Hans Zimmer has revealed his favorite ever Batman score, referring to the musical arrangement as "the most glorious statement of Batman" he's ever heard – and it's Elliot Goldenthal's work on Batman Forever and Batman & Robin.
Speaking to IGN, the award-winning composer, who previously worked on the scintillating scores of Christopher Nolan's Dark Knight series, reflected on the evolution of his career and the experiences he's had with other music maestros over the years, including those who have scored Batman films such as Danny Elfman and Michael Giacchino.
Zimmer considered what makes a great Batman score by thinking about the distinct sounds of each composition before declaring Elliot Goldenthal's musical number as "the greatest Batman score of them all." Zimmer said he was invited to Poland to take to the concert stage to play Inception, where Goldenthal presented his superhero suite.
"It was the happiest moment of my life how his art, and craftsmanship, and sheer audacity of writing, and imagination, completely wiped the floor with my little Inception piece. And his thing was just the most glorious statement of Batman I'd ever heard," Zimmer said of Goldenthal's music. "It was just amazing. It was amazing and everybody knew it."
"It's nice when you can actually say somebody did something that you are immediately, incredibly familiar with, and they've just done it so much better than you could ever do it, and you can just be inspired and rejoiced," Zimmer added, admitting that it comes with the realization that you could perhaps "do a little bit more studying" and "work a little harder."
Goldenthal took over the reins from Danny Elfman to compose the score for Batman Forever in 1995 and later returned with director Joel Schumacher to score Batman & Robin in 1997, showcasing a fun and unique style that struck a different kind of chord. Zimmer gave Goldenthal the credit he felt he deserved after thinking about his own work.
Zimmer identified his score for Tony Scott's The Fan as one of his least appreciated scores, admitting that "nobody went to see" the film when it was released in 1996. "Maybe it wasn't the greatest movie in the world," he said. "But I think it's a pretty good score, I think it's a pretty daring score so I'm rather fond of that one. And it's not for the faint of heart."
He also highlighted Ridley Scott's Hannibal as another film with an underrated score, which he approached like a romantic comedy. "I think I wrote my best love theme in that one because I always felt that Hannibal Lecter has no reason to live were it not for his obsession with Clarice Starling, and vice versa," he explained. "He gives her purpose."
Acclaimed composer Michael Giacchino is writing the music for Matt Reeves' The Batman, due out on March 4, 2022. He recently shared a clip of an orchestra performing part of the piece, which aligned itself with the visual tone and atmosphere present in the franchise reboot's first trailer, with a suitably gothic, haunting and dramatic sound.
Adele Ankers is a freelance writer for IGN. Follow her on Twitter.