(updated 15 June 2003) First-time director Jim Simpson deftly adapts journalist-turned-playwright Anne Nelson's tale of an NYFD captain who lost eight of his men in the 9/11 collapse of the WTC, now struggling to write their eulogies--and exorcize a range of difficult personal emotions--with the help of an editor.

The score was released in the run up to the long-awaited solo album from October Project vocalist Mary Fahl entitled The Other Side Of Time. A 14-track collection with a running time of over an hour, the album includes finished versions of songs on her earlier release Selections From Lenses Of Contact, songs included on the soundtrack from Gods and Generals and the soundtrack from The Guys.

In the short 'score' for The Guys, composer Mychael Danna (Ararat, The Hulk) is thus handed a largely interior emotional landscape to color with his music, and he responds with a quiet, yet subtly moving arrangement. Anchored by Mary Fahl's Celtic-tinged "The Dawning of the Day" and bookended with an instrumental performance of the ballad by the FDNY Emerald Society Pipes & Drums, Danna's music infuses melancholy orchestral pastoralism with brisk doses of minimalism to good effect.

The soundtrack is a haunting and elegant compilation, bookended by an extraordinary song by the very talented Mary Fahl. Ms. Fahl's lyrics to "The Dawning of the Day" speak directly to the heart, and her delivery, almost a whisper at times, are infused with an authenticity and depth of emotion that is heart-breaking. It is impossible to not cry while listening to this song, and yet one is left with a feeling of hope, comfort and faith.

The composer is also unafraid to let spare, melancholy piano phrases fade gently into the air, a haunting echo of the overwhelming personal loss and power of memory the film's characters wrestle with.--amazon.com

Read further reviews, listen to soundbites and order the album from amazon.comhere.An album whose exploration is worth a journey, this score is a very nice listen!