What is the purpose of cinema? One would say that it is for entertainment, others would say it is for expression and art. Cinema is different for everybody. What is important though, is how films are constructed. How do they succeed in being immersive? This essay is going to cover the basics of sound and editing in the industry, alongside the use of these aspects to influence and drive the narrative in Edgar Wrights works.
Let’s begin with a brief history of sound in cinema. The first feature film that was presented as a ‘talkie’ or ‘talking picture’, was The Jazz Singer (1927). ‘Talkies’ were films that incorporated synchronised dialogue, made with Vita-phone, a sound film system which implemented sound-on-disc technology.
Dolby Stereo was created with the help of George Lucas, the first of significant collaborations, in the 1970s. This revolution meant that sound effects were emitted from 4 channels instead of the standard, 1 (mono). Sound has grown significantly through Dolby, with developing technologies such as Dolby Digital 5.1 in 1991, Dolby Surround 7.1, and now Dolby Atmos, allowing precise manipulations. These growths suggest that as an audience, complete and utter immersion is the goal as T. Recuber argues, in The Rationalisation and Reenchantment of Cinematic Space (2007), that “physical interaction is a leading motivation behind many new technological developments”.
As a community, humans are obsessed with the idea of immersion and escaping; Things such as books, films, gaming, and now virtual reality (VR), all for this purpose. When it comes to cinema, the aim is to ensure that the edit is continuous, unless using alternative techniques intentionally, for immersion purposes; to create a reality that is as ‘real’ and convincing as our own. “It is said that you do a great job in sound when no one notices it,” says Gary Rydstrom, seven-time Oscar-winning Sound Designer. Continuity editing was initially used by pioneers such as Georges Méliès, Edwin S. Porter and D. W. Griffith who built upon another’s techniques and investigations. These pioneers and techniques are what created the foundations of cinema today.
An example of a director who has adopted these foundations and created a style of his own is Edgar Wright. It can be argued that Wright is an auteur: a filmmaker whose style and total control over every element of a production gives a film its personal and unique stamp. Wright is an English director, best known for his Three Flavours Cornetto trilogy consisting of Shaun Of the Dead (2004), Hot Fuzz (2007) and The World’s End (2013). This essay will discuss in depth Wrights personal style, the use of music inside and outside of the diegesis, and the edit through these films listed prior, as well as Scott Pilgrim Vs The World (2010) and Baby Driver (2017).
Wright’s most recent film Baby Driver was chosen by the National Board of Review as one of the top 10 films of 2017. Its narrative follows the story of a young man called Baby (Ansel Elgort), who survived a tragic car accident during his childhood that left him parentless and with tinnitus. Baby carries his iPod everywhere, allowing for him to drown out these noises. The music effectively becomes the soundtrack, the driving force of the film; as all actors actions synchronise with it. Wright’s past of directing music videos really comes through into his work, with the effective use of cutting to the beat, quick snappy montage sequences, long takes and witty dialogue that he is famous for. A lot of his concepts and ideas can be seen in these videos. For example, “Blue Song” by Mint Royale (2003), features Noel Fielding lip-syncing and dancing in a ‘getaway car’ for the entirety of the song.
These comparisons are almost perfect reflections, with similar angles and shot sizes. Wrights personal style and auteurist values are seen from very early on in his career.
Music is not only incredibly important to the character but is the driving force of the film.
At the beginning, a high pitch note can be heard in the darkness before any footage is seen. The tone merges with the breaks of the car. This, paired with the close up of the wheels rolling into frame (the car being the only colourful object) immediately tells the audience that this is a significant object. The car is expensive, clean, well looked after; it’s clear it is a prized possession. The second shot is a close up of one of many iPod’s Baby owns, another incredibly personal item. After this, the audience sees long, lingering looks on each of the actors faces as a way of introducing them, all cut to the drum beat. Everything in this sequence is precisely timed to the soundtrack; slamming car doors/boot, moving and stepping to the beat. All actions are synchronised, e.g. moving the same arm whilst stepping, pulling up the face masks. The music here is literally the driving force of the sequence, constantly pushing it forward. After the bank robbers leave Baby, he begins dancing. Here he seems young, naive. It’s just the music, no environmental noises, which shows he has escaped into his own world. This immediately comes crashing down when he hears screaming and gunshots, quite literally stripping him of his innocence. All of this expertly done sound design and precise planning immediately immerses the audience. As the intensity of the song increases, so does the action surrounding Baby; faster cuts, seeing what’s happening inside of the bank along with the audio, putting the car in gear synchronised with the music, and revving in time… It all ties together. The audience can feel the intensity, the adrenaline of the action. As Baby is getting ready to set off, the music is building up. The drumbeat gets fast and faster, with it kicking in full force when he sets off. Every single action is in time with the beat, light changes, gear shifting, car crashes. This opening sequence is incredibly intense, and the sound design and soundtrack emphasises and drives this adrenaline home.
