Stream or skip?

Stream or Skip

by Johnny Loftus

Hans Zimmer: Hollywood Rebel (Netflix) is a documentary produced by the BBC that was originally broadcast in 2022. The original British version was narrated by Rory Adefope (aka The Aristocrat) Catherine “Kitty” Higham. ghost – Also features appearances from filmmakers such as Christopher Nolan, Steve McQueen, Ron Howard, Stephen Frears, Barry Levinson, and Gore Verbinski. hollywood rebel It charts the career trajectory of Hans Zimmer, from keyboardist in the 1970s and 80s to Academy Award-winning composer of popular Hollywood films. “It’s important to see the big picture,” Zimmer says of his process in the doc. “The key is understanding what makes people tick. It’s about playfulness.”

Abstract: There are many examples of his nearly 40 years of film composition. But listen to Hans Zimmer’s music for his 2021 film by Denis Villeneuve. dunes, and it’s hard not to crunch through the teeth of Arrakis and be transported into something strange and spiritual by the foreboding tones of the music.Zimmer won an Oscar for this film. dunes, the score draws from his revered bag of tricks and experiments, and Villeneuve says it proves the composer’s genius. “He has an uncanny ability to reinvent himself without losing his identity.” Zimmer currently works out of his spacious studio complex, Remote Control Productions, in Santa Monica. He’s an in-demand composer who would turn down a project on one popular list to work on another.Christopher Nolan had to find another player to score. doctrinebecause Zimmer had already booked it. dunes.

Perhaps in post-war Germany in the 1950s, when Hans Zimmer, a rebellious young man, had just taken two professional piano lessons, it seemed unlikely that music would take hold as a career. However, after immigrating to England with his mother, studying at a progressive music school, and discovering the first generation of keyboards and synthesizers in the late 70s, Zimmer’s musical career began to take off. And that wasn’t likely for a traditional rock band. “The whole idea of ​​doing something on stage because we suddenly had access to computers was much more exciting than the idea of, ‘How far can we extend this technology?'” Zimmer said. I am. hollywood rebel. The manipulation and application of sound made possible by synths, sequencing, and sampling would become a mainstay of his film scores.

rain man In 1988, true love 1993 Oscar-winning music The Lion King 1994: Once Zimmer broke out, he never looked back. hollywood rebel The work includes highlights from the composer’s 2022 European concert tour, where he performed many of his most moving themes on stage with a large band. The document also includes testimonials from Nolan, Villeneuve, and other notable directors about key aspects of the collaboration. Pirates of the Caribbean Director Gore Verbinski says Zimmer doesn’t read scripts. Instead, it’s all about the atmosphere. But it’s most revealing whenever the doc delves deep into where the technical meets the philosophical. Can the various mischiefs and motivations that drive Captain Jack Sparrow be expressed and emphasized in just a few specific notes? So says Hans Zimmer. And he will show you how.

Which movie does it remind you of? in 2017 Score: Film Music Documentary It also delves into the process of combining music and images to tell a story, and includes interviews with major composers such as Zimmer, Quincy Jones, John Williams, Rachel Portman, and Trent Reznor. If you want to see Zimmer at his best, check out the 2017 documentary. live in prague.

Featured performance: It’s a studio, dude. In the documentary, Hans Zimmer’s personal studio is depicted as an inner sanctuary where creativity really takes place. All the filmmakers interviewed said it was a wild experience to be inside. And once you see the Doepfer A-100 modular analog synthesizer that Zimmer literally built into its walls, you’ll want to visit, too. “This is like Samurai,” says filmmaker Steve McQueen, who collaborated with Zimmer. 12 years of slavery. “This room looks like an old Buddhist temple or something, what’s up with the keyboard and stuff?” And you just sit on a nice couch and just feel it and talk about it, and He’s on the key and feeling it. While you’re talking about it, he’s having a conversation with the keys. ”

Memorable dialogue: jimmer music dunes It won the Academy Award for Best Original Song for the second time. But for the composer, this work is another example of his willingness to disrupt conventional thinking. “I don’t think anyone has ever won an Oscar for music that has overt bagpipes, heavy metal guitars, and women screaming at you.”

Gender and skin: none.

Our view: “It was all the things I was taught not to do at music school.” Includes a quote from himself. Hans Zimmer: Hollywood Rebel It’s just as the title says. There was a sense of curiosity that had clearly been a driving force since he started as a composer, and a willingness to use technology to guide his senses. Zimmer sits in front of a giant monitor connected to a computer and keyboard and begins playing some of his 1998 music. thin red line. “They’re all minor, they’re asymmetrical,” he says of his scores. “In music school, you’re taught that you can’t do these things in parallel. They’re not chords. A chord needs three notes. It’s always two notes. And it just meanderes. On the other hand, this note always remains, so you get these really interesting conflicts, a new language in the movie.” Geeky moments like this are the best part of. hollywood rebelBecause it’s the same way a director breaks down a shot selection, or a musician uses a soundboard to isolate sounds on a recording. When a film score is happening, we may not notice the signature parts. But with a composer’s heart and hand, the meaning expressed in the music can become as integral to the film as the actors’ performances.

Our call: Let’s stream. Hans Zimmer: Hollywood Rebel It is especially aimed at film music fans and provides access to the mind and mechanics of major composers. But Zimmer’s work is laced with so many memorable Hollywood moments that movie buffs should hear and see as well.

Johnny Loftus (@glennanges) is an independent writer and editor who lives extensively in Chicagoland. His work has appeared in The Village Voice, All Music Guide, Pitchfork Media, and Nicki Swift.