This is the most hazardous composer replacement I've ever heard of in my entire life... and not only that, I personally felt very led down and hugely disappointed at this turn.
Everything started when director Zack Snyder and his wife Deborah (who is a producer of the film) decided, back in April if I remember correctly, to leave the entire production of Justice League because of a tragic death in their family. Joss Whedon (who already had written the additional filmings) was then hired to direct said shootings and to finish the whole post-production process, which involved also the musical score.
At this point, it appears that Joss Whedon fired Junkie XL (who was announced as composer in May 2016) and choose Danny Elfman to replace him. Whedon and Elfman had already worked together in Avengers: Age of Ultron.

Now, I'm going into pure speculation, since I don't know many film scores by Elfman and very little about his style... But from my limited knowledge of him works I deduce that he's not going to craft a score that will fit with the tones and approach taken by the previous DCEU scores (all except Suicide Squad). The main reason is that, on a musical level, Man of Steel, Batman v Superman and Wonder Woman lied under direct or indirect influence of Hans Zimmer himself, who is a composer that has a very different approach to film scores compared to Danny Elfman, and their two different styles cannot but clash one against the other.
I also feel that Danny Elfman in a wrong choice because he doesn't fit with the aesthetics and visual approach (not to talk about the action sequences) that Zack Snyder has as his own trademark. As far as additional shootings can go, Joss Whedon will not re-shoot the entire film the way he wants, thus most of the final film will still have been filmed through the eyes, mind and way that Zack Snyder intended from the beginning.
I also have many doubts that Danny Elfman is able to "adapt" his musical sensibility to something done by a different composer. I'm not saying that he should do "copy-paste" with works by Hans Zimmer, Junkie XL and Rupert Gregson-Williams, but he should at least use their themes (especially those for Superman and Wonder Woman) in a recognizable way for the audience to still recognize them and feel the musical continuity. I'm perfectly fine if Elfman will write down some new themes, even for the characters, but he just needs not to delete everything done by Zimmer & Co. Wonder Woman works as a perfect example, since Rupert Gregson-Williams wisely used Zimmer's theme from Batman v Superman in a recognizable way, but still wrote down his own Wonder Woman theme, with his own sensibility and style to it. Rupert Gregson-Williams managed to walk the thin line between autonomy and dependency on Zimmer's themes, but I think Danny Elfman isn't able to to the same.
Also, I've heard from many parts (I cannot tell, since I haven't followed him) that in the last decade Elfman struggled to craft any memorable score. I can tell that his work in Age of Ultron wasn't as great as it should have. The way Silvestri's glorious theme was adapted was either too short (similar to what Giacchino did in Rogue One with the Imperial March) or too bland. And if Elfman didn't do great stuff with Silvestri's stuff (who is a composer that is way more similar to Elfman), I cannot imagine what atrocities Elfman will make with Zimmer's themes!

To me, the best thing that can happen (admitting that Elfman is hardly going to be fired) is that Warner Bros hires a co-composer from RCP to handle at least the action music stuff and the arrangements from Zimmer's themes, in a composer duo similar to Hans Zimmer & James Newton Howard for Batman Begins and The Dark Knight.
Or, surprisingly, Danny Elfman might work very hard and properly use Zimmer's themes, synths, general approach and miraculously combines it with his own sentibility and style, just like Rupert Gregson-Williams did.

Or maybe, Danny Elfman will make a good score after all, without going for that "Zimmer's way" stuff. But I honestly don't see that happening.

So... This is my opinion about this replacement.
What's yours?

I would be happy with almost anyone replacing Junkie XL, but Elfman doing the score for a Justice League movie is a dream come true.
He's a much better composer than any of the other composers who have worked on DCEU movies, including Zimmer.

I don't think it's fair to say that Elfman is a better composer than Zimmer, Junkie XL and Rupert Gregson-Williams... I think Elfman is the best composer (more than Zimmer) for a Tim Burton movie and I firmly believe that Elfman is the worst composer for a Zack Snyder movie. I'm not saying that Elfman is a bad composer, but each and every composer have their "best place" and "worst place" in my opinion.
I mean, yes, Elfman did some scores that defined the genre back in the day but here I'm not discussing if he is a good composer or not. What I am asking is if Elfman is a good choice for this project, handled (directly or indirectly) by Zack Snyder and Hans Zimmer until last month. I'm not here to discuss if Zimmer's Batman is better than Elfman's (that's impossible to say due to personal tastes, different movies, different times, different audiences, etc.) but what will Elfman will do once he's into the DCEU, which has had, until now, a very specific approach to scores.

