Forbidden Zone (1982)
The Hercules family move into their new home in California, only to discover a door in the basement that leads them to the sixth dimension populated by eccentric characters: a dwarf king, a jealous queen, courtesans in bikinis and even Lucifer. That’s the starting point for this wacky cult classic. Directed by his brother Richard Elfman, this film marked Danny’s first venture into film music. At the time, the composer was channelling his energies into his band Oingo Boingo and it was thanks to his talent for composing pop-rock/new wave music that he was hired to compose the music for Forbidden Zone. The handful of songs that Danny Elfman created for the soundtrack are among the most memorable, particularly Queen’s Revenge with the magnificently flamboyant Marie-Pascale Elfman (Richard’s wife) and the hilarious Alphabet Song. This soundtrack also includes some instrumentals, showcasing an early glimpse of Elfman’s signature sound. One example is Love Theme, a melancholic piece reminiscent of Erik Satie. A wonderful oddity.
Beetlejuice (1988)
Tim Burton’s iconic comedy Beetlejuice tells the story of two newlyweds who, following their death, turn into ghosts that haunt their former mansion. They call up an eccentric poltergeist (played by Michael Keaton) to chase out the new tenants. With a sound that was far removed from that of his Oingo Boingo band (he was still part of the group at this stage and they had just released the hit Just Another Day), Danny Elfman’s work for Beetlejuice marked his second collaboration with Tim Burton and his sixth time writing film music. Although the composer was relatively new to the genre, his style was already well established. This score consists of ingenious orchestrations, frenetic rhythms and various references to two of his idols: Nino Rota and Bernard Herrmann. Elfman explores a wide array of musical genres, from tango (The Book/Obituaries; The Wedding) to waltz (Lydia Discovers), religious music (The Incantation) and even merry-go-round music (Showtime!). The ghoulish carnival-style main theme (Main Titles) is a real highlight of the soundtrack. Beginning with steel drums and a nod towards Harry Belafonte’s song Day-O, the frenzied brass section then comes in, accompanied by relentless tambourines, a wild piano part, whirling strings and crazy clarinets. In the grand finale, the brass is doubled up with a choir which is punctuated by great clashes of cymbals. Some people say that good film music should not be noticeable. Danny Elfman has obviously chosen to overrule this advice, much to our delight!
Dick Tracy (1990)
Some people think that the soundtrack to Dick Tracy sounds a little like the music for Tim Burton’s Batman which was released the year before. Weaving between brawny action music (The Chase) and glamourous Gershwin tributes (Tess’theme), the score for this film adaption of Chester Gould’s comics often recalls the epic pieces (Attack of the Batwing) and romantic refrains (Love Theme) from Burton’s film, both in the writing and the arrangements. This soundtrack falls firmly into the category of “film music composed amidst chaos”; once the film was finished, Disney (who produced the film) decided at the last minute to completely change the opening scene and therefore the music that went with it. However, Danny Elfman was on tour with his band Oingo Boingo and at that moment in time it was completely out of the question for him to turn back. The composer received a video of the new scene by post and he wrote the new music on the road. The recording was also done long-distance, with Elfman giving instructions down the phone. In fact, production setbacks and delays often bring out the best composers as they rise to the challenge and Elfman’s work just goes to prove that here.
Mission Impossible (1996)
Danny Elfman obviously admires his elders: he cites Nino Rota in Pee Wee Big Adventure (1985), Franz Waxman in Frankenweenie (2012) and Bernard Herrmann in Gus Van Sant’s strange remake of Psycho (1998). For the postmodern version of Alfred Hitchcock’s masterpiece, Elfman was called in to adapt Herrmann’s famous score, which he achieved by slightly tweaking the tempos and orchestration.
