I watched the movie Amistad, directed by Steven Spielberg. This movie is a drama about a historical event. The La Amistad was a slave ship. In 1839 a group of Africans who were captured and being transported on the Amistad revolted and killed the crew aboard. They are recaptured and put on trial in America.

The score for the film was composed and produced by John Williams. He is a staple in the film industry. Some of his many other film scores included Raiders of the Lost Ark, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, Schindler's List, to just name a few.

The music in Amistad is orchestral. There is a heavy use of strings, flutes, drums and trumpets. Some "traditional West African Chants" are sprinkled throughout the film as well. The songs composed by John Williams include

Much of the music is played as background music. There are many scenes in a courtroom. The music helps keep the scenes with a lot of dialogue from being too dry.

I read some reviews that were critical of John Williams choice to use an uplifting, joyful sounding piece of music when the African are finally freed. The reviewers claimed that the circumstances in which the Africans found themselves on trial in the first place called for more somber music in the end. I felt relief and happiness when the Africans were freed. So, I thought the music was well suited to the moment.

Overall I think the music worked excellent for this movie. The music helped to create the atmosphere, propel the story, and capture the emotions of the story. The music enhanced my movie experience greatly, which is what a good score s

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