Avatar is a strong score. Horner’s dramatic sensibility can never be faulted, and his mastery over the instrumental palette at his disposal is second to none. Although its general air of over-familiarity gives his critics plenty of ammunition to trot out the tired old `self plagiarism’ chestnut again, this should not dissuade admirers of Horner’s work from seeking this out, because there is still a lot to admire here, and the positives vastly outweigh the negatives.

However, perhaps a little inevitably, the score does not live up to the hype that preceded its release. It’s not the best score of 2009 – it’s not even in the top five – and will not go down in history as one of Horner’s quintessential works, however much success the film itself attains.