My fear is that Elfman will destroy the musical continuity created by Zimmer (and his collaborators) that kept connected Man of Steel, Batman v Superman and Wonder Woman, a musical continuity that should have had its glorious culmination in Justice League! This way, we're going to have an MCU-like approach to film scores: different composers constantly re-writing the main themes for the characters each film, each time thrown away buy the next composer for the next movie. Zero continuity. Interchangable themes for all characters. The nightmare of musical continuity!

And not only that, but I think that the combination of Danny Elfman's score and Zack Snyder's aesthetics will undoubtedly create a deep sense of estrangement, which is likely going to influence (in a negative way) the appreciation for the film itself.

Personally, I don't get what the big fuss is all about, especially when I'm more concerned over how the final film is gonna be, since it's still under the previously conceived vision, even though I trust Whedon more than Snyder.

I'm very happy that Elfman is finally doing another DC film after quite a while. It doesn't help that even in his worse moments, I still would pick him over J XL, who makes nothing but noise on anything that isn't Fury Road. It could be bland music that Elfman has put out recently, but it's still closer to music at least. I trust that he is going to make a score that shall fit the final product and more. Because really, musical continuity shouldn't be the top priority for when it comes to making a film. It's a nice attention to detail, sure, but it's more important that it still would be able to work on it's own. We have various cases of sequels where we get a different composer and sound for the score, but it still manages to work. And that's what I trust them to do, since they still have plenty of time on their hands to make of it what they can.

If you're still worried about the whole continuity thing, just remember that the Superman scores from the Donner film universe, with it's different composers and even different producers later, still used the John Williams themes to their fullest effect. Granted, the music is so iconic that there would be no way they could ignore it, but that's not the point. It's likely that the producers will give the memo to Elfman and Whedon that they would want continuity in the music, since they're been mostly consistent in that front. If it does happen, then Suicide Squad will still remain the odd man out. If it doesn't, oh well. Let's hope it's good at least.

Obviously, you're only salty because of the continuity thing, and it's a very dumb thing. Honestly I think Elfman has been in a bit of a low recently. He has been scoring movies.. that normally he wouldn't score. I am not sure if Elfman is fit for this kind of movie either but I don't hate him or not welcome him in. Surely, Junkie XL would've produced the typical horrible action Hollywood noise. Elfman... has to follow orders, I don't think he's gonna go further than that, or he may even do better who knows. I seriously don't see the drama.

It's likely that the producers will give the memo to Elfman and Whedon that they would want continuity in the music, since they're been mostly consistent in that front. If it does happen, then Suicide Squad will still remain the odd man out. If it doesn't, oh well. Let's hope it's good at least.

I'm afraid in any case: if they give him the memo, I already know that Elfman will probably do a mediocre job at it; and if they don't give them the memo... well, the musical continuity will be trashed.
I also hope that it's good, but I honestly have minimal hopes for it. Out of all the scores of his that I know (Spider-Man 1-2, Batman, Oz the Great and Powerful, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Alice in Wonderland) I found truly great the Main Titles but all the rest to me was quite bland. To be clear, I think that Christopher Young crafted the best score of the Raimi trilogy of Spider-Man, and that Young also managed to arrange Elfman's Spider-Man theme way better than Elfman himself. And if those were his glory days, now gone, I guess we'll get a Justice League score that will betray the previous scores and will be anything but interesting and memorable.
And I honestly prefer an iconic, effective, exciting and catchy "noise score" by Junkie XL to cold, uninteresting, bland, unmemorable, uneffective "music" by Danny Elfman, if that's the best he can offer.

