Comments on: Hans Zimmer: Quintessential Hype Man

By: Jessica

Jessica — Tue, 29 Jan 2013 00:05:58 +0000

Using songs from different artists (e.g., Pulp Fiction) is a soundtrack. It just means it uses any pre-existing music, no matter what the medium.

Anything that says “music inspired by the film” is usually awful and I would suggest ignoring it. Haha.

By: Jessica

Jessica — Tue, 29 Jan 2013 00:03:13 +0000

I care about German words!

By: Ryan

Ryan — Mon, 28 Jan 2013 19:20:50 +0000

Did you guys see the Family Guy “Blue Harvest” video, where they make a crack at Hans Zimmer being inferior to John Williams? I tried to find a video link but I think it’s probably not online.

By: Ryan

Ryan — Mon, 28 Jan 2013 19:18:02 +0000

Like Djake, I appreciated the explanations of the differences between these terms.

But what about when they use songs from different artists and then package them as a “soundtrack”? Like Pulp Fiction, etc? Are we calling these things the correct name? In my mind, if I hear “soundtrack,” I think of something like “Jackie Brown” or “Clueless,” but when I hear “score,” I think “instruments.”

And what about the elusive category, “Music inspired by the film…,” where they take hot songs of songs by popular artists and sell them as part of a soundtrack, even if they weren’t actually in the movie? I know this happened a lot on the 90s, but maybe doesn’t as much these days, since people don’t buy as many CDs.

Anyhow, I’m not sure if this is a question, but oh well.

By: Ryan

Ryan — Mon, 28 Jan 2013 19:11:43 +0000

Plus, “leitmotif” is a loan word from German’s “Leitmotiv.” “Leit” is from “leiten,” or “to lead,” and “Motiv” is “motive,” of course.

Who cares?

No one.

But I like loanwords, and as long as I have to justify saying “Gesundheit” to my students, I’m gonna keep pointing them out.

By: Jessica

Jessica — Mon, 28 Jan 2013 13:26:44 +0000

Haha I don’t have a DEEP hatred for him. I just dislike him. Anyway, yes, a leitmotif is exactly that, a theme for a character, place, feeling, etc. Sorry, I got all fancy for a moment! I think Zimmer’s music is post-Mickey Moused during editing. Either that or he (or his collaborative cronies) must add them in later. Also, it is possible that he has written actual “scores”, but from my reading it seems that he rarely does.

Thanks for the welcome, guys!

By: Djake

Djake — Mon, 28 Jan 2013 07:58:19 +0000

Also, I love reading the differences between soundtrack, score and original soundtrack. I’m always confused by those terms. So Ennio Morricone’s work is an original soundtrack where John Williams and Danny Elfman write scores? I’m just confused as to why Zimmer is more similar to Morricone since his music follows the beats and action (aka “Mickey Mousing”) just like a Williams score does.

By: Djake

Djake — Mon, 28 Jan 2013 07:53:23 +0000

I think I agree with both of your favorites, Deuce. I’m still reeling for your “Pearl Harbor is better than Gladiator” comment tho

I was worried you may become offended by this post since he is your favorite composer. I’m glad you weren’t!

By: Djake

Djake — Mon, 28 Jan 2013 07:51:02 +0000

I love this! It’s beautifully written and really makes me understand where you are coming from. I agree with a lot of what you are saying. I was always confused as to why you had such a deep hatred for Mr. Zimmer so I’m glad you finally explained yourself. While your point about Pearl Harbor and Gladiator is apt, I think it’s true with most composers. You can literally take any John Williams score (at least the parts that aren’t super iconic, ie Star Wars, Indy, Harry Potter) and put it on any movie and it would probably work. His themes are very generic in that way, as are Zimmer’s.

So is a leitmotif a theme like the Hobbit’s theme in LOTR? I think I understand but I wanted some clarification.

Again, welcome Jessica! I look forward to reading more music reviews/essays. It’s nice to FINALLY have a female voice (we’re all waiting for LaFemme aka Mrs. Deuce to join as well) and something involving music instead of simply film. Fantastic work!

By: Deuce

Deuce — Mon, 28 Jan 2013 03:28:41 +0000

Jessica! Yay! You’ve made it. What an awesome post!

I sure like those “Hans Zimmer” scores! Even if he steals all the credit, I can’t say I dislike him, I guess. But, I wouldn’t be opposed to him putting those other people’s name on the bill.

My Favorite “Hans Zimmer” score/soundtrack (original?): Thin Red Line.
My Favorite “Hans Zimmer” track: “Time” from Inception. Johnny Marr helped on that one, so that makes it fun.

I think I liked the Pearl Harbor score better than Gladiator’s. Haha!