Filmtracks: Wonder Woman 1984 (Hans Zimmer)

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Written 3/3/21

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Buy it... if you are a vintage Hans Zimmer enthusiast who has long awaited his rediscovery of optimistic lyricism and meaningful romance, his work for this sequel triumphantly monumental, enthusiastic, and warm.

Avoid it... if you expect Zimmer to become an artist he is not, for even this transcendent superhero score still contains some stale action material, questionable thematic attribution, and an indelicate and overbearing mix.

Zimmer

Wonder Woman 1984: (Hans Zimmer) In the second of four planned Warner Brothers films based on a "Wonder Woman" spin-off from the DC Extended Universe of superhero movies, Wonder Woman 1984 was conceived as a standalone entry with a narrative that didn't extend directly out of the 2017 predecessor. Set in the 1980's, Diana Prince, Amazonian princess of the mythical hotbed of feminism, Themyscira, and Smithsonian employee during the day, is drawn into new conflict when one of the artifacts in the museum proves to be a tool of magical mischief that grants wishes while taking compromising tolls on those to whom the wishes are granted. A museum coworker unintentionally becomes a super-powered rival of Wonder Woman, and she teams up with an oil baron who takes his wish towards the expected goal of world domination. The plot worked for some viewers but put off others, the opening scene set on Themyscira in a flashback immensely enjoyable (and, in fact, spawning a film unto itself), but there was criticism about the resurrection of Diana's squeeze from the first film in another man's body, and the lack of consent that man gives to everything Chris Pine is shown doing (and screwing) in this picture. The movie was delayed countless times in 2020, eventually offered in a hybrid theatre and streaming tandem that reportedly failed to recoup the studio's costs for the production. Among the feel-good positives of Wonder Woman 1984 is its full embrace of 1980's nostalgia, and that tone carries over to its music. The origins of Wonder Woman's music came in 2016's Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, for which Hans Zimmer wrote a rowdy battle cry for the character that overshadowed everything else in that score. For 2017's Wonder Woman, a team of composers from Zimmer's Remote Control Productions, led by Rupert Gregson-Williams, produced a decent but brainless collection of power anthems and vintage Media Ventures action techniques. Zimmer himself took the helm of Wonder Woman 1984 despite, once again, his claims that he had retired for good from the superhero genre many years and superhero assignments prior. To his credit, though, much of this score is his own creation, David Fleming and Steve Mazzaro providing additional music but Zimmer tackling the bulk of the work himself.

Logistically, Wonder Woman 1984 presented Zimmer with some interesting decisions to make. First, he summarily dumped Rupert Gregson-Williams's themes, which is a shame given that they represented the same concepts needing themes in this film and could have been salvaged by some development. Second, the tone of the story demanded a different approach to supplying Wonder Woman with a musical persona, the awesome battle cry too aggressively dark for the uplifting spirit of this sequel. Finally, the movie had a wealth of concepts that could demand individual themes, Zimmer responding with countless new identities that don't always succeed in claiming prominent airtime when one would expect. Generally speaking, though, Wonder Woman 1984 supplied Zimmer the chance to shed the morbidly brooding persona that had defined his superhero scores and return to his more emotionally varied and lyrical works of the 1990's. To this end alone, his achievement here is a tremendous success, the composer certainly opening himself up to teasing about writing the very "happy and jolly" superhero music he once dismissed when commenting on the genre music of his friend, Danny Elfman. His musical transformation here provides a variety of highly dynamic and even major-key heroism that at times evokes the wholesome character of James Horner. It's an incredible breath of fresh air for vintage Zimmer enthusiasts, the work combining some of the best pieces of the composer's masculine recording style, overwrought classicism, and even early 1990's playfulness and exuberance into a resurrection certain to thrill listeners still attached to Zimmer's works of the 1980's and early 1990's. That said, Zimmer cannot shake his fundamental tenets of the 2010's, however, the sound of his score still abrasively rendered so that brass and percussion highlights, especially when you have huge groups of horn players all performing in unison, seem synthetic or, at least, manipulated. There is some unfortunate mixing work sprinkled throughout Wonder Woman 1984, the gains always excessive (it's a loud score even when it's trying to be soft) and the choir sometimes placed so distantly that their chanting is only revealed by the "s" sounds that stand out. The action sequences in the score are more intelligent conceptually but, because of the overbearing mix, they lose their ability to impress through nuance or thematic development.