---------- Post added at 06:22 PM ---------- Previous post was at 06:11 PM ----------


Obviously, you're only salty because of the continuity thing, and it's a very dumb thing. Honestly I think Elfman has been in a bit of a low recently. He has been scoring movies.. that normally he wouldn't score. I am not sure if Elfman is fit for this kind of movie either but I don't hate him or not welcome him in. Surely, Junkie XL would've produced the typical horrible action Hollywood noise. Elfman... has to follow orders, I don't think he's gonna go further than that, or he may even do better who knows. I seriously don't see the drama.

No, I'm salty because of the continuity thing being at huge risk and because he evidently doesn't fit with Snyder's work, no matter how much Joss Whedon will try to change that.
Yes, it might be dumb, but it happened that I genuinely love both Zimmer and Snyder's works with this franchise (with different measures on each film though) and I hate that this poor choice, made for the sake of old times, will ruin everything they have done in the last 4 years.

My point is that as much as changing things can make some good, some things shouldn't be changed. If you think that Vangelis would be a great choice for Star Wars IX, if you think that Howard Shore is a good choice for Blade Runner 2049, we have nothing to discuss here.

The DCCU is a fucking mess and will continue to be, why care?

It isn't that big of a deal.

I still manage to appreciate the scores, the visual approach and the philosophical and mythical themes that have been used in it. Because of my weird tastes, I still manage to enjoy the direction and choices the DCEU has taken so far, and now we also have Wonder Woman that excels in all of these things and is also widely appreciated. I was so excited for what Justice League had to offer, but now I guess that Joss Whedon is trying to modify all of these things: the music, the visuals and maybe even the "philosophy" that Zack Snyder originally had in mind.
Yeah, I know that it's very very weird, but I enjoyed the hell out of all of that "mess". It's a matter of opinions and personal tastes.

Sure, I forgot to say it was my opinion, I thought it was very well cleared up.

Let this be known; Zack Snyder is a problem. If Whedon is to change and remove his influence, then good shit.

I believe the problems were mostly in the scripts. As soon as Zack Snyder gets a good one, he does a good film, like Watchmen. In both Man of Steel and Batman v Superman there was the influence of David S. Goyer. Suicide Squad was its own mess made by David Ayer and maybe someone of WB. But in Justice League there was only Chris Terrio, which is said to have written the better parts of Batman v Superman. So I was almost sure it would have been a good film and very well received. And even if it wouldn't... I'd still enjoy the way Snyder makes his movies.

Both Man of Steel and Batman vs Superman were a fucking mess, and both helmed by him..

A director cannot always do the writer's job. It can happen that a director finds himself with a bad script to shoot and that the only thing that he can do is only shoot whatever the script says. It might be also his fault for overlooking those problems when he could still change them, but surely enough Zack Snyder isn't the only one responsible for each and every problem of those films.
I still firmly believe that the problems are mostly from the scripts.

You know who was a producer for both MoS and BvS? Snyder's wife, so Zach may as well have gotten a producer credit too. The producer signs off on everything, including the script. Everything you saw on camera was exactly as Zach wanted it to be. So not only does he enjoy bizarre writing, but he also enjoys making his films look like amateurish videogame cutscenes. Both films that he's helmed either stumbled at the box office or fell face-first. JL is Snyder's last real foray into the DC world. He put everything he had into making those movies and they have been received unfavorably more often than not. WB isn't going to waste time on him if he isn't going to sell tickets.

And with Snyder gone, so is his Nolan-esque view of music as a pulsing, nondescript thing. WB doesn't care about musical continuity at all. They care about what sells. The MoS soundtrack and "Is She With You?" both were popular, and so I wouldn't be surprised if Zimmer's MoS theme were tracked into the film once or twice.

Here's a better idea: why don't we wait and see? Rather than continually make assumptions based off what we do know, as well a composer that you don't even listen to much, let's just wait for the final product and see how it goes.

Bitching and moaning is more fun though

Evidently you don't really care about the DCEU, are you? :laugh: I see why many dislike and hate everything Snyder does.

Anyway, thanks for your contribution for the discussion. I haven't considered that option. Is tracking music still a thing? I've very little knowledge about this practise (I have no idea in what films and scenes it was used).

---------- Post added at 08:37 PM ---------- Previous post was at 08:36 PM ----------


Here's a better idea: why don't we wait and see? Rather than continually make assumptions based off what we do know, as well a composer that you don't even listen to much, let's just wait for the final product and see how it goes.


