OAKLAND — Fans of acclaimed film composer Hans Zimmer had waited seven years to see him perform; what was another two hours? Well…

The attendees at the Thursday night concert at Oakland Arena were thrown into confusion as the venue shut its doors for roughly two hours, locking a few attendees inside and the majority of the crowd outside. The parking lot gates were also shuttered, leading to a mile-long parade of cars outside while preventing some who were ready to give up from leaving. It was not an M. Night Shyamalan situation (though that would have fit the show’s cinematic theme). But it was a security incident that was reportedly a bomb threat that Oakland Police investigated.

The concert, which was supposed to begin at 8 p.m., did not begin until two hours later, and it ran until 12:30 a.m.; that was only because Zimmer cut about 25 minutes of run time from it.

What the persistent crowd did get was still an immensely entertaining over-the-top extravaganza featuring Zimmer’s nearly 20-member all-star rock band and orchestral backing by Ukrainian Odessa Opera Orchestra. One key trait of the movies in which Hans Zimmer’s music appears is that the music is a significant part of the movies themselves—like a separate character. And at Oakland Arena, Zimmer further deconstructed those songs into casts of characters of their own.

The stage production, which would take too long to describe here, resembled a Burning Man installation, or perhaps something out of “Mad Max.” Over at least two tiers, the many musicians appeared to be stacked on top of one another. It was as if the seating contraptions were about to sprout tires and go on a rampage. There were all sorts of lighting implements and swinging rigs that constantly created the perception of movement.

“Good morning, Oakland,” the 67-year-old bandleader joked after the rock symphony opened the show with a dramatic rendition of “House Atreides” from the “Dune” soundtrack and the aggressive, electronica-driven “Mombasa,” from “Inception.”

“I apologize… for starting this late,” he added. “Tonight it’s chaos. Let’s just do what good families do during chaos.”

The concert also included selections from “Wonder Woman 1984,” “Gladiator,” “The Lion King,” “The Dark Knight,” “Pirates of the Caribbean,” “Man of Steel” and “Interstellar,” sometimes as individual songs and sometimes as part of a suite that combined various pieces.

Zimmer highlighted his band members on various pieces. Vocalist Loire Cotler opened the show with a haunting vocal on “House Atreides.”

Cellist Tina Guo, playing a sparkly electric version of the instrument, had several starring turns including on the bombastic “Wonder Woman” selection (as images of, presumably, female Ukrainian soldiers flashed on a screen above), as well as during the selection from “Pirates of the Caribbean,” a definite crowd-pleaser that also included the part of a music box with a glockenspiel.

Guitarist Guthrie Govan, whom Zimmer referred to as an “imagineer,” laid down a killer guitar solo during the “Man of Steel” suite. And after that performance, Zimmer pointed out Govan’s McDonald’s pin, going on to explain that for many young musicians forced to “go get a job” by their parents, flipping burgers is the only way to get by.

“Whatever you think of McDonald’s, it’s one of the few places that supports musicians, whether they know it or not,” he announced.

Nearly every song had a star other than Zimmer. The 15-minute “Gladiator,” one of the longest pieces of the night, had original vocalist Lisa Gerrard, of the band Dead Can Dance, recreate her dramatic vocalizations at the end of that film—“I will see you again. But not yet”—(the line delivered by Djimon Hounsou).

Flautist Pedro Eustache played numerous instruments, including one that looked outright homemade, with starring turns during the “Gladiator” portion and the goosebumps-inducing “A Time of Quiet Between the Storms” from “Dune: Part Two.”

Hans Zimmer saved the two most dynamic performances for the end. Lebo M, the original vocalist from the “Lion King” score kicked off that film’s suite with “Circle of Life,” leading a group of backing vocalists and dancers with his duet partner—his daughter, Refi. Rich golden light filled the room during the gospel-inflected number as clips of the original “Lion King” recordings sessions played on screen.

“We were kids when we wrote this,” Zimmer said.

The band sewed together the rich melodies of the “Interstellar” suite like a tapestry, with impressive operatic vocals by Leah Zeger, who reached impossible octaves alongside violinist Rusanda Panfili that led into beautiful gothic organ melodies. To top it all off, the song included a performance by an aerial silks acrobat high above the stage.

“I keep writing because I feel like I still haven’t written a perfect piece. But this one comes close,” Hans Zimmer said before the song.

The bandleader took time out of the performance to introduce band members, share stories of their meeting and work together and to heap praise on them, as well as the backing Ukrainian symphony.

“Right now, your applause, your love is their home,” he said.

The conversations contributed to Zimmer and band cutting a three-song stretch that included selections from “The Last Samurai,” “X-Men: Dark Phoenix” and “Dunkirk” out of the second of two sets (the “Dunkirk” subtraction stung the most), as well as half of the encore, which would have been music from “James Bond: No Time to Die.”

But there were plenty more highlights. One was during the propulsive and disorientating “The Dark Knight” suite, with dozens of spinning lights that took the part of Bat-signals, and Zimmer and several of his bandmates walked among the crowd on the floor while jamming. Like Spinal Tap before him, Zimmer employed three bassists on the song, including himself. The three made the room shake and rattle.

“Are three bassists too much?” he asked afterward.

Another was “Paul’s Dream” from “Dune: Part Two,” during which dancers appeared at several places in the crowd as the band on stage hammered away at multiple drums. The encore consisted solely of “Time,” from “Inception,” led by guitarist Nile Marr—son of Johnny Marr, who had performed it on the film’s score.

Zimmer introduced him as “Manchester’s most gorgeous young lad.”

For his part, the bandleader was all over the place, switching up from guitar to piano, bass and synths, and appearing all over the stage at various times.

As soon as the concert ended at 12:30 a.m., hundreds of attendees literally ran out of Oakland Arena, presumably trying to make the last BART train home.

Follow editor Roman Gokhman at Twitter.com/RomiTheWriter. Follow photographer Mariana García at Instagram.com/marianagphoto.