On the upside, there are instruments heard in the music for Wonder Woman 1984 that are not typical to Zimmer blockbusters of the era, prominent placement of xylophone and woodwinds, as well as lighter female choral tones, defining a much broader soundscape here. Zimmer's core set of themes are also truly outstanding on the whole, nailing the heart of the film's major narrative elements. The composer still has difficulty applying his themes to outright action mayhem, however, with the exception of the existing battle cry that is inherently a rhythmic tool to begin with. Action cues tend to devolve into massive walls of sound for Zimmer, and that tendency continues. The composer is among the top influences of the modern overblown crescendo in film music, the ostinatos and ascending phrasing dating back to the highlights of The Thin Red Line and The Da Vinci Code and still prevailing so many years later in emulation by everyone from Zimmer's own clones to younger flashes Ludwig Göransson and Daniel Pemberton. In Wonder Woman 1984, cues both for battle and drama are supplied with Zimmer's drawn-out crescendo structures, cymbal crashes punctuating them with style but the basic idea remaining rather static. He writes set pieces for scenes in a way that the same churning figures, sometimes related to a major theme but not always, simply build and build, get louder and louder, and supply emphasis but not actual musical metamorphosis or catharsis in needed moments at their ends, "Lord of Desire" and "The Beauty in What Is" both examples of this approach. Also eluding Zimmer is pinpoint control over thematic usage, especially in the action sequences. Outside of these rhythmically overwhelming cues, he fares a little better, but his application of motifs to specific little moments in a narrative is so rare that a brief quote like the Dreamstone motif at 2:51 into "1984" is a true pleasure. The composer prefers to explore themes in full, wholesale form even outside of his suites, an idea seemingly not worth stating unless there is at least 40 seconds in which to state it. Part of this is owed to Zimmer's method of writing, and Zimmer remains loyal to that technique The same can be said about taking four dozen brass players and blasting them in unison until they sound like a sample of themselves. Again, Wonder Woman 1984 is a highly refreshing diversion from the personality of Zimmer's superhero music, but it accesses the same vocabulary he's been comfortable using in this era.

Even if the rendering of Zimmer's ideas for Wonder Woman 1984 ironically remains too masculine and reliant upon hefty subwoofers for your taste, you can't help but be attracted to his many great themes for the picture. His ideas for Diana and Themyscira extend (literally) out of the existing battle cry to form several new themes that recur throughout the film, the main hero identity and supplemental themes for optimism (the truth element) and determination (perseverance). The hero, optimism, and determination themes are the siblings of the original battle cry and are often joined by a new rhythm of major key distinction for the character's good heart. The duo of "Themyscira" and "Games" is pivotal in establishing these ideas, and, fortunately for Zimmer, these initial ten minutes of the film is largely devoid of dialogue, allowing the music to flourish along with the fantastic visuals. Zimmer teases the original battle cry on electric strings at 0:05 and 0:20 into "Themyscira" for the logos but soon dives into the new major key rhythm for Diana's themes at 0:26 (and returning at 2:24). The optimistic theme follows at 0:35, 1:10, 2:18, and 2:29, its progressions and choral and string coloration combining to remind of James Horner's work in a startling twist for Zimmer. It's a wonderfully chipper idea for the composer, so brazenly occupied by the major key that it truly stands out whenever dropped into the rest of the score in similar fashion. The determination theme is a knock-out highlight of Wonder Woman 1984 that deserved more air time, introduced in "Themyscira" at 0:47 and 3:08. The most memorable of the lot will likely be Zimmer's main hero theme for Diana, sharing the first four notes with war cry before diverging into its own greatness at 1:04, 1:52, and 2:28 into "Themyscira." In the subsequent "Games," Zimmer provides an exciting new rhythm for female chanting, punctuated by primal woodwind calls, and all three of these Diana themes is reprised. The main hero idea is heard in grandiose form at 3:12 and subdued at 4:14, the optimistic theme occurs with light choir at 2:10 and respectful reservation at 4:35, and the determination theme takes a somber turn at 3:35. In many ways, the equally entertaining "1984" shifts to contemporary times with the same resoundingly positive and hopeful spirit of the first two cues, the three together yielding 16 minutes of airy and, one might dare say, fun Zimmer melodicism that is tempered until the finale of the film. For a substantial number of listeners, these tracks will represent the best of the score.