Bitching and moaning is more fun though

I agree with both of you! :laugh:

I agree with your assessments and reservations Imperivm. The last score Danny Elfman composed that I thought had any resonance or was even at all evocative was way back in 2010 for "The Wolfman", and before that "Red Dragon" all the way back in 2002. Now, Danny Elfman has done great scores, but that was the distant past, and his particular style does not at all fit into the sonic landscape of this incarnation of the DC Universe. To me the best thing DC had going for it, and the one thing it excelled at over Marvel, was that it had a very defined and strong musical identity established by Hans Zimmer.

... it had a very defined and strong musical identity established by Hans Zimmer.

This is true, which makes all the whining about XL's departure even more bizarre to me. Zimmer is sick of reinventing the wheel; that's why he left the capeshit world behind. We wouldn't have gotten another "Is She With You?", we would have gotten more Holkenborg nonsense. Zimmer has talent, but that doesn't mean his underlings have the same capacity for writing great themes as he does.

Tom Holkenborg is a direct derivative of Hans Zimmer though, and you can be sure Zimmer would be involved at the minimum in a advisory capacity. But okay then, replace Junkie XL with Mark Mancina, John Powell, or Blake Neely. Hell, where's Trevor Rabin?

Danny Elfman is simply the wrong guy. What's he going to do, reprise his original Batman and Flash themes from the early 90's?

Personally I think aside from his silly moniker (that he really needs to drop), Holkenborg is pretty good. I'd cite his scores for Fury Road and Black Mass as particularly exemplary, and I also thought he did a quite decent tragic theme for Bruce Wayne in BvS.

Danny Elfman is simply the wrong guy. What's he going to do, reprise his original Batman and Flash themes from the early 90's?

You know, do what composers do and compose a film music score? Lmao.

My question is will we hear some sort of revival of the old Batman theme from the Burton movies.

My question is will we hear some sort of revival of the old Batman theme from the Burton movies.

As awesome as that would be, it's very unlikely. I still wouldn't rule it out as a possibility though, since it has been used for multiple incarnations of the character. Still, with the way it's gone, I doubt it. It would be great though.

As awesome as that would be, it's very unlikely. I still wouldn't rule it out as a possibility though, since it has been used for multiple incarnations of the character. Still, with the way it's gone, I doubt it. It would be great though.

Maybe he will give it a face lift or something or give a nob to it at some point.

I think that out of all the themes Zimmer wrote for Man of Steel and Batman v Superman, Batman's is the weakest (at least, that "BAM BAM-BAM-BAM-BAM BAM"). It would make sense to have a new Batman theme in Justice League, since what is portrayed for the majority of Batman v Superman is evidently a broken and "deteriorated version" of Batman that only at the very end of the film is finally restored to its "better version".
What I don't think would be a good idea is to use again the 1989's theme that Elfman wrote. It was good, but that was a different franchise, now rebooted. Anyway, we'll see in November.

Holkenborg wrote all the Batman material for BvS. That's precisely why he was brought in, because Zimmer already did HIS Batman for Christopher Nolan.

Looking at the ASCAP credits, it appears that Holkenborg had a minimal work on specific cues. I guess he's co-credited because he co-wrote with Zimmer the new themes and then "left" the job to Zimmer (and the additional composers) to craft the majority of the specific cues since he had to do Deadpool. Not that Deadpool had that much music...

I was watching some videos on YouTube from the very interesing channel "Sideways", which talks about film music and music in general, and apparently he found out that in Suicide Squad, in the scene where Batman is chasing Joker and Harley Queen, are used both Elfman's and Zimmer's (the Nolan) Batman theme.
Check it out: https://youtu.be/p9I6efbQdCQ?t=198

So... maybe WB is really going for reprising Elfman's theme as the "reborn Batman theme" in the DCEU.

