This week we started to look at the implications and effect of sound. A great place to start is with a scene from Quentin Tarantino's action movie Kill Bill. In the scene main character Beatrix is hammered into a coffin fully conscious by her enemy played by Michael Madsen.
The scene starts with full light. We establish that Beatrix is within the coffin and incapable of releasing herself with a group of men nailing in the lid of the coffin. We see extreme close-ups of each nail as it is hammered in reinforcing the threatening nature of the situation. Throughout this section we hear a western genre, stylised whining sound. This old fashioned and classic sound is juxtaposed with the rather contemporary storyline. Not only is this use of music classic Tarantino as we can see in some other of his films such as Django but it may also connote that this is old style face off resembling one you would find in a Western, despite this being a full throttle action film. One notable part of this song is where it the tune goes down in the scale, possibly representing how she will soon be falling down into the earth. The song also has a undeniable sense of finality and grandeur. This could suggest how it is Beatrice's last defeat, and how her end is nigh.
Along with the close-ups of the nails we also hear the sound of the nails being suppressed into the wood of the coffin. This happily overpowers the music at certain points not allowing the audience to be distracted. The diegetic sound induces more reality into the scene and helps the audience to imagine this horrific situation. The light we can see within the mise on scene corresponds with the nails being hammered in. The light goes completely out when the last nail is hammered. Something else noticed is that the sound of the final nail is actually louder than those that preceded it. When combined with the cutting of light to total blackness and the instant stop of the music this has quite an impactful effect on the audience. It is not something they would necessarily see coming. It once again reinforces the idea of finality.
After this big moment the audience is left with complete darkness. Leaving the audience with a black frame is a dangerous move from a director, especially considering the amount of time this is for. Doing this runs the risk of loosing the audiences attention at what is a crucial part of the plot. With no visual stimulus the audience could become distracted remarkably quickly and are therefore not engrossed in the action. This means, that the sound is now relied upon to maintain interest. The worrying sound of the final nail and the halting of the music is met by a whimper by Beatrix. This then subsides leaving only her intense and heavy breathing. This solitary yet griping sound demonstrates to the audience how she is now alone and beyond help. In actual fact the lack of image increases the interest and focus of the audience. If an image were to be shown then realism would be sacrificed and the audience may even be questioning why we can see her if there is no source of light. The lighting makes the scene entirely realistic and the sound of her frantic struggle puts us there with her, we are forced to imagine this happening to ourselves. This naturally gives us a sense of chill and unrest. It works perfectly. It is bold decisions that only a few directors would take and it is this sort that makes Tarantino differ from the rest. In each of his films we can find at least one editorial, or scriptural decision that most would shy away from.
For a series of minutes following the initial shock we hear sounds which the audience can easily detect to be that of moving Beatrix's coffin and lowering her int the ground. At this point we still can't see her on screen yet because of the accuracy and detail of this sound, it is almost as if we can. We pair her cries with our own image of her being shaken by the unsympathetic transportation of her rivals. As an audience we listen with intent to try and decipher what is happening. Without an image the sound is the only element we have to arouse our focus. By this sound we are lead into a few moments of utter silence, before the crush of soil hits us as it does Beatrix. This is a strange moment often featured in horror films where the audience share the fear and shock with the characters. This reinforces how the director wants his audience to feel what Beatrix feels, at the same time that she feels it.
This drop is then followed by further crashes of earth each time the impact and volume slightly decreasing as it would in reality. This also shows how step by step she is being further removed from life and therefore her chance of survival.
Eventually, Beatrix turns of the light of her torch finally giving the audience something to look at. However, this is not something that has been missed.
This is a master class and perfect example of how sound can be manipulated in order to choreograph the way an audience will feel. Despite being in a packed cinema, I wouldn't be surprised if each member of the audience feel just as isolated as Beatrix when watching this scene.
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