In the 1996 film of Mission Impossible (marking the only collaboration between Danny Elfman and Brian De Palma) Elfman puts another film music master in the spotlight: Lalo Schifrin, who composed the original series’ soundtrack. We find the Argentinian composer’s famous theme (in Main Title Theme and Zoom B) as well as passages of a second theme entitled The Plot (notably in The Disc). In general, Elfman’s rhythm section uses jazzy, funky sounds from the 60s and 70s. It’s almost as if this retro orchestral section has risen from the dead to shake up the 90s-sounding Hollywood orchestration. Among other gems found in the soundtrack, the moving Love Theme stands out, as does the piece Betrayal, which fuses a mournful melody with an interrogative bass ostinato... It’s a subtle way of illustrating a poignant scene, in which Ethan (Tom Cruise) is betrayed by his mentor Jim (John Voight).
Good Will Hunting (1997)
Gus Van Sant’s cinema often allows Danny Elfman to take a rest from his usual fervent tempos. With the director of My Own Private Idaho, Elfman waved goodbye to gothic atmospheres, fairy-tale settings and testosterone-fuelled scores. Here, Elfman composes intimate melodies with a beautifully tender touch. In the Main Title from Good Will Hunting, there is a magical divide between the wonderfully soft instrumentals (guitars, Irish flutes, discreet strings, celestial choirs) and a somewhat dissonant agitation. The plot revolves around the main character searching for a goal in life while fighting against his troubled childhood. It is that same conflict between opposing forces that Danny Elfman translates in this soundtrack, which is probably one of the greatest of his career.
According to Gus Van Sant, the use of an Irish instrument not only fits with the setting of the film (Boston), but also illustrates the “irreverent and turbulent” aspect of the young characters in the film. This association between Irish music and insolence becomes evident in songs like Them Apples, Jail and Second Shrink. Danny Elfman’s music also translates what is going on inside the brain of the gifted protagonist (played by Matt Damon), especially when he is working through mathematical problems. In Mystery Math, the piano, strings, horn, flute and oboe – as well as unexpected percussion such as tablas and gongs – mix and intertwine in the score, as do the numbers in Will’s head.
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (2005)
For the remake of Mel Stuart’s 1971 film with Gene Wilder (itself an adaption of Roald Dahl’s book), Tim Burton’s film tells the story of a young Charlie Bucket who lives near a chocolate factory ran by the eccentric Willy Wonka (Johnny Depp). One day, Willy Wonka decides to hold a competition; the prize is a guided visit of the factory and a lifetime supply of chocolate, and Charlie is one of the five winners. This film marks Danny Elfman and Tim Burton’s tenth collaboration, presenting the composer with another chance to write songs, twelve years after The Nightmare Before Christmas. Each song is performed by the Oompa-Loompas, Willy Wonka’s workforce played by just one actor (Deep Roy). Danny Elfman uses the music to highlight the faults of the other children who also won tickets to the guided tour and each one of their pieces has its own parodic style. We find sixties pop music (Veruca Salt), Queen-style progressive rock (Mike Teavee) and Count Basie-esque big band music (Augustus Gloop). Aesthetically speaking, the instrumentals are not far away from the universe of Edward Scissorhands, with similar arrangements (high-pitched strings, a choir and chimes) found in Charlie’s Birthday Bar and First Candy. The theme tune (Main Titles) contains Elfman’s typical kaleidoscopic sound as he mixes together musical styles in a brilliantly delirious “bazaar”.
Milk (2008)
Fighting for gay rights in the 70s, Harvey Milk’s story was documented in a biopic by Gus Van Sant in 2008, featuring Sean Penn in the main role. In addition to the eclectic selection of pre-existing songs that open the soundtrack (from David Bowie to disco-singer Sylvester and J. S. Bach), Danny Elfman composed no less that twenty pieces to shine the spotlight on this iconic American figure. The main theme (Main Titles) is reminiscent of the theme from Good Will Hunting (1997) as it mixes apprehension with hope. The saxophone solo (performed by Phil Todd) acts as the clear, warm voice of the progressive politician. The instrument seems to battle against the much hazier texture that accompanies it, which is mostly made up of strings and timid electronic sounds. Is the music mirroring the gap between Milk’s progressive ideas and a prudent yet changing society? It could well be. The feeling of uncertainty is reinforced with the clarinet part in Politics Is Theatre, while in Gay Rights Now! and The Debates the music is clearly more combative, especially thanks to the use of timpani and marimbas supporting the aggressive strings. Milk is an activist film that delivers an important message with huge finesse, particularly thanks to the music.
