Danny Elfman's JUSTICE LEAGUE (2017)

[BloodBoal 7,538]

[Bilbo 3,709]

Just now, BloodBoal said:

 

In your basement.

 

I don't have a basement.

[BloodBoal 7,538]

[Unlucky Bastard 7,782]

41 minutes ago, BloodBoal said:

People are getting ecstatic over this news, but I'm not convinced DC/Warner are going to let Elfman make a complete U-turn with what was established in their previous films, music-wise. I certainly don't expect something of the level of his Batman scores.

 

Would love to be proven wrong, of course.

 

Then why hire Danny Elfman? Marquee value? He's supposedly rather expensive.

[Arpy 4,145]

4 minutes ago, Sally Spectra said:

 

Then why hire Danny Elfman? Marquee value? He's supposedly rather expensive.

Didn't Elfman work with Whedon on Age of Ultron? I suspect that's a factor in why he's back. Scheduling too, perhaps?

[Jonesy 55]

Nice, I hope it's better than his Avengers stuff.

[BloodBoal 7,538]

[Arpy 4,145]

1 hour ago, BloodBoal said:

 

This question could be asked about a lot of interesting composers that ended up working on interesting projects only to be asked to write RCP-like music. Decisions in the film music industry rarely make sense anymore!

It makes perfect sense and alas, it implies that the very landscape of film music has been warped so much into the RCP mode because it works wonders  

[mstrox 6,651]

HOOOOOOOOOOLYYYYYYYY SHIT

It's happening.

 

The Unzimmering.

[Arpy 4,145]

Elfman holds a gun to Whedon/Warner Bros.: "I ain't goin' back, not again!"

 

"RCP has gotta go, I have to do this for the sake of film music!"

[leeallen01 2,136]

Elfman honoured Silvestri in Age of Ultron, so I hope he honours Zimmer's soft piano theme for Clark. I enjoyed some of the gothic areas of Affleck's Batman theme, but most important I really like Zimmer's soft stuff for Superman. Will be annoyed if it's not there.

[Matt C 454]

Some fans are going to be butthurt even if Elfman uses a lot of Zimmer and XL's thematic material.

 

I think the themes that Elfman will probably use is the electric cello Wonder Woman theme, maybe the soft piano material for Clark. I think their Batman theme is going to be scrapped in favor of Elfman's version.

[Unlucky Bastard 7,782]

A new Elfman theme for Batman. Nice!

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

I guess we can infer that Whedon enjoyed his collaboration with Elfman on Age Of Ultron.

[Offline 29]

I am having a bittersweet feeling about this. On one hand, I enjoy work by Whedon and Elfman far more than the absolute crap given to us by Snyder and Zimmer on both Man of Steel and Batman V Superman (which I think both suck immensely), but I wish this shift had been done between films. I worry now that all it will do is create an inconsistent tone and damage the movie. Hopefully Whedon and Elfman can properly transform the film into what it's going to be, but a lot of work is done to solidify style in Pre Production and Production. Still not totally on board, but more on board that I was. I hope they keep Snyder and Zimmer and friends away from the remainder of this franchise. It deserves better.

[Jay 37,355]

Wow! What bizarre news to wake up to today

 

 

2 hours ago, mstrox said:

HOOOOOOOOOOLYYYYYYYY SHIT

It's happening.

 

The Unzimmering.

 

 

LOL

[Bilbo 3,709]

The unzimmering. I like the sounds of that!

[Cerebral Cortex 3,357]

2 hours ago, Stefancos said:

I guess we can infer that Whedon enjoyed his collaboration with Elfman on Age Of Ultron.

 

For what it's worth, on the commentary track for Age of Ultron, I believe he mentions and praises Elfman's work on the film 3 times. I don't remember him mentioning Brian Tyler's name at all, but I could be mistaken. 

[Alex 2,835]

Is there anyone who was actually looking forward to a Junkie XL score?

[A24 4,331]

Not cool, Whedon!

[Bilbo 3,709]

2 minutes ago, Alex said:

Is there anyone who was actually looking forward to a Junkie XL score?

 

God I hope not. 

[Alex 2,835]

I may actually go and see the film now, safe in the knowledge that everything won't be drowned out by thumping bass and pounding ostinatos

[A24 4,331]

Whedon is clearly trying to save the movie but a few ostinatos more or less won't cut it.

 

Goldsmith or Tangerine Dream, it doesn't matter, Legend is not a good movie.

