[Describe each of the three basic categories of sound (dialogue, sound effects, and music).]
Dialogue- basically words used by the characters to engage in conversation to tell a story.
Sound Effects- Sounds used to aid in the telling of a story i.e. gunshots for an action movie, eerie pitches in a horror film, and laugh tracks in a comedy.
Music- background music often used to set the tone of the scene.
[ Explain how the different categories of sound are being used in your chosen film.]
I chose the film Sinister, in this film perfectly displays all three aspects of sound. It uses basic dialogue when talking to other characters and when thinking out loud. Next, it uses sound effects like eerie dramatic sound changes for suspense. Finally, it uses music mostly classical music to really get the creepy feeling across.
[Assess the impact of sound in establishing the theme.]
All three different sounds make the movie come together, almost like a jigsaw puzzle. Without all three present, the movie would not flow as well as it does. All three elements of sound help in establishing the them of a horror movie. This is done by simple dialogue, spooky sound effects, and frightening music.
[How does the use of sound inform the mood of the scene, or the film overall?]
The sound informs the mood of the scene by putting the viewer in the same mood as the character (frightened, nervous, or happy).
[Can you identify specific sounds in your film that allow you to infer a particular genre?]
Again, the movie can easily be classified as a horror film, this is due to the dramatic cuts in the music and classical background music. Both of these characteristics are common in the horror genre.
[Since each category of sound may produce a range of effects, how might you characterize the effects in your film? For example, realistic and expected sound effects may have a different effect on a viewer than exaggerated or unexpected ones.]
In Sinister, it has a lot of suspenseful scenes, that being said it uses exaggerated sounds. This is used to get the audience into the correct state of mind.
[Assess how the scene or sequence would play differently if you changed or removed a key category of sound].
This movie would be completely different if the sounds were different. Lets say for instance the eerie sounds were taken away, it would leave the movie very dull instead of having your heart constantly racing!
References
Movieclips Trailers. (2012, June 14). Sinister Official Trailer #1 (2012) – Ethan Hawke Horror Movie HD. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_kbQAJR9YWQ.
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