The Justice League (2017)
If there ever was a composer to which “superhero films” owe a lot, it is Danny Elfman. Indeed, he was the composer behind Tim Burton’s Batman in 1989. The Justice League tells the story of not one, not two, but three superheroes: Superman, Wonder Woman and Batman. The production therefore required a very particular task: in addition to using his own theme for Batman, Elfman’s mission was to reuse John Williams’ theme for Richard Donner’s Superman (1978) as well as Hans Zimmer’s theme for Zack Snyder’s Batman v Superman in 2016 (in which Wonder Woman also featured!). And since Elfman is such a skilled composer, the direct allusions to the past never verge on plagiarism but instead serve as a basis for wonderful rearrangements and variations. Such is the case for the piece Friends and Foe, in which John Williams’ original music is so jumbled up that it becomes difficult to detect the original piece. The past is at the heart of this score, and yet Danny Elfman’s work is in no way nostalgic. On the contrary: life, force and effervescence characterise his original virtuosic arrangements. You only have to listen to the spinning strings of Mother Russia or the generous orchestral part of The Final Battle to see for yourself. This soundtrack also features an unexpected cover — Leonard Cohen’s Everybody Knows, covered by the Norwegian singer Sigrid (known for the hit Don’t Kill My Vibe).
Don’t Worry, He Won’t Get Far On Foot (2018)
As is often the case with the Gus Van Sant & Danny Elfman duo, certain melodies become totally inseparable from the main character. Such was the case for Van Sant’s biopic of John Callahan, played by Joaquin Phoenix. This film follows the story of the famous quadriplegic cartoonist. Be-bop pieces serve as the backdrop to scenes that were improvised by Joaquin Phoenix and Jonah Hill. Jazz also accompanies the wheelchair races that punctuate the feature film and the musical style perfectly reflects Callahan’s unconventional and uplifting energy. Though Danny Elfman also offers up more relaxing, stripped-back pieces, such as the minimalist piano piece Mother’s Name. In the same vein, the composer incorporates a multitude of extremely soft, warm timbres into his other pieces (piano, acoustic guitar, celesta, bells, ethereal voices, harp, flute and a music box...), which add a combination of force and tenderness to the film. Two songs complete the soundtrack, among which we find the fragile and moving song Texas When You Ho, written and sung by John Callahan himself.
Violin concerto “Eleven Eleven” and Piano quartet (2019)
There are many film score composers who try their hand at concert music when they have some spare time between two cinematic projects. Danny Elfman however did not wait to be bedridden to get started, as shown by this concerto for violin entitled Eleven Eleven (as the work contains 1111 bars). The composer had already written concert music in 2005 with Serenata Schizophrana and in 2008 with the ballet music Rabit and Rogue (for the choreographer Twyla Tharp) as well as in 2011 for a score of the Cirque du Soleil show Iris.
Right from the opening few minutes of the concerto, Elfman displays the hybrid colours of his unique style. Steeped with classical tradition (you can feel the influence of Shostakovich and Prokofiev), Elfman adds a dramatic atmosphere that could be described as “cinematic”. These unique colours are reinforced in the second movement (Spietato) by the intervention of percussion (particularly the woodblock and glockenspiel), adding a touch of wonder and energy. Tim Burton’s universe does not feel far away. Following a more mysterious third movement (Fantasma), Elfman offers up a triumphant Giocoso, followed by a rather unusual finale (Lacrimae) - instead of the conventional crescendo, the concerto concludes with a melancholic decrescendo. For this particular recording the violin solo is played by Sandy Cameron, a young prodigy who had already worked with Elfman on Iris. It is worth noting that this album also features a piece called Piano Quartet, performed by the Berlin Philharmonic Piano Quartet and composed by Elfman just after having completed his concerto. The second movement (Kinderspott) is without a doubt the most unusual passage of this work as the instrumental variations are based on infantile cries of ‘na-nana-naa-nas’!
