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Medicine Man (1992) was a rainforest adventure, eco-thriller and, in a way, romantic comedy from director John McTiernan. Sean Connery starred as a researcher doggedly pursuing a cure for cancer in the Amazonian rainforest, with Lorraine Bracco the drug company biochemist sent to check on his progress. Their friction grows into a romance as they interact with a native tribe and face off against destructive loggers.
Medicine Man found its perfect composer in Jerry Goldsmith, a Hollywood master at adventure and thriller music who was, at heart, enamored with "people pictures." Medicine Man called on both approaches, and Goldsmith rose to the occasion with a grand, tuneful, dramatic score encompassing large orchestra, sophisticated electronics and tropical instrumentation. It runs the gamut from catchy travelogues, a soaringly romantic love theme, and dark, tragic action music as the rainforest comes under threat.
Director McTiernan, working with Goldsmith for the first time, recalls (in a new interview for this release) asking the composer to "try to make it as indigenous sounding as possible." Editor Michael Miller marveled at Goldsmith's ability to unify the film's tone: "Jerry enhanced every emotional beat," he says, "and glued a lot of stuff together amazingly well. The thing that really excited me were the turns from light and romantic and comedic, to dark and dire—because they were perfect."
Medicine Man was released as a 14-track, 50-minute CD by Varèse Sarabande in 1992. This Deluxe Edition adds 13 minutes of previously unreleased cues plus an alternate mix of the opening "Rae's Arrival." The new liner notes are by Tim Greiving, who can neither confirm nor deny that Sean Connery's ponytail in the film was inspired by Goldsmith's hair.
- Varese Sarabande
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