He referenced Mysterious Island (1961) as an example in which "the music was accessible but extremely demanding", and John Williams scores for Star Wars and Indiana Jones franchises were "sophisticated, complex, dissonant", but watched by all age groups.

[5] In addition to Desplat's score, an original song "Still Dream" written by David Lindsay-Abaire and performed by soprano Renée Fleming was featured in the film's end credits.

[6] James Southall of Movie Wave wrote "Desplat had worked in the fantasy genre before this score, of course – The Golden Compass (2007) was a wonderful piece of work, full of the rich depths of the wonderful source novel in a way that the film itself sadly wasn’t, and it’s a great shame that the composer never got the chance to complete that trilogy he had clearly planned out so carefully.

Rise of the Guardians is a much lighter work than that but still a satisfying one – it has a terrific collection of themes – and it confirms the composer’s credentials in this genre.

"[8] Filmtracks.com wrote "Had the various phrases of "Still Dream" been condensed into an easier form and better integrated with the great potential of Jack's theme, Rise of the Guardians could have been a five-star score.

But the elusiveness of these themes and that of Pitch, as well as the countering transparency of the overly-heroic Guardians identity and a very, very dry mix, leave a slight sense of dissatisfaction with the whole.

"[10] James Christopher Monger of Allmusic wrote "the soundtrack for Dreamworks Animation's Rise of the Guardians is as spirited and surprising as it is refreshingly old-fashioned.

Desplat must have tucked away some extra magic after completing the scores for the final two Harry Potter films, because his work here is steeped in Hogwarts-inspired whimsy.

"[11] Reviewing the song "Still Dream", Monger called it as "a sweet and sentimental ballad performed by soprano Renée Fleming, sets the tone, suggesting a classic old-world Disney approach to the fable, but Desplat never lets things dissolve into treacle, providing a muscular main theme that, along with the main melody from "Still Dream" weaves itself throughout the film with a quaint yet confident majesty.