---------- Post added at 01:14 PM ---------- Previous post was at 01:11 PM ----------

BTW, check the channel's video about Michael Giacchino's Rogue One score, it's incredibly good how he managed to find out all those hidden references to John Williams' scores and other pieces of music!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SGVqPP-52No

I was watching some videos on YouTube from the very interesing channel "Sideways", which talks about film music and music in general, and apparently he found out that in Suicide Squad, in the scene where Batman is chasing Joker and Harley Queen, are used both Elfman's and Zimmer's (the Nolan) Batman theme.
Check it out: https://youtu.be/p9I6efbQdCQ?t=198

So... maybe WB is really going for reprising Elfman's theme as the "reborn Batman theme" in the DCEU.

Ahahahahahahaha! Musical continuity whiners btfo


BTW, check the channel's video about Michael Giacchino's Rogue One score, it's incredibly good how he managed to find out all those hidden references to John Williams' scores and other pieces of music!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SGVqPP-52No

Some of this smells like bullshit to me. Even if it's all completely accurate, that doesn't automatically make it good music.

Ahahahahahahaha! Musical continuity whiners btfo
As I said before, I'm totally ok if Elfman changes the Batman theme, because of the redemption (or re-birth) he has at the end of Batman v Superman, and I have no idea if reprising Elfman's '89 theme is actually good or not. But for Batman, I'm totally open to everything Elfman will do.
And looking at that thing of Suicide Squad (which might also be a simple easter egg), it makes me feel that WB knows what they're doing when they hired Danny Elfman.


Some of this smells like bullshit to me. Even if it's all completely accurate, that doesn't automatically make it good music.
I haven't said that Rogue One now is good music... I already felt that the score was overall "nice" from start to finish but it's lacking memorable themes, though Giacchino managed to use them brilliantly. That was my opinion on Rogue One before I watched that video, which makes me feel like Giacchino actually put some extra effort in it.
Also, I think not all of that video is bullsh*t: https://twitter.com/m_giacchino/status/855817496279998465

You mustn't think that Elfman's hiring is the result of some WB-concocted master scheme. Whedon worked with Elfman on Age of Ultron (another situation where he was brought on to supplement/replace another composer's work) and I guess they worked well together. WB signed off on it because Elfman has been a respected name for decades. The Suicide Squad easter egg is almost certainly just that: an easter egg.

I agree with you on RO though, I thought Gia's themes for Rogue One were just a mess. He somehow screwed up every single one of Williams's, and his own lacked any conviction. I liked the little motif for Krennic though; too bad it didn't fit the character at all.

You're probably right, and I was probably overthinking about that Suicide Squad easter egg :)

One thing is for certain, Steven Price is a big nobody.

Zimmer stated numerous times that he absolutely wanted no part in writing another reinvention of Batman and has consistently said that was his purpose for bringing in Holkenborg. So I'm going to just take him at his word, and say that Tom is responsible for composing the Batman thematic elements of BvS. I legitimately think Junkie XL did in fact write an underutilized elegy for Bruce Wayne/Batman (beyond the BAAAM BAAM_BAAM_BAAM) that is quite moving in its tragic fatefulness. A monster begat by monsters. I have to assume Holkenborg is to credit, but at any rate it's my favorite motif derived from the entire movie (which I don't particularly have much fondness for). Listen again:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z9BL59uiAz8&t=1m9s

I'd love Elfman to come back if we're gonna make live action versions of the classic animated series that used his Burton themes (but was way better that Burton's movies... and it's music). Too bad Shirley Walker passed away.

Also, in tribute to how I opened this post, let me now close by also emphatically stating that Elliot Goldenthal is a big somebody! :)

"Also, I've heard from many parts (I cannot tell, since I haven't followed him) that in the last decade Elfman struggled to craft any memorable score."

The people you heard from must have missed "Alice in Wonderland."

And I would not mind at all if Elfman reprises his "Batman" theme.

Ok, you have a point, since the main theme for "Alice in Wonderland" is pretty nice, but consider that it was a Tim Burton movie and they worked together for decades now. I think that the Tim Burton (and maybe even Sam Raimi) movies Elfman sccored might be exceptionally good scores, because of the long collaborations with those directors. What about the non-Tim Burton scores of the last decade?

I'd say what I've heard of Men In Black 3 sounds good. But once again, it's with a director that he's not only worked with before, but also has had two previous scores to build from. So not the best example either.

