Music in cinema, as previously noted in this review here, usually takes the form of pre-determined and marketable – for which read “‘as conventional as possible” – soundtracks, either comprised of antiseptic, neutered pop music, or specifically composed in a bland, sub-classical manner – both of which are devoid of ideas, and operate on a repellingly visceral level. But, if cinema is to adequately reflect the lives and personal histories of realistic individuals, which is the supposed goal of many media professionals (who fondly and misguidedly refer to such material as ‘stories’), surely the vast majority of subjects chose to score their lives with something other than anodyne chart-toppers and borrowed orchestral riffs? Here, helmer Platts-Mills employs music to express the liberation and hope aspired to by his lead characters, using it not as an emotive backing track that substitutes our emotional perception of a scenario, or as an audio-filler to cover transitions from one sequence to another, but exactly as the characters themselves would experience and enjoy it.

What Bronco Bullfrog represents in its application of music – as well as in the exposure it gives to non-professional actors, and its provocative disregard for narrative conventions – are positive alternatives to the stilted and hierarchical concepts that currently dominate much film and television production: examples that should be recognised and appreciated at the most fundamental level of media education. The success of Platts-Mill’s creation lies, like its use of music, in the strong relevancy and commitment it retains to its subject matter, and its presentation of issues that modern practitioners are unable to approach without an aggravated sense of tabloid deceit. Whether a film deals with a weighty and important topic, or a simply an unassuming and gentle yarn, it must be approached in a manner that disregards any fanciful or pretentious production techniques – every filmic element must sublimate the whole, and music, lighting, production and costume design, dialogue et al must reinforce the central arguments and ideas, rather than become extraneous and manipulative stylistic flourishes. Bronco Bullfrog is powerful and highly-enjoyable proof that cinema can be honest to its subjects and filmmakers, and thought-provoking and entertaining to its audience, without recourse to facile dogma.

Bronco Bullfrog at the IMDb