Got Milk?

Right now, the 2009 Academy Awards is being shown all across America, and one of the nominated is composer Danny Elfman for his score for the biopic, Milk. Regardless of whether he will win or not (there's a very slim chance of that, since he's up against TSCOBB and Slumdog Millionaire) I must admit that I'm very proud of his work this past year.

His first score was for Errol Morris's Standard Operating Procedure. Not only is this Elfman's first documentary but it has a very modern and almost minimalistic approach to it. At times, I swear I'm listening to Philip Glass, which most of Elfman's body of work does not resemble. A few tracks come from Elfman's non-film project, Serenada Schizophrana, which blends in seemlessly.

His next score he worked on was the popcorn flick, Wanted. This time, Elfman adopted more of a rock and synthesizer approach. He even wrote and performed a new song for the movie. While, at first listen, I didn't know what to make of it, after awhile, I could hear some of Elfman's stylistic trademarks, and now when I listen to it, I think it's very Elfmanesque.

The last, and probably my favorite, is Hellboy 2: The Golden Army. I too was disappointed that Marco Beltrami did not return for the sequel, but Elfman did not disappoint. His score is a tribute to science fiction scores of the 1950s, complete with theremin. The score's a combination of Elfman's more "classic" scoring of the 80s with the stylings to his idol, Bernard Herrmann. The end result is a bombastic, energetic score that is humorous, quirky, and just plain fun.

Unfortunately, I haven't had the chance to listen to Milk yet. The reviews I've read of it are kind of middle of the road. It seems that the score runs closer to the style of SOP. Well, whether or not Elfman wins tonight, he should still be commended for his endless effort in the field of flim scoring.