Really, it seems Elfman works the best when he has a good relationship with the director, which can be the case for a lot of composers. And it's clear Whedon certainly was good with him, so it could get a stronger product. As always, we'll just have to wait and see.

In a new interview to Billboard, Danny Elfman teased quite a few things about his Justice League score.
http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/7981630/danny-elfman-justice-league-joss-whedon-gus-van-sant-interview

- He'll use the Wonder Woman theme by Hans Zimmer from BvS (not sure if he'll use for the whole film or if he'll use along with a new theme of his own like Rupert Gregson-Williams did). This news makes me more a bit more positive about his score :)
- He wrote small motifs for Flash, Aquaman and Cyborg. He also said that they might not be reprised in the following DCEU movies.

And the big deal:
In a specific scene of the film, he'll use an arrangement of John Williams' classic Superman theme! I'm quite happy about this news, because it (partially) confirms a theory I made a few months ago: that in the Justice League score, the previous themes for Superman and Batman composed by Hans Zimmer and Junkie XL might be replaced by the classic themes by John Williams and Danny Elfman.
It would make perfect sense, since in the ending of BvS Batman goes through redemption and Superman resurrects in Justice League, their original character traits might be finally restored and their classic themes might do that as well.

In the interview it's not clear if Elfman will or not use his classic Batman theme. He kinda teases that, but doesn't state clearly. So, we only have to wait for further confirmations or for the score album release :)

Listen to The Unknown Known. You will be thrilled!

In a new interview to Billboard, Danny Elfman teased quite a few things about his Justice League score.
http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/7981630/danny-elfman-justice-league-joss-whedon-gus-van-sant-interview

- He'll use the Wonder Woman theme by Hans Zimmer from BvS (not sure if he'll use for the whole film or if he'll use along with a new theme of his own like Rupert Gregson-Williams did). This news makes me more a bit more positive about his score :)
- He wrote small motifs for Flash, Aquaman and Cyborg. He also said that they might not be reprised in the following DCEU movies.

And the big deal:
In a specific scene of the film, he'll use an arrangement of John Williams' classic Superman theme! I'm quite happy about this news, because it (partially) confirms a theory I made a few months ago: that in the Justice League score, the previous themes for Superman and Batman composed by Hans Zimmer and Junkie XL might be replaced by the classic themes by John Williams and Danny Elfman.
It would make perfect sense, since in the ending of BvS Batman goes through redemption and Superman resurrects in Justice League, their original character traits might be finally restored and their classic themes might do that as well.

In the interview it's not clear if Elfman will or not use his classic Batman theme. He kinda teases that, but doesn't state clearly. So, we only have to wait for further confirmations or for the score album release :)

As I was expecting, Danny Elfman will use his own theme for Batman! :D
http://filmmusicreporter.com/2017/10/06/watertower-music-to-release-danny-elfmans-justice-league-soundtrack/

Which reminds me what I still need is the original 1989 Batman sessions...

With all due respect... but in this thread I was talking about a specific matter, which is wheter Danny Elfman is a good replacement for a Zack Snyder film.
Nobody cares if you need the original 1989 Batman sessions... That's quite obvious, almost everyone in the forum would like to have that.

So, I ask you to write down posts that are related to the discussion. Because this is a discussion thread, if you didn't notice.

As I was expecting, Danny Elfman will use his own theme for Batman! :D
http://filmmusicreporter.com/2017/10/06/watertower-music-to-release-danny-elfmans-justice-league-soundtrack/

so far im not impressed with the direction of the score.... :I

so far im not impressed with the direction of the score.... :I

You know, now that Elfman confirmed that he's using other themes, now I'm more positive about it. Maybe he'll even use Zimmer's Man of Steel theme (since it's featured in the final trailer...)
But still, I'd prefer Junkie XL for his big talent with action music. Elfman surely is a great composer (maybe a few years ago) but I think he's not that great with action. Especially the type Zimmer and Junkie XL did for Man of Steel and Batman v Superman.

If this all comes together with all the different themes etc. And sounds like a cohesive whole I’m gonna be one happy fan boy but I’m not sure how you get the Williams superman theme & Elfmans Batman theme to sit alongside the current Wonder Woman material without it sounding like a bad mixtape but then again that’s why Elfman is an A list composer with decades of work under his belt and I’m just speculating on a web forum.

