Gabriele Salvatores
'
I'm Not Scared
, an unusual thriller set in a small Italian town in 1979, has an equally unique
score
composed and conducted by
Ezio Bosso
and performed by
the Turin String Quartet
. The
's unofficial title, "14 Danze per Bambini Intorno a un Buco" (14 Dances for Children Around a Hole), clues the listener in to
Bosso
's approach and how his music relates to the film, which tells the story of a boy who discovers how the adults in his town -- including his parents -- are keeping another little boy captive in a hole underneath an abandoned house on the outskirts of town.
's
consists of 14 "dances" -- full-fledged pieces for the quartet -- and short connecting pieces that tie the dances together. The dances, such as
"Rumba Towards the Hole,"
"On Thoughts,"
and
"On Fear,"
capture the beauty and power of
string quartet
music at its finest;
's melodies are economical but potent, especially in the darker dances like
"On the Hole"
"On Thunder."
The sense of space and tension created by pieces like
"On the Tree"
"Duet"
is palpable despite, or more likely because of, the deceptive simplicity of
's style. The
's smaller pieces are only slightly less developed, and in the case of tracks like
"Michele, You Need to Leave,"
"The Hole,"
"There Were Two Brothers,"
they rival the dances' impact. Not only is the
's intensity and simplicity remarkable in its own right and a perfect complement to the film's story and visuals,
is one of those rare pieces of
film music
that, just by listening to the
, makes you want to see the film for which it was written. ~ Heather Phares