Good news for geeks who like clown-y scores that are pretty over-the-top. Danny Elfman has been chosen to score “Terminator Salvation”
“I just started yesterday,” Elfman told MTV News. Asked if the original “Terminator” theme would make an appearance, the composer said, “I think if it comes up and it seems appropriate, we will [use it]. And if it doesn’t, we [won’t]. I never really know what to expect when I begin other than just kind of get into it and have fun. Especially a movie like ‘T4’ – just have fun. So that’s what I intend to do.”
Nerds will rejoice, but man, Elfman is probably one of the most overrated composers in the business and his scores are notable and he’s a name because his work is about as subtle as Tim Burton’s, ooh, I’m gothy, I’m dark, I’m moody!” work and is the same-y and predictable as well (oh right, they work together all the time, figures).
It seems like we’re writing-off ‘Terminator Salvation,” but no, director McG actually said some pretty convincing stuff to EW recently. He was apparently adamant about casting Christian Bale in the film so the top-notch actor would make the entire thing credible, much like ‘Dark Knight.’
‘It was important for me to get the most credible actor of his generation to come and add gravitas to what we were trying to achieve,”McG said to EW. ”I wanted to respect the audience, and be very mindful of the mythology. We take this very seriously.”
We can respect that fully, so ‘T4’ could be great. The only problem? “The Dark Knight” and “Iron Man” were so fucking good this year, the bar for all action, sci-fi films has been raised significantly. These days you’re going to have to be that good if you want to be respected.
Agreed! Elfman seems such an inappropriate choice for the tone they’re going for with this film.
I was excited about T4 until I heard this update…
Man, i’m glad someone agrees with me. A lot of people LOVE Danny Elfman, but there’s only two or three scores of his i like and one of them is Pee Wee’s Big Adventure (the clowny thing has unfortunately never left him; working with clown Tim Burton doesn’t help).
I guess I’ll come to the defense of Elfman here. Yes, he does the clown-y bouncy thing alot, and some of his main themes for things such as Men in Black, The Frighteners, PeeWee, Simpsons, Mars Attacks, Tales From the Crypt, etc. do sound the same. BUT, he has done a few scores that are very subtle and subdued, yet they have the ability to seep into your subconsious. Things like Sommersby, Good Will Hunting and A Simple Plan, are great examples of this. And I still consider the main 8 minute Batman Suite to be one of the alltime best film suites. I haven’t seen Milk yet, but didn’t you say it was pretty good?
As far as T4 is concerned. All he have to do to make it good, is use the main theme in various ways. It’s classic.
I do like the Goodwill Hunting score, that’s for sure, but not many after that.
I watched Milk a few days ago, and it didnt sound Elfmanesque to me. This is a good example of Elfman doing a fine job and not beeing noticeable.
The only thing I dont buy here is Mc G. Am I the only one that thinks this guy can´t do action?
I think the directors Elfman works with are as much to blame as Elfman. I’m sure he’s been hired many times by directors or producers who want that “Elfman sound” for their film (sort of like the “Barton Fink feeling”) and he delivers that, and for us true film fans, it gets old and can come off like an attempt to evoke feelings of other films. But like the other poster pointed out, when working with a filmmaker who lets him do what he wants like Van Sant, he can make some great stuff. Unfortunately, there’s only so many directors who allow innovation in their film scores. Most don’t know anything about music and just want their score to sound like some other film’s.
That’s not to say I disagree with anyone who says he hasn’t been consistently great since the early 90s…that’s true, and he should held accountable for that.
On a side note, I listened to an interview with Elfman and he talked about how every Christmas he ends up suing ad companies for ripping off the Edward Scissorhands score for their Xmas commercials (not to mention other films like The Polar Express). Kind of funny since the film isn’t even a Christmas movie.