[Muad'Dib 1,802]

17 minutes ago, Alex said:

Is there anyone who was actually looking forward to a Junkie XL score?

 

Here, doubtful. Out there, yes, probably.

[Gruesome Son of a Bitch 6,488]

9 hours ago, RPurton said:

Surely The Last Jedi is still the most anticipated film of the year?

 

I still don't understand the hype for superhero films, it seems like this fad is burning out.

 

I forgot that was even coming out. I still don't understand the hype for Disney Star Wars movies. Also, this isn't just a superhero film, it's a film where Batman kills people and Danny Elfman is composing the score.

[Dixon Hill 4,234]

42 minutes ago, Alex said:

Is there anyone who was actually looking forward to a Junkie XL score?

 

I was.  

[Disco Stu 15,495]

22 minutes ago, Selina Kyle said:

 

I forgot that was even coming out. I still don't understand the hype for Disney Star Wars movies. Also, this isn't just a superhero film, it's a film where Batman kills people and Danny Elfman is composing the score.

 

Ah, but 2017 Elfman is a very different, less interesting composer from 1992 Elfman.  I did enjoy his work on Ultron but he's a long time past his glory years.

 

1 minute ago, TheGreyPilgrim said:

 

I was.  

 

Just because you're both gearheads!

[Gruesome Son of a Bitch 6,488]

Regardless, I'm looking forward to a 2017 Elfman funny book score more than a 2017 Williams Star Wars score. I don't need to worry about handing in my Williams card anyway.

[Dixon Hill 4,234]

7 minutes ago, Disco Stu said:

 

Just because you're both gearheads!

 

I'm far from a gearhead!  But I find him to be an interesting, generous musician and am happy to see him succeed.  He's the only composer I've heard who can fully walk into Zimmer territory without sounding like a cheap knockoff.  The pretentious "who could like this?" bullshit that gets spewed here only makes me double down. 

[Disco Stu 15,495]

1 minute ago, TheGreyPilgrim said:

 

I'm far from a gearhead!  But I find him to be an interesting, generous musician and am happy to see him succeed.  He's the only composer I've heard who can fully walk into Zimmer territory without sounding like a cheap knockoff.  The pretentious "who could like this?" bullshit that gets spewed here only makes me double down. 

 

I actually really enjoyed his Mad Max score because I thought the intensity of that film was perfect for his style.  But I didn't think it worked well for BvS or Deadpool.  Those are the only three of his that I'm familiar with.

[crocodile 8,012]

I'm sure Elfman will at least acknowledge what came before. He's one of the few guys out there who likes to play with other composer's ideas. I'm at least bit curious now. If he can somehow merge that sound with  his own stamp of superhero sound, like he did with AOU, I'll be happy. I barely bought one score this year so far. And even that was written in the early 1990's. 

 

The thing about Junkie XL and other people like that is not that their ideas are bad for films. What I find frustrating is how melodramatic and monotone those films and scores come out. Every scene is the most dramatic thing ever. They have no real sense of storytelling. I'm not even going to comment on how they tackle pace of storytelling.

 

8 hours ago, BloodBoal said:

You can't save a rotting corpse!

Danny Elfman is very experienced in those kinds of things actually!

 

Karol

[igger6 894]

Maybe "crowning" is too strong a word, but I still find melody and memorability more "agreeable" than continuity.  Just my preference, and that's where we seem to disagree.  But to each his own. 

[publicist 4,643]

The problem is less Holkenborg - whose talents for dramatic scoring i consider minimal - but that guys like him promote the worst instincts of modern filmmaking. For every cool riff, overdub or potential rhythmic idea (The Red Capes are Coming from BvS was such a moment, for instance) there are 120 minutes of sad hackwork that certainly doesn't betray a musical genius at work (the same goes for Tyler Bates and several others). 

 

On the other hand, Elfman scoring this stuff in 2017 makes me not much more hopeful for a better outcome. Not that even i care what i think about this, though...;

[Koray Savas 2,251]

11 hours ago, RPurton said:

Surely The Last Jedi is still the most anticipated film of the year?

 

I still don't understand the hype for superhero films, it seems like this fad is burning out. With there being the probability of reboots and sequels to last to the end of time, how do people ready themselves to be entertained by more of the same thing?

Could literally say the same thing for Star Wars. 

[mstrox 6,651]

12 hours ago, RPurton said:

I still don't understand the hype for superhero films, it seems like this fad is burning out.