Elfman said in that interview that he arranged it for a very dark scene. It will probably be barely noticeable for the general audience, since it's not like the classic great theme. It's basically a well hidden easter egg.

I am far more curious about the Batman theme! And I don't think it will clash with the Wonder Woman material.

---------- Post added at 10:26 AM ---------- Previous post was at 10:21 AM ----------

I recently checked the Amazon page for Official CD Release of the score (here (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0767MY6TC/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=filmusrep-20&camp=1789&creative=9325&linkCode=as2&creativeASIN=B0767MY6TC&linkId=e3c7362d218fcd0ffd703c79ef4ae310)), and there's a chance that it will be 2 CDs, as written in the "title"!
Strangely though, in the product details it still says 1 CD...

I personally don't think the Batman/Superman original themes fit for this "edgy, dark movie" at all.. I think it's blatant, desperate fanservice of Warner to get a lot of box office from fans.. they were gonna have it, anyway

Maybe you're right.
Or maybe it's a good idea to refresh the music of the DCEU (or simply Batman's theme alone), since with Justice League the plan has always been from the very beggining that of making a lighter film after all.
And as Elfman himself explained, that use of Superman's theme is just an easter-egg.

I personally don't think the Batman/Superman original themes fit for this "edgy, dark movie" at all.. I think it's blatant, desperate fanservice of Warner to get a lot of box office from fans.. they were gonna have it, anyway

Please remember that the 1989 Tim Burton film was already designed to be "darker and edgier" than the most well known version in pop culture at the time (Adam West). Considering this current interpretation is certainly more extreme than Christopher Nolan's, perhaps it's only fitting that they went to that version for this. Plus, it's already been proven before that John Williams's work can be put in darker context. Hell, the "lighter" Christopher Reeve's films have done it themselves (Superman III).

Besides, when are the DCEU films not pandering to fans? BvS was an incredibly glorified example of it. I'm honestly more surprised they didn't do it sooner.

I have hope for this, but think it probably won't benefit from any established themes.

What about the non-Tim Burton scores of the last decade?
Standard Operating Procedure
The Unknown Known
The Girl on the Train
Tulip Fever

I'd prefer Junkie XL for his big talent with action music.
to my ear, it's action sound design (or the sound keeps you awake), not music. but thats just me.

You know, now that Elfman confirmed that he's using other themes, now I'm more positive about it. Maybe he'll even use Zimmer's Man of Steel theme (since it's featured in the final trailer...)
But still, I'd prefer Junkie XL for his big talent with action music. Elfman surely is a great composer (maybe a few years ago) but I think he's not that great with action. Especially the type Zimmer and Junkie XL did for Man of Steel and Batman v Superman.

Edit: All that typed for nothing more than a load of redundancy. Oh, well. Here's a clip from the movie with Elfman's original Batman theme: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q5gU3erJcto

So... now that the film and score have been released, what do you think?

So... now that the film and score have been released, what do you think?

The movie was an unmitigated disaster. The score was just... kind of... there. Even after giving the score another listen on its own it makes no impression of any kind.

When you're pressed for time, and have to deal with the loony executives of WB, you can only do so much.

Probably... But I don't think Elfman didn't have enough time (other composers like Marco Beltrami, Michael Giacchino and James Newton Howard did good scores in much less time) or the means to craft a good score. Well, he might also not be used to write a score in shorter period of times, so it's not really his fault. Yeah, it's not great to score a scene only with storyboards, but after all I'd say that the two major action tracks (The Tunnel Fight and The Final Fight) were quite good.
I'm disappointed that he didn't use either the classic themes or the previous DCEU themes in a proper way, while he had total freedom (unless WB ordered him otherwise) to use them. In the entire score, there's so little of them.

My opinion on the score is that, if it's taken as a standalone film score, it's quite good (and it's much better after viewing the film), but since Justice League should have done for obvious reasons a great use of other themes (wheter it's from Zimmer or from Williams and Elfman himself) it falls flat for me.

I'm happy. Elfman gave us his best work in years with this.

I'm happy. Elfman gave us his best work in years with this.

It's only sad 95% of people don't agree with you. :/