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The primary hero theme for Diana in Wonder Woman 1984 is the guiding goodness of "1984," its exploration at 0:08 and beyond so joyously expanded that one can't help but fall in love with its infectious charm. The orchestrations in these passages are superior to most of Zimmer's recent output, passing melodic lines between strings and brass with smooth confidence. The theme's beaming brass performance at 4:40 has (again, ironically) an almost Elfman and Batman-like crescendo, and the soft resolution of the theme at 6:36 nicely wraps the track. The hero theme continues with a slow and victorious statement at 3:16 into "Open Road" and a falsely heroic fragment at 5:09. Its deflation at 5:47 into "Radio Waves" signals challenges for Zimmer's referencing of the ideas in the climactic battle scenes, where Wonder Woman's battle cry instead takes the lead. The new hero theme closes out the score over the new major key rhythm for Diana as she reasserts her own powers and mission at 3:45 into "Truth." The optimism theme makes fewer appearances in the score but has a significant impact upon the "Fireworks" flight cue. Rather than allow the Diana and Steve love theme to flow at this point, the optimism theme flourishes at 0:10 and 0:46 into a pretty and massively scoped incarnation. The idea becomes worried at 3:32 into "Open Road" but prevails with relief at 2:15 into "Truth;" like the hero theme, this idea is joined by the major key rhythm at 3:16, the melody given a large brass sendoff. The determination theme, given distinction by its comparatively minor key drive, is sadly less evident outside of the early cues, but a slow and sad performance awaits at 2:13 into "Without Armor." A fuller version at 2:44 into that cue offers a return to the chanting heard during the Themyscira scenes, but with a tone remarkably similar to Andrew Lockington's more accessible portions of Rampage. The theme seems to inform the start of "Lost and Found" before extended development transforms it into a new theme. Those more interested in hearing Zimmer's original battle cry for Wonder Woman more explicitly will not be disappointed in its variations, though this score does lack the outwardly cool, straight forward electric guitar snazziness of the theme as heard in Gregson-Williams' Wonder Woman. Instead, Zimmer exercises the first four notes as inspiration for multiple other themes and, when he does offer the whole idea, he does so in unfamiliar ways. The somewhat humorous woodwind and horn performance at 5:00 into "1984" is one such welcome deviation.

Zimmer usually saves the Wonder Woman battle cry for her battle sequences, supplanting the new hero theme for the hard-ass original identity. An allusion on strings at 0:29 into "Open Road" later yields the idea in full, electronic grinding mode, while straight brass renditions at 1:54 and subsequent accelerating action usage at 4:37 are fantastic. The structural connections between the battle cry and main hero theme sometimes cause them to nearly overlap in purpose, as in the tentative horn expression at 2:02 into "The White House." At 2:40 into that cue, the full battle cry ensues, mixed well into action variants on shifting chords. These chords seem to tepidly influence the start of "Radio Waves" but the cry explodes into its full form again at 3:27. Zimmer interestingly abandons even hints of the idea (outside of its connections with the hero theme) for the finale flight sequence. For Diana's love interest, the resurrection of Steve from the previous film, Zimmer responds with a new love theme not related to Gregson-Williams' equivalent. The theme serves its purpose but is rather poorly enunciated, perhaps because its progressions sound as though the main phrases are actually the middle sequences to some longer theme. (Perhaps that was Zimmer's point.) Emerging first at 0:10 into "Wish We Had More Time," the idea turns big on strings and choir at 0:36, fuller exploration with slight waltz mannerisms later in cue yielding to a passage eerily similar to The Lion King at the end. Only the theme's underlying chords seem to occupy any time late in "Fireworks," and these hints open "Without Armor" before better enunciation of the theme at 0:32. The theme is understandably broken throughout "Already Gone," melodramatic but electronically distorted. One might assume that the "Lost and Found" track would base itself on this theme, but only similar progressions arise around 7:00 onward. In the end, the love theme in Wonder Woman 1984 has to be chalked up as a disappointment, even if its lack of depth and resonance owes to intellectual reasoning. More interesting is Zimmer's idea for the Dreamstone, a hypnotic tune consisting of descending 3 and 4-note phrases. After the eerie female vocal preview at 2:51 into "1984," Zimmer uses "The Stone" as the formal suite for the motif. Its electronic allure starts at 0:12 into that cue, the actual melody arriving at 0:48. The theme meanders with heavy Jerry Goldsmith mannerisms on strings, a truly nice touch of intrigue from Zimmer. The underlying formations of the theme open "The White House," its descending motif in rhythmic form at 1:08 and the actual theme romantically expressed on strings for several building performances at 2:11.