The scene that commences is another example of how music is the driving force. Baby, walks, dances and sings in time, walking through the streets marked with graffitied lyrics. New lyrics even pop up on his walk back. Things of note are the motorcycle revving in time, cash machine beeping, guitar playing, and the coffee shop bell… all synchronised. Even the police vehicles sirens sing along. It is clear that the song (The Harlem Shuffle by Bob & Earl) is a focal point in this scene.
Something that Wright rarely does is use the same shot twice. However, a technique that is used a lot is the Ken Burns effect, or pushing in on the actors, to bring them closer to the audience and ramp up tension.
Another example of Wright using music and sound effects to drive a narrative and immerse the audience is with his film: Scott Pilgrim Vs The World. The film is an adaptation of the graphic novel of the same title. The characters collective love of video games, and Wrights is seen through the sound effects. During the character introductions, the audience sees scorecards appear next to the actors. These are accompanied by video game style sound effects, such as the ‘obtained item,’ from The Legend of Zelda. A particular scene when this sound effect is heard is within the opening sequence. Scott (Michael Cera), opens the door to greet his girlfriend Knives Chau (Ellen Wong). Upon finishing his sentence “that’s for me” after hearing the doorbell, the effect plays. This ‘obtained item’ track immediately tells the audience that Knives is in love with Scott. He has ‘obtained’ her. Scott is a selfish and self-centred protagonist, and when he falls for Ramona Flowers, played by Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Knives’ obsession becomes more of an annoyance to him. In the first fight against Matthew Patel, all punches are thrown with an 8-bit style sound effect. Julien Slater, the supervising sound editor, says: “A punch that happens in the Patel fight, will sound completely different to a punch that happens in the Roxy fight”. The reason behind this is because it builds an association with characters, and also gives a character more depth, thus immersing the audience. These secret effects are hands extending from the screen, pulling people into the world. In terms of Wright using, sound it is treated “as one of the most important aspects of his film,” Chris Burden says with SoundWorks Collection (2016).
As mentioned earlier, sound in films is ‘great’ when the audience doesn't notice it. If noticed then the flow of the film would be interrupted, it is like breaking the fourth wall and forcing people out of the diegesis. The sound design is incredibly extensive in all of Wright’s films but created to not be noticeable whilst emphasising what’s happening on screen, creating emotion and ramping up the tension.
During the film, Stephen (Mark Webber) calls the Katayanagi Twins “totally badass”; they are seen as an unbeatable force. It is only when Scott realises who is stood next to Ramona in the crowd, do they ramp up enough power to destroy the twins. At the start of this scene, moody Scott is playing an omniscient tune on his bass. This reflects Scott’s state of mind but also emphasises the danger of these twins. The feedback playing through puts the audience slightly on edge as it contrasts the low pitch of the bass, creating tension. However, on the face of it Scott is in a bad mood playing the bass. This is a very creative way of using on-screen actions, which at first glance seem to be all they are, to accentuate a particular mood or feeling. In all of the music battles, the sound waves literally create a force that slams into the opposition. This is used to battle them. A way that sound is used to keep actions and transitions flowing is by using L cuts and J cuts of audio. An example of this is during a dream sequence, 6 seconds of Ramona ringing the doorbell is heard distorted in his dream before he wakes up and it becomes apparent that the sound he was hearing was the doorbell. This sound originally starts as an annoying, uncomfortably high pitched noise which is jarring to the audience, reflecting the tone of his dream; he is obsessed with her, in an almost worrying manner. Techniques such as these show exactly how music and sound effects are a driving force of this film.
These points prove that Wright could be considered an auteur as they clearly show his creative, personal style. His work in sound design is incredibly extensive and creates for a richly narrated storyline. The audience is immersed in this by not only what is shown on screen, but by these effects and edit techniques also. Wright is no doubt a genius when it comes to filmmaking, resulting in some really quite spectacular work. The world of cinema is constantly being upgraded, with new technology being created all the time, and Wrights style will continue to influence filmmakers emerging now. To conclude, sound is incredibly important to a film as it accentuates the characters and narrative, makes the diegesis as realistic as possible and immerses the audience in the action; creating a smooth flowing, believable narrative. The question that still remains is: is cinema purely for entertainment purposes, or for something more?