 

Not getting the hype is one thing, but there are certainly no signs of the fad burning out (yet) - last year, Captain America 3, Deadpool, Suicide Squad, Batman v Superman, and Doctor Strange were all big hits - and X-Men did pretty well for itself too.

 

This year, Guardians 2, Logan, and Wonder Woman are also huge hits - and there are plenty more to come.  Spider-man, Thor, Justice League.

[Kasey Kockroach 2,344]

Lego Batman and Captain Underpants would both like a word with you. 

[BloodBoal 7,538]

Who wouldn't want to watch a movie called Captain Underpants?

[mstrox 6,651]

10 minutes ago, kaseykockroach said:

Lego Batman and Captain Underpants would both like a word with you. 

 

While both contain superheroes, I wouldn't place either of those (good) movies in the "Superhero" genre - which all are kind of a piece with one another.

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

50 minutes ago, Koray Savas said:

Could literally say the same thing for Star Wars. 

 

Star Trek Is Better Than Everything!

[A. A. Ron 1,742]

1 hour ago, BloodBoal said:

Who wouldn't want to watch a movie called Captain Underpants?

 

I didn't expect to like those books, even as a child, but I ended up adoring the first several. They're genuinely funny and show lots of love for comic books, video games, superheroes and Japanese monster movies. They probably have as many pop culture references as your average animated film these days.

[BloodBoal 7,538]

[mrbellamy 6,286]

I read a few of the Captain Underpants as a kid and again more recently when my younger brother got into them (12 year age difference). They're obviously pretty juvenile but in a sort of self-aware way. Not Calvin & Hobbes level satire but it's agreeably witty brainlessness for the kiddos.

[Gruesome Son of a Bitch 6,488]

It's so weird this happened after everyone started complaining about how crappy superhero scores have gotten and the oldies like me were gushing over the golden age with Williams, Horner and Elfman.

[Matt C 454]

26 minutes ago, Selina Kyle said:

It's so weird this happened after everyone started complaining about how crappy superhero scores have gotten and the oldies like me were gushing over the golden age with Williams, Horner and Elfman.

1

 

We've occasionally got something decent like Bear McCreary's "The Cape" or Silvestri's Avengers theme, but yeah, it's been pretty dire overall.

 

We can thank Whedon for bringing Elfman on board. I think Elfman will be on board for Batgirl too.

[TheUlyssesian 2,478]

It's not all doom and gloom these days. I actually thought Elfman bettered Silvestri Avengers theme. Then there was Silvestri's Captain America March which I think it pretty good. Doyle's Thor theme is good too. We have already mentioned Horner's Spiderman theme. I think Ottoman's Jean Grey theme and Apocalypse were also two good superhero themes. Also Gia's Doctor Strange theme is a lot of fun. Some people even like Beck's Ant Man theme and Williams' Diana theme. So definitely some melodic presence.

 

So in the past decade, there have been some good superhero themes. 

[Dixon Hill 4,234]

Zimmer's Batman scores had fantastic thematic material.  Outclasses all other superhero material from the last ten years with the exception of Silvestri's Avengers theme.  Horner's was good, but it wasn't really Spiderman.

 

I also think this is fabulous.

 

 

[Gruesome Son of a Bitch 6,488]

I prefer Elfman's Spider-Man scores to Horner's. Maybe even Young's. I'm sorry, James.

 

[A. A. Ron 1,742]

5 hours ago, BloodBoal said:

 

And that's a good thing?

 

If they're actually funny, yes.

[TheUlyssesian 2,478]

41 minutes ago, TheGreyPilgrim said:

Zimmer's Batman scores had fantastic thematic material.  Outclasses all other superhero material from the last ten years with the exception of Silvestri's Avengers theme.  Horner's was good, but it wasn't really Spiderman.

 

I also think this is fabulous.

 

 

 

Can't agree with the former. But will agree with the latter. Doyle's Thor theme in its ceremonial form is just full of majesty and victory. A blast of this theme could certainly enliven some battle scenes. For what's it worth, I think Tyler's theme was decent too - extremely RC but not terrible.

[Dixon Hill 4,234]

I have no memory of what Tyler's was.  Only saw the film once.  Only saw WW once too, but RGW's material has stuck with me quite easily.  That's the difference between the actual RCP composers and the ones who sort of kind of maybe do a similar thing - the RCP guys all have a fantastic ability to craft a melodically and harmonically satisfying structure, with that great pop flavor and sensibility.  Must be something in the water there.  Wonderfully contoured tunes, great basslines with all those first inversions and suspensions.  Yeah, genuine RCP music is good!