Amazing Spider-Man 2 Electro Faceoff

As one of the most talented, well-respected and well-known composers in the film industry, Hans Zimmer gets the opportunity to work on a wide variety of films each year, including some of the biggest studio blockbusters. Even with that demanding workload, he has continued to craft some of the most emotionally and sonically powerful scores in recent memory - including superhero films like The Dark Knight Rises and Man of Steel - so it should come as no surprise that he's been hired to compose the score for The Amazing Spider-Man 2.

Zimmer is already hard at work creating the perfect audio backdrop for Christopher Nolan's Interstellar and the fantasy film Winter's Tale, but he's still managed to carve out time for the Spidey sequel. In an interview with Collider this week, Zimmer said the project is still in its infancy, but that he's actually getting a head start on it, so that he has time to play around and find the right tone.

Said Zimmer of his approach to the score:

“I’m sort of grappling with a completely different way of doing it right now, and literally it’s just the laboratory doors are open right now. I have an idea but I haven’t played it to anybody yet, so I don’t even know if it’s going to work yet. Because you never know, music is this weird indefensible thing, it either resonates with you or it doesn’t. I’ll either get the tone right or I won’t, but it’s serious experimentation time at the moment.”

Although Zimmer is known for his big orchestral compositions - especially when it comes to action blockbusters - he is also known as one of the more creative composers in Hollywood and doesn't shy away from trying something new. For Inception, Zimmer did use blaring horns, sharp-cutting strings and epic orchestral crescendos, but he also added in some appropriate electronic elements and a 12-string guitar, played by rock legend Johnny Marr. So, while superhero film fans can certainly expect big, bold sounds from Zimmer's work on The Amazing Spider-Man 2, they should also keep their ears tuned in for a few surprises.

Said Zimmer:

“I’ve done a lot of action, I’ve done a lot of buildings falling down basically and things exploding, so I’m sort of trying to figure out, ‘Is there a slightly different way of doing it?’  And I’m not sure yet, but I’m certainly working on it.”

Of course, Zimmer's main goal is to best serve the film and after seeing a rough cut of Marc Webb's Amazing Spider-Man follow-up, he noted that it is an even more character-centric film than the first, which he appreciated and was charmed by.

Amazing Spider-Man 2 Peter and Gwen

Said Zimmer of the film:

“You have no idea how [well] the relationships work in this one.  That is what he [Webb]’s masterful about; truly, truly, truly wonderful.  And the movie just sort of sparkles whenever—because it could be so easily a movie driven by action, and it really is driven by charm and love and sparkling dialogue.  And the chemistry between the characters is fantastic.”

With so many villains in the mix this time around, audiences can still expect plenty of action, but fans have to be pleased that at least one critic feels the characters, dialogue and the heart of the film are all in the right places. The rest of us will have to wait to judge for ourselves, but with a strong returning cast, new adversaries and one of the industry's most gifted composers on its side, The Amazing Spider-Man 2 seems to have a lot going for it so far.

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The Amazing Spider-Man 2 swings into theaters on May 2nd, 2014.

Source: Collider