The simplistic rhythmic form of the Dreamstone in Wonder Woman 1984 would imply more frequent usage from Zimmer, but he resists that notion. It is only vague at 3:53 into "Radio Waves," and its lack of presence there and in "Anything You Want" is quite baffling. On the other hand, though, Zimmer does nicely invert the progressions at 2:27 into "The Beauty in What Is" for the end of the threat. Equally elusive at certain moments in the score but even more entertaining in its performances is the theme for Max Lord. It's one of Zimmer's all-time best themes, distinct in its uppity waltz-inspired character but allowing for renditions ranging from brazenly chipper to ominously sinister and, in the end, redemptively warm. The "Black Gold" track is Zimmer's suite for this theme, opening and closing that recording with upbeat trumpet performances of the melody on top of spritely chopping strings. At 0:46 into that track, an interlude phrase turns ominous on strings over bubbling electronics, and that extremely wet ambience twists the melody at 1:11 into a slower, distorted, comic-like, and slightly humorous variant. A harpsichord, xylophone, and woodwinds offer another playful rendition at 3:54 and the interlude sequence takes over underneath the melody as counterpoint at 4:27, a really nice, if not pretentious touch of class. Rather than raise the Dreamstone theme in "Anything You Want," Zimmer presents a mystical, rhythmic form of the Lord theme at 0:39, underlying chords continuing in tingling electronic suspense thereafter. Those chords are more often cited than the theme itself in subsequent cues, guiding the dark passages to close "The White House" and opening "Lord of Desire" in another sequence surprisingly devoid of the actual melody. Zimmer starts with the same tact at the outset of "The Beauty in What Is" on harp, but he allows the idea fuller redemption for the large ensemble later in that cue and during the first half of "Truth," the romantic strings in the latter a heartwarming development for the character. Meanwhile, the Barbara/Cheetah theme is highlighted by a four-note elephant call on echoing, distorted brass, a clear emulation (understandably) of the four primary notes of the Wonder Woman battle cry. The animal call for this villain debuts at 1:35 into "Cheetah," with a longer series of ascending figures of menace following at 2:10. By 3:26 into "Anything You Want," the wild string figures from "Cheetah" develop into a power-hungry crescendo. In the major battle scenes, both the shriek and fuller theme return at 3:52 into "The White House" and 5:12 into "Radio Waves." The musical identity for this character is sadly unrefined in the score, especially in the lack of a softer variant of the idea for Barbara.

