AA1 - Semester 2 Week 3

Requiem for a Dream

The exercise for this week is to analyse the soundscape for a hollywood movie.
I have taken 4 minutes of the film “Requiem for A Dream” from 29’ 30” to 33’ 30”.
Unfortunately, mostly as a result of copyright issues, I am unable to put the movie up here but down here is the film’s trailer derived from Youtube:


Analysis:

Music/Non-diegetic sounds:
- In the robbery scene, the background music gradually takes off and adds to its elements; however, when Jared Letto and Jennifer Conelly talk, it is heard as just a rhythm.
- When Harry’s mom (Ellen Burstyn) is experiencing the effects of Ecstasy pill and is dancing, a Balkan music is being played in the background.

Hyper-Real sounds:
- Robbery scenes have sounds of cash-machine chime when it’s valet is being opened. The sound is similar to the sounds Pink Floyd used in the track Money (the Dark Side of the Moon, 1973, Harvest/Capitol)
- Security alarm beep is heard in the background in robbery scenes.
- When the main actors are taking magic mushrooms and cocaine, the sound of their pupils being opened is heard. It sounds very artificial to me and in fact, I don’t think a pupil makes THAT sound when it is rapidly opened. (It would be great if anyone tells me if it made any sound at all). The same issue is there with the sound of blood running in the veins, containing loads of drugs.
- The sound of cocaine being sniffed is a reverse of some other artificial sound; it might not be the real sound of the action but in my opinion it makes sense in the context of the film.
- The electric noise of the lamps in the robbery scene is good; as a necessity of the design extremely exaggerated.
- When Letto and Conelly kiss each other, there is just ONE sound of kissing, which is weird. (The positions are different, I don’t think all the kisses sound the same; they sure don’t feel the same though!)
- When Conelly is making (it looks like) a wallpaper, some reverse sound is serving the effects and it totally doesn’t make sense to me; however, it might, again in the context.
- When Burstyn is taking her pills, again we hear an ultra-exaggerated sound of popping-up!

Diegetic sounds
- Doors are being slammed few times during this 4 minutes, again, the issue is that they sound more or less the same; despite the fact that they are different doors.
- One of the main quotes of the film “Purple in the morning, blue in the afternoon, orange at night..” is said by Harry’s mom when she is organising her timetable of taking Ecstasy pills.

References:
Christian Haines 'Audio Arts 1.2' Lecture presented at the Electronic Music Unit, University of Adelaide, South Australia, 06/08/2007
- 2000: requiem for a Dream (film), IMDB (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0180093/) [Accessed: 12/08/2007]
- MDMA (Ecstasy), Erowid (http://erowid.org/chemicals/mdma/mdma.shtml) [Accessed 12/08/2007]