Sony Classical’s release of Rupert Gregson-Williams’ soundtrack to Wonder Woman is a stirring 80-minutes of heroic themes and underscore for those who like the Zimmer sound.

When composer Hans Zimmer revealed that he was retiring from superhero movies after Batman Vs Superman: Dawn of Justice, many soundtrack fans were concerned that his new theme for Wonder Woman would also be taking a break. Fear not, for the Amazon’s catchy anthem on electric cello is back again, providing the backbone to Rupert Gregson-Williams’ score, with the instrument again played by acclaimed Chinese cellist Tina Guo.

As any composer who has the challenge of using a pre-established theme will likely tell you, this can be a blessing or a curse. The blessing is that the audience are already pre-disposed towards the composition, the curse being that there’s only so many ways you can interpolate or interpret a few notes.

Rupert (brother of Shrek‘s Harry) has been a member of Remote Control Productions (formerly Media Ventures) for some time, where composers work under the tutelage of Hans Zimmer, so it’s no great stretch or surprise that Wonder Woman’s score sounds like it might have been composed by the master. Maybe this is part of the phonic glue to bind the DC movies together, Zimmer having previously essayed Man of Steel and Dawn of Justice.

Amazons of Themyscira is from the Gladiator stable, using Mediterranean instruments to give some exotic flavour, and History Lesson is a lyrical underscore to the movie’s back story. Every now and then there’s a snippet of the Wonder Woman theme but it’s halfway through the epic (nearly 9 minutes long) No Man’s Land that Princess Di finds her mojo and the soundtrack blasts her across the battleground. A secondary, new, ‘hero’ theme is also introduced here, used in the more emotional moments than during the action sequences.

Wonder Woman’s Wrath is exactly that, as the fired-up Diana takes out a sniper and saves a village to a pumped-up percussion-rich version of the main theme. And if you think that’s big music, wait until Action Reaction, a thrashing and pounding cue that might have wandered in via The Terminator. The single vocal track on the album is To Be Human by Sia, conveniently sequenced right at the end.

Verdict: A million miles from his scores to The Crown and Postman Pat: The Movie, Rupert Gregson-Williams finally gets a credit for a superhero movie and does a great job. Hans Zimmer naysayers will balk at the brashness of it all, but it’s got a punch – a bit like its protagonist, so give it a spin (or a twirl). And if you really want to get into the spirit of things, buy it from Amazon. Ho ho! 8/10

Nick Joy