Lorne Balfe continues to balance his big-budget studio efforts with smaller little treasures such as Dough. Dough is the story of an old Kosher baker in London who enlists the help of a young African teen who is trying to find his path. The dramedy focuses on the typical “odd couple” plot points of an old Jewish baker from England working with a young Muslim teen from Africa. The plot develops when the young teen starts to mix in marijuana into the baked goods to help keep up with his side business. It’s definitely a quirky little indie dramedy that sports a great cast and a great score from Lorne.

The score to Dough is a nice little ride that focuses on character and emotion. You could definitely call the music heartwarming as it has this nice enveloping yet intimate feel to it. You feel close to the characters and the world they live in. The music doesn’t comment on the comedy aspect of the film and plays directly to the characters, this gives us a nice journey with a satisfying conclusion at the end. The score is a short 25 minutes, but it never feels incomplete. The music compliments the movie itself very nicely only adding score when it’s needed. I feel like if the score pushed any harder it could have fallen into schmaltzy or saccharine territory, but thankfully Lorne has that intuition that makes him a great storyteller.

In the end this is not a complex or game-changing score, but it’s a really nice one. It was such a pleasure from start to end and well worth revisiting to get lost in those nice melodies and character moments. Dough continues Lorne’s unique filmography that is establishing him as one of the most versatile and interesting composers working today.