Zanobard Reviews

Benjamin Wallfisch’s score for The Flash has some superb orchestration and style to it, and the handling of Danny Elfman’s classic Batman ’89 theme in particular is a joy, but a lack of memorable new motifs – bar Supergirl’s, anyway – particularly for the titular Flash make this superhero soundtrack sadly just a bit forgettable overall.

The Flash has certainly been an interesting film to follow in recent years. It was originally announced as in development back in 2014 – incidentally the same year that the CW Flash series began – and has been thoroughly through the film production wringer ever since, going through several director changes until finally landing Andy Muschietti towards the end of 2019. After several further delays – filming, COVID and such – the film then eventually got its June 2023 release date, and the rest is of course now history as the movie is now finally seeing the light of day. Opinions of the film itself aside though, let’s talk about the music – Benjamin Wallfisch (composer for the first SHAZAM!) stepped up for this one, and I must say I was rather optimistic for the score as a result. Then a few teaser tracks were gradually released for the score over the course of the last month or so – including a very well orchestrated tease for the return of Danny Elfman’s iconic Batman theme – which I must say did little to dissuade that initial optimism. So with hopes high and curiosity piqued; let’s dive right into the full album.

The score to The Flash begins with “Are You Actively Eating That Candy Bar?”, and a rapid flourish of frenetic strings greets us pretty much right off the bat as the track opens. A crash of explosive brass and percussion then surges through followed by a flurry of wondrous electronics, with all of the aforementioned instrumentation then darting dramatically about for the remainder of the track’s sub-minute runtime. All-in, so far certainly an interesting stylistic opener for The Flash, not hearing much in the way of a theme yet though. The subsequent “Sounds About Right Bruce” then throws the score straight into action territory, with some darkly dramatic, almost Holkenborg-esque drums – presumably representing Ben Affleck’s Batman – thundering through much of the frenetic four minute cue alongside bursts of worrisome brass. The similarly fast-paced “Collapsing East Wing” then continues where the previous track left off, with the emphatically rapid orchestral pace held high as almost impossibly frenetic strings take centre stage. Loudly villainous vocals then interrupt the freneticism however at the two minute mark, with a dramatic strings-based crescendo then building to cue’s end.

“Baby Shower” takes the impossibly fast strings from “Collapsing East Wing” and holds them enthusiastically high for a blisteringly fast two minute action setpiece, this time though with a tonal focus on lighter, almost mischievous energy (and even a rather heroic flourishing finish) as opposed to the somewhat darker mood of the prior cue. The score then takes its first breather in the much slower and gentler “Nora”, with quietly sorrowful strings and wistful piano notes occupying much of its three minute runtime until the strings suddenly turn almost horror-like, and the track then ends on a rather worrisome note. Subsequent track “Run” though then really kicks things off, finally introducing a motif (of sorts anyway) for the Flash. The impossibly rapid strings return here alongside a similarly fast-paced piano repeating a new six note theme, with crashes of increasingly dramatic percussion also building alongside until a deafening crescendo is hit at the halfway point. From here the track then switches up completely in tone, with vocals in centre stage introducing a loud and rather ominous eight note motif that then carries the two minute track all the way up to a now dramatically ominous end.

The newly born six-note Flash theme reprises in quietly sorrowful form in “Not This Time Kid”, with downtrodden piano notes and almost funeral-esque strings delivering this moody tone throughout the minute-long track. “Please Work” then returns the score to more hopeful territory with some rather uplifting vocals, before “Phasing” reprises the impossibly fast-paced strings from earlier for a further minute and a half of frenetic action scoring. The moody “Zod” then hints malevolently towards the iconic Superman villain with low-pitched, sinister strings, ominous swathes of brass and hints toward the imposing electronics used thematically for the character in Hans Zimmer’s Man Of Steel score. And speaking of classic themes, hints toward Danny Elfman then begin in “What Is This Place?”, with some very gothic-sounding strings work taking centre stage for much of the minute long cue. “Into The Batcave” then continues in this stylistic vein with the addition of wondrous vocals before Wallfisch then happily unleashes Elfman’s theme in full orchestral form at the one minute mark. It’s got to be said, the way the theme sounds here is just immense, like honestly. It sounds so rich and grandiose, and it’s only just getting started; “I Am Batman” for instance takes the theme and rolls with it, powering it through on unapologetically grand brass and deafeningly loud vocals. You can just hear the complete and utter enthusiasm and respect for the theme that Wallfisch has here, to impeccable musical results overall.

