In Brief

* * 1/2 Various artists, “Last Action Hero” soundtrack, Columbia. A mishmash of metal with wild cards in Cypress Hill and composer Michael Kamen, this uneven, 12-song collection lacks the brawn of the movie’s star, though two new gloomily compelling Alice in Chains cuts flex some muscle. Def Leppard’s offering is sappy but catchy, while Tesla’s take on the title track is merely lame. Disappointments from Megadeth, Queensryche and Anthrax are offset by decent Fishbone and AC/DC entries.

New albums are rated on a scale of one star (poor), two stars (fair), three stars (good) and four stars (excellent).