece, and "Spilt Whiskey" and "The Devil's Not Such a Bad Guy After All" have some unique percussive touches that set them apart from some of the other, more recycled-sounding compositions. Too slick and predictable for its own good, Runaway Jury isn't a bad score, but it doesn't offer much to soundtrack fans in the way of originality.