That being said though, so far I must say – while Wallfisch certainly has an amazing orchestral style down here as he usually does, I am really struggling for new themes; especially for the Flash himself. There’s a couple of leitmotifs in “Run” but they aren’t fleshed out or particularly recurring through the score so far, and the flurrying fast strings that reprise every so often are more of a stylistic idea than an actual theme. This would be fine I suppose if it were for a side character, but for the title character of the film I had expected a little.. more from Wallfisch. Still, perhaps these ideas will evolve as the score continues.

“Batdoneon” then reprises Elfman’s iconic theme in fast-paced action form, with bursts of thunderous brass leading the orchestral charge throughout the minute long track alongside frantic strings and percussion. The action then continues into subsequent setpieces “Escape From Siberia” and “Now We Try Not To Die”, with the former track utilising Elfman’s Batman theme to exquisite action effect on the still thunderous orchestra, and the latter then turning rather electronic in nature as the music shifts into a darker and more ominous tone. Hope however then resurfaces in “Supergirl”, where a brand new theme – this time for Kara – is introduced. The track opens gently with optimistic woodwinds playing this new seven note motif, before brass and strings start to build in the background alongside stirringly heroic vocals and a loudly emphatic crescendo is then reached. The track sadly ends before the new theme can really get going, but it’s a solid piece of music nonetheless. Happily as well, “I’ve Got You” then picks up where “Supergirl” leaves off, playing the new character theme in stunningly hopeful fashion on grandiose brass, swirling strings and proud vocals.

The action finale of the score begins with “Let’s Get Nuts”, as dramatic bursts of rapid brass and increasingly tense vocals occupy centre stage. “Cyclonic Diversion” then reprises the flurrying electronics from the score’s opening track, with Supergirl’s motif also powering through on worrisome brass until the tense, Zimmer-esque electronics from earlier reprise to reintroduce the villainous Zod. Disaster however then strikes in the decidedly downtrodden “I’m Not Going Alone”, with the flurrying Flash electronics – now accompanied by equally sizzling orchestra – reprising in “We Can Fix This” as part of a dramatic surge of musical hope. The spark then quickly goes out though as “The Dark Flash” thrusts the score into thunderous malevolence, with crashes of brass and deafeningly dramatic vocals building to an incredibly imposing orchestral crescendo. “Worlds Collide (Superman Version)” then introduces a brand new theme; the Worlds Collide motif. This seven note idea gets extensive playtime throughout this wondrously orchestral two and a half minute setpiece, to some very enjoyable results particularly as cymbals crash and vocals soar at the midpoint of the cue (not to mention the fact that John Williams’ Superman theme also gets a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it cameo here too).

As the album draws to a close, “You’re My Hero” dwells in quietly sorrowful strings work for much of its two minute runtime, with “Into The Singularity” then building up all the emotion into a swellingly dramatic crescendo. “Call Me” opens gently and almost peacefully with optimistic strings and low-pitched brass breathing a gentle sigh of relief for much of the track, before additional, flurrying strings and bursts of heroic brass then bring the album to a thunderous crescendo finish.

Overall, Benjamin Wallfisch’s score for The Flash is a.. bit of an oddball really. The composer absolutely nails the musical style here, with the orchestration being utterly sublime particularly in the action – “Baby Shower” and “Run” for instance – as well as some of the score’s more tender moments – i.e. the start of “Supergirl” – but the album overall is let down rather substantially in one very particular area for me; thematically. Simply put, there’s just not really a main theme for the Flash. One of sorts is introduced in the frenetic “Run” but doesn’t really recur often enough to be impactful. There’s also a surge of flurrying electronics – first heard in “Are You Actively Eating That Candy Bar” – that reprises every so often, but isn’t really an actual “theme”. All-in, there’s lots of little bits and pieces and ideas that kind of sound like motifs, but don’t really recur quantitatively or substantially enough to be a main theme, and as such Flash just kind of… doesn’t really have one. It’s odd really, as Supergirl has a theme – a rather good one in fact – and of course Michael Keaton’s Batman has one in the various and rather excellent reprisals of Danny Elfman’s iconic motif, but the titular character of the film just doesn’t. And it hurts the score rather badly, as without a main theme Wallfisch’s work here sadly verges on the side of all style and little substance, which is a shame as the composer’s orchestral style is genuinely fantastic.

Just not very memorable, I’m afraid.

Score: 7/10

Standout Cues: 25. Supergirl/43. Worlds Collide

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