Actually, to call Elliot Goldenthal a Sci-Fi Cult specialist is a little unfair. It might just seem that he is such a composer from a quick look at his list of films, with Alien and Batman sequels and a number of one-off science fiction films. Many of those Sci-Fi films have a decidedly dark feel, and this type of mood is one that he is frequently asked to recreate. As a good example of his film work, the music for "Interview with the Vampire" conveys the bleak loneliness of the central character mixed with a certain restlessness and an untamed primal element. The score to reinforce these feelings is full of modern classical orchestral sounds, with boy soprano voices and solo strings. One of his more recent films is "Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within" which is entirely computer-generated graphics. The obvious temptation might be to go for a synth-based soundtrack to match the synthetic characters on the screen, but the orchestral colours give a warm human touch which adds considerably to audience involvement in the plot.
Of course there is much more to Goldenthal than sci-fi, horror and fantasy. He has a classical training, having studied under the great Aaron Copland among others. (The BBC broadcast a programme in late 2000 about Copland and Goldenthal was among those discussing the master.) He has produced a number of concert hall works, musicals, theatrical stuff and an opera, and he composed a work called "Shadow Play Scherzo" for Leonard Bernstein's 70th Birthday!
Goldenthal has now won an oscar for his astonishing soundtrack to "Frida". Part of the astonishment arises from the seemingly major departure from the style of many of his previous films. "Frida" is full to the brim with the authentic rhythms, instruments and mood of Mexican dance and song traditions.
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