In Contention

Tag: Hans Zimmer

  • New ‘Torino’ poster, original song and other WB FYC updates

    Warner Bros. Pictures\' Gran TorinoI was just perusing the Warner Bros. awards site and was greeted with an array of updates I wasn’t aware of.  First and foremost, there is the new “Gran Torino” poster image to the left here (click for a slightly larger image).  I dig it as much as the first poster, maybe even a little more.

    Second, in the “for your consideration” section for the film I noticed there is an original song in play, written by Jamie Callum.  I have no idea what it’s called yet, but it’s worth keeping an eye on given how painfully weak that race is this season.

    It’s also interesting that Warners is apparently choosing not to push any actor for awards consideration outside of Clint Eastwood.  I would have expected at least a modest push for Bee Vang, who has a great role opposite Eastwood for much of the script.

    I also noticed that Dave Johannson has been added to Nick Schenk with a “story by” credit.  The film’s IMDb page also reflects this.  Apologies if this was already out there, but it’s the first I’m hearing of it.

    Over on the “Dark Knight” side of things, you get a nice sampling of James Newton Howard and Hans Zimmer’s kick-ass score, as well as a similar rundown of FYC declarations and even a link to the screenplay.  Very cool.  Soon there will be a “score” section and a “making of” section, but right now there’s a section with scattered images from the film, most of them new to my eyes.  I love this one:

    Heath Ledger in The Dark Knight

    Check out the rest at the official Warner Bros. 2008 awards website.

  • It’s not just about Howard and Zimmer

    I have now seen “The Dark Knight” three times, and listened to the score several times. While the flaws of the film as a whole have become more apparent (though I still maintain it is excellent), the collaboration of Hans Zimmer and James Newton Howard keeps growing on me as an integral part of the film and character building, especially for Batman and the Joker.

    The nature of the collaboration will almost certainly keep the duo out of the Oscar race due to the rules on such matters. But I still can’t help but wonder…why does this remain the only category where two artists who work together and, as such, enrich each other’s work, not allow such artists to be awarded for it? I need only point out the Nick Cave/Warren Ellis score to “The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford” last year as another example.

    I…just…don’t…get…it

  • TDK, FYI

    Christian Bale in The Dark KnightMuch as I admire his spunk, I think Awards Daily contributor Ryan Adams might be getting ahead of himself with his Oscar hopes for “The Dark Knight.”

    In a recent post, he labels the categories of Best Makeup, Best Sound Mixing, Best Sound Editing, Best Supporting Actor and Best Visual Effects as “virtual certainties.” The other categories mentioned he feels are Oscar-worthy enough and have a good shot as well.

    Best Visual Effects isn’t going to happen. This branch abandoned practical effects considerations long ago. The makeup, meanwhile, could find some trouble from aging and transformative efforts later in the season, so I wouldn’t call it a sure thing either.

    We can all, I think, assume that Heath Ledger is on his way to a nod, and, indeed, the sound work in the film is top notch and worthy of serious consideration. The rest…nah. In fact, I think the most hastily over-predicted category for this film so far has been Best Art Direction, where Nathan Crowely scored at the BAFTAs in 2005 for “Batman Begins.”

    There aren’t a lot of manufactured sets here. All the stuff that looks like a creation was even, for the most part, a practical set. London’s Battersea Power Station really shows up well when used in the film, for instance, and looks like a manifestation. But it’s not.

    Lee Smith’s film editing is certainly a possibility, as he took things up a notch (to say the least) in this effort, but James Newton Howard and Hans Zimmer will not be eligible for their brillaint score because of that pesky rule Rule 16b.

    (By the way, speaking of the boys, anyone else just LOVE that creepy two-note string theme for the Joker that is a clever inversion of the Batman theme?)

    I would, however, call Wally Pfister’s work behind the camera this film’s closest thing to a lock. The lensers have tons of respect for this guy (I’d say his nod in 2005 was a surprise) and given the technological steps taken here with the IMAX technology — the sheer balls of lugging those cameras around for these action sequences — I’d say he’s in.

    And of course — I’ve always felt Christopher Nolan has a play here. But I’m not willing to go there. Yet.

    Just my two cents.

  • Official site for ‘The Dark Knight’ soundtrack

    Sounds…so…amazing.

  • ‘Dark Knight’ soundtrack listing

    1. Why So Serious? 09:14
    2. I’m Not A Hero 06:34
    3. Harvey Two-Face 06:16
    4. Aggressive Expansion 04:35
    5. Always A Catch 01:39
    6. Blood On My Hands 02:16
    7. A Little Push 02:42
    8. Like A Dog Chasing Cars 05:02
    9. I Am The Batman 01:59
    10. And I Thought My Jokes Were Bad 02:28
    11. Agent Of Chaos 06:55
    12. Introduce A Little Anarchy 03:42
    13. Watch The World Burn 03:47
    14. A Dark Knight 16:15

    Source

    By the way, Warners is releasing this thing on vinyl (!). It’ll actually be landing in four configurations, one of them being a collector’s edition with exclusive artwork post-release.

  • Zimmer taking the Joker ‘punk?’

    Todd Martens, who always does a fine job of rounding up news and talking points regarding the year’s film music compositions (especially around the Oscar season), sat down recently with Hans Zimmer and James Newton Howard. The composing duo of “Batman Begins” and the upcoming “The Dark Knight” are enjoying a nice publicity push, including a press day last week in Los Angeles solely for the pair.

    Martens was able to listen to about 10 minutes of the new score (jealousy isn’t a strong enough adjective at the moment), and he managed to get some details on the way the two composers are splitting duties. It seems Zimmer is on Joker duties, while Howard is fleshing out the aural rhytms of Harvey Dent.

    Zimmer had some interesting things to say on his approach to the Caped Crusader’s latest foe:

    Yet some early signs show “The Dark Knight” departing at least a little bit from the more subtle tones of “Batman Begins”…the theme Zimmer wrote for the Joker, played in the film by the late Heath Ledger, is a damning piece of music. It’s an intense eight-minute piece that comes off like an orchestral interpretation of a something created by Trent Reznor’s Nine Inch Nails. Zimmer says the work is only two notes, but the two notes are twisted and manipulated into mimicking the sounds of thunder, razors and all sorts of clatter heard in alleyways probably better left unexplored.

    Though that description may not make it sound like music to the ears, it’s still immensely listenable. It plays out like something from a horror film, with many a shift in direction and a nod to “Psycho.” But all of it is tied together by a striking blow of strings that keep it from falling apart, and Zimmer said it bears a punk influence.

    Check out the rest. And here’s a glimpse of what might be some of the new score, by the way.

    Anticipation is killing me by the day on this.

  • Could two potentially great film scores get the AMPAS shaft this year?

    It’s a debate that never gets old regarding the music branch of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. When is it going to clean house regarding shady rules that seem to fly in the face of what the organization sets out to do each and every year: honor the best in cinematic achievement?

    The foreign film committee had a major shakeup last year, and promises of attention were made, but it’s high time the same happened with the musicians. One of the rules seems poised to become a serious talking point later this season, however.

    Within Rule 16B of the Academy’s eligibility guidelines — launched into infamy last year when the caca hit the fan regarding Jonny Greenwood’s “There Will Be Blood” score — you’ll find the key language:

    Only the principal composer(s) or songwriter(s) responsible for the conception and execution of the work as a whole shall be eligible for an award. This expressly excludes from eligibility…scores assembled from the music of more than one composer.

    Specifically, it’s Rule 16B-5f. And it will likely affect two promising works of film music composition this year.

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