Because Zimmer's albums tend to convey his ideas in arrangements aimed for that medium rather than the film, the two albums for Wonder Woman 1984 present a few extended moments of thematic material that don't exactly associate with the main themes. On the primary album, the exceedingly long "Lost and Found" cue, some of which was placed in the film's end credits, takes the love theme material in a completely new direction that hangs out awkwardly in the end despite being exceeding pretty music for symphony and choir that (again, ironically) takes a page from Klaus Badelt's The Promise. It should be mentioned that end credits combination of "Themyscira" and "Lost and Found," while fine, come after a wretched transition from "Truth" over the finale and main title, and the mix of "Truth" in that closing transition is noticeably different on screen from the album mix. Not included on either score album are the additional score-related placements heard in the film. Zimmer enthusiasts were quick to point out that both the cues "Beautiful Lie" and "This is My World" from Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice were tracked in to Wonder Woman 1984, though there are some indications that "Beautiful Lie" was re-recorded freshly for this usage. Additionally, Clinton Shorter's "I Won't Leave You" from 2014's Pompeii is utilized, as is John Murphy's "Adagio in D Minor" from 2006's Sunshine for Diana's first flight sequence. The latter is a really odd placement; aside from the fact that Zimmer could easily have written anything in D minor as per usual, the cue really needed some thematic continuity with the remainder of the soundtrack. That insertion represents the worst of temp track mentality, and a return to any of the really strong Diana/Themyscira themes would have been infinitely superior at the moment. Some fans might be disappointed that no special musical tribute awaited Lynda Carter's cameo in a mid-credits sequence; the star of the 1970's television series appears as an Amazonian legend who casually and humorously saves a woman's child with a wink and a nod. Rather than offering a custom cue for this moment, the opening minute of "Themyscira" is applied instead. Again, Zimmer isn't inclined to supply pinpoint recognition in his music, and you have to approach Wonder Woman 1984 with the reminder that his music is conceived of in suites and that is what guides the adaptations and arrangement of the themes in the picture. The listening experience benefits the mainstream moviegoer, but there remains some missing narrative nuggets through a score like this that might bother film score collectors only marginally interested in Zimmer's style.

The primary thematic suites and major cues from the Wonder Woman 1984 score are represented on the lengthy primary album, a 2-CD option included. The studio milked the music for all of Zimmer's usual marketing glory by releasing the two best tracks, "Themyscira" and "1984," as singles before that fuller option. In early 2021, Zimmer and WaterTower Music followed up with a digital-only "Sketches From the Soundtrack" album containing rough drafts of most of the score's themes and cues. Detractors of Zimmer's methods and style won't be pleased by this product, for if you think the composer's final renderings sound synthetically generated, then these sketches will be a miserable experience. Unlike Zimmer's equivalent Dark Phoenix, the second Wonder Woman 1984 album offers no additional highlights from the finished score and is instead a rather pointless offering outside of those most enamored with Zimmer's creation process from an intellectual viewpoint. The "'84" track is a raw synth version of "1984" while "No Hero is Born From Lies" is a slightly better rendered synth version of "Themyscira." One would expect "Apex Predator" to illuminate the Cheetah theme, but it doesn't, instead annoyingly distorting the original battle cry theme on electric guitar as a halfway measure to the Cheetah identity. A pretty well rendered synth version of "The Stone" of significant length occupies "The Monkey Paw." In "Barbara Minerva," Zimmer toys with a unique, contemporary idea for the character that didn't figure prominently in the final score. "Dechalafrea Ero" seems like an insufferably long, extended rough version of the opening of "Radio Waves," and "In Love" is a largely redundant early rendering of "Lost and Found." One long crescendo for the Dreamstone theme on keyboard awaits in "Citrine." The sketch of "Open Road" in "In Harm's Way" offers some truly terrible synthetic brass. An extremely long exploration of the Lord theme in "Black Gold," including some of the later related suspense material, drags on in "Life is Good, But It Can Be Better" for twelve minutes. The album closes out with "The Amazon," offering more early development of the primary themes, mostly the main hero theme. Do yourself a favor and skip this album, for it offers nothing superior to what's on the previous product. Those sketches aside, Zimmer's achievement with Wonder Woman 1984 is a monumental resurrection in the man's career, a rediscovery of optimistic lyricism and meaningful romance that dwarfs the sometimes stale action material sprinkled throughout. His techniques are not without flaw, and the mix remains indelicate and overbearing, but this score's enthusiasm and warmth represents an overdue triumph that is easily Zimmer's best accomplishment in one, if not two decades. @Amazon.com: CD or Download

Music as Written for the Film: ****
Music as Heard on the 2020 Album: *****
Music as Heard on the 2021 "Sketches" Album: **
Overall: ****

Bias Check:

For Hans Zimmer reviews at Filmtracks, the average editorial rating is 2.85 (in 128 reviews) and the average viewer rating is 2.96 (in 299,193 votes). The maximum rating is 5 stars.

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