For me he's hit or meh. Crimson Tide soundtrack was fantastic. The Crysis 2 theme is one of the best music pieces ever. The Batman films and most other stuff - okay to eh. Dune was solid.
I actually find it surprising how varied his pieces are. Yes there are common elements and the overall style, but from era to era it differs quite a bit.
As far as film composers who “manipulate emotions” go, I don’t know if I’d use Zimmer as an example. His stuff is fairly boring. Howard Shore can make me feel more “at home” with a composition than I ever felt at home (when listening to Concerning Hobbits).