CONVERSATION : THROUGH THE SOUNDTRACK
The
film CONVERSATION made in 1974 by Francis Ford Coppola , is an epitome in sound
designing . The film revolves around a lonely man who has been hired for
recording eavesdropping. So the man’s job is here to record sound ! And that
challenges the spectators igniting their skill to become an active audience so
to be compatible with the sound-centric film journey where images follow the
sound track , chiefly.
This
essay will examine the characteristics of sound designing as have been employed
in the neurosis - scene of the film “ Conversation “. And it’s a film about
people where people are being watched. The scene where Caul the protagonist is
behaving out of paranoia certainly strikes us with the very theme of this
particular film. The sound scape designed by Walter Murch, famous editor of Hollywood,
has been masterly crafted to keep an analogy with the theme.
Before
we delve deep into sound analyses, we’ll try to recognize the sources of the
sound used in this scene.
The
sound sources :
By
sources it is generally meant the “ location “ from where the sound originates.
It gives us a very clear sense of both spatial and temporal awareness. This
scene has successfully used both the diegetic and non-diegetic sounds to build
up the character and the ambience. The layers of sound tracks have also
exploited A) vocal sound , B) environmental
sound ( ambient , sound effects , and Foley sound ) C) Music and D ) silence .
A) In
this scene we hear Caul , the protagonist is conversing on a phone call. This
is the only use of a vocal sound. The sound track of this telephonic
conversation begins with a synch sound with Caul saying the “ Hello “ which is
immediately followed by the sound of
a sound recorder playing blank. Coppola
and Walter Murch remind us about the theme of the film ! The sound track gets
more interesting as the conversation ends with a non-diegetic sound of
saxophone. The shot shows that the saxophone is held by Caul, who is certainly
not playing that but Murch adds the extra non diegetic layer to create the
sense of neurotic atmosphere.
B) Environmental
sounds are the most complex usage in a scene especially when it is devoid of dialogues.
The whole scene is about the inner world of the protagonist which hardly has a
vocal sound or dialogue. The sound track has employed a tons of layers to compliment
this situation. The sound of diegetic telephone , the sound of non diegetic
saxophone and the sound recorder , the
diegetic noise of breaking
furniture and other stuff , all are example of creation of a perfect
role of sounds as a narrative device.
C)
Music : The scene begins with a piece of music. The shot focuses on a black
vintage telephone and a saxophone is heard playing in the background. The shot
starts panning from the telephone and ends up capturing Caul the protagonist in
a mid close shot. He is seen playing the
saxophone. The use of saxophone seems
very apt as it connotes the performers’ involvement and loneliness. The very
act of saxophone playing philosophically separates the player from the outer
world.
Coppola
has successfully added the piano as a background music for this scene. A loner
is easily identifiable with this piece of Piano. Both these classical pieces of piano and the saxophone create a very slow and
lonely ambience to keep the verisimilitude of the scene.
D) Silence
does the same justice to the scene as the other sound tracks. Before he Caul
begins his paranoiac activities we hear a pause – a pause of silence. And it
speaks. It speaks the inner silence and hollowness of the character.
The
camera in this film along with this soundtrack is perfectly analogous and
ignite spectator’s voyeurism. Yes , Coppola and Murch successfully make every individual in us an essential voyeur as we watch the scene.
