"Vertigo" by Alfred Hitchcock - from 1:11:24 to 1:15:00 in the movie
"Farewell" and "The Tower" by Bernard Hermann - the soundtrack used within the sequence
To
properly understand a movie, you have to be able to hear it. Without
sound, no movie would ever be able to perservere in the business.
8 seconds into Vertigo - confessing their love for one another
27 seconds into Vertigo - sharing a passionate kiss - the soundtrack hits a climactic point
Only 8
seconds into the famous tower scene from Vertigo, the non-diegetic
soundtrack, „Farewell“ by Bernard Hermann is played ontop of the
video clip is a very slow, rather quiet and passionate one. The
parallel sound sets the scene and lets the audience feel with the
characters as they diegetically confess their love for one another.
The soundtrack continues its rather slow pace, parallel interacting
with the diegetic soundtrack of the characters romantically
interacting with one another, until it reaches the 27th
second. In the 27th second of the video, the sound is
almost synchronous with how the characters are interacting with one
another. It is almost as if the sound had reached one of its
climactic points, as it becomes louder and more dramatic, however
keeps its slow and romantic pace as the characters kiss one another.
Through the non-diegetic soundtrack, the audience gets the idea of
the kiss being more passionate than it is portrayed, as one of the
characters is obviously disturbed in the scene; it also gives the
audience the idea that the characters, even though one may seem not
to be in the moment, are deeply and madly in love by the way the
non-diegetic soundtrack sounds.
37 seconds into Vertigo - he begins chasing her - the soundtrack begins picking up it's pace
43 seconds into Vertigo
46 seconds into Vertigo
Immediately
after the non-diegetic soundtrack seemed to have hit one of its
climactic points, it changes ever so slightly; the soundtrack begins
to pick up it's pace, increasing with every second that goes by when
watching the clip; this connotes that the female character is quickly
slipping away from the male characters' grasp, away from the romantic
and passionate relationship that they had before – it makes it seem
almost as if she didn't want to engage in a relationship with the
male character, even though they are in love with one another. The
non-diegetic soundtrack continues on in the background throughout the
46th second of the clip as the diegetic dialouge sets in,
giving the audience the impression that there is more tension being
built. In the way that the female character is acting, and how harsh
and quick her diegetic dialouge is, it connotes that she is the one
who wants to get away from the male character, and even though she is
in love with him, she cannot be around him. On the other hand, the
male characters' diegetic dialouge becomes quicker as well, connoting
that he is willing to match her hurried tone in order to dominate the
conversation, to show that he is the one with more power; this
connotes that he is not willing to let the female character slip away
from him, and is trying to grasp her as tightly as possible.
54 seconds into Vertigo - she calms down into his embrace - the soundtrack hits another climactic point
1:06 into Vertigo
1:13 into Vertigo
At the
54th second, the non-diegetic soundtrack reaches another
climactic moment, parallel to the actions happening on the screen, as
the two characters embrace and the female character calms down; it
slows down for a few moments, whereas shortly afterwards it picked up
the pace again, letting the audience know that there is something
else that is going to happen; it also connotes that the female
character is attempting to find her way out of the relationship with
the male character, or at the very least away from him – again, she
is slipping away from the male character, who attempts to hold onto
her, but isn't able to. At 1:17,
the non-diegetic soundtrack slows down yet again, reaching another
climatic moment as it becomes a parallel sound to what action is
happening on screen; the soundtrack becomes slower and calmer as the
couple shares another kiss with one another, and as the male
character then lets the woman go, almost as if he was finally giving
up and letting her slip from his grasp.
Then, at
1:31, the soundtrack changes from „Farewell“ to „The Tower“
by Bernard Hermann; the transition between the two soundtracks is so
minimal it is not noticed, however the change in the way the
soundtrack affects the overall image is gravely noticed. Around this
time, the non-diegetic soundtrack becomes more tense as the
instruments seem to give off a rumbling sound for several seconds,
before switching to the shot of the tower, when the non-diegetic
soundtrack becomes louder and more obtrusive; this connotes that the
male character had just had a realisation of what the female
character is about to do – by using this sudden change in the
non-diegetic soundtrack, the audience is informed and begin to have
an idea of what is about to happen; however aren't quite sure –
this is what adds the element of thrill in this sequence.
1:36 into Vertigo - realisation hits the male character when the loud instruments set in
1:38 into Vertigo
1:41 into Vertigo
After the
realisation hat hit the main character, and the obtrusive moment in
the soundtrack had died down, a sudden hurry is noticed in it. The
hurry in the soundtrack lets the audience know that there is a
certain rush to what is going on, and that something is about to
happen. The soundtrack also reflects the male characters'
anxiousness, and this is reflected onto the audience, who is then
forced to feel equally as anxious and tense as the character. Perhaps
the rushed sound of the soundtrack also reflects the male characters'
heartbeat.
1:46 into Vertigo - the male character enters the church and the music stops, as if to let both the character and the audience breathe for a couple of moments.
1:52 into Vertigo
1:54 into Vertigo
At 1:45,
the soundtrack suddently stops and gives the audience a moment to
breathe; they breathe with the male character who stops dead in his
tracks in the church whilst he is looking for the female character.
It also seems to connote a bit of hope in the male character, as he
has stopped chasing the female character for a split second as he is
scanning the church for his beloved. This behaviour is then
contrasted only four seconds later, when the rushed soundtrack kicks
in again, and the male character begins chasing the female character
up the stairs of the tower.
2:04 and 2:16 into Vertigo - the soundtrack becomes obtrusive and sudden, letting the audience become distracted and not pay attention to the actual narrative for a few moments.
The
obtrusive instruments in the non-diegetic soundtrack return at 2:04
and 2:16 as the male character is chasing the female character up the
stairs, in parallel conjunction with a zolly shot of the height of
the staircases, reflecting the characters' fear of heights. It is
that one moment in the soundtrack where there isn't any rusteling and
quick undertone to what is happening, and it connotes that for that
split second, the male character forgets about the female character
(whom he was chasing up the stairs), and replaces the female with his
fear of heights. Again, this seems to give the audience a moment to
breathe, however also adds tension towards the entire situation, as
the reflection of his fear of heights also gives the female character
more time to reach the top of the tower.
2:27 into Vertigo - the obtrusive soundtrack sets in yet again, letting the audience know that something had just happened.
2:31 into Vertigo
2:43 into Vertigo
3:11 into Vertigo
The loud
and obtrusive sound repeats itself at 2:28, when the female character
is seen falling past the window, heightening the impression towards
the audience of what had just happened. It also conveys the feeling
of the male character in this image, as both the audience and the
character seem to realise what is going on, and what the female
character had done to herself. Only several seconds later, the
element of shock is used again to amplify the disasterous image and
occurance that had just taken place in the video clip. Continuing on
from the now slowed down and still obtrusive soundtrack, it gives the
audience and the male character in the video time to sink in what had
just happened. By using heavy instruments in the soundtrack such as
tubas, trombones and timpani, it gives the non-diegetic soundtrack a
very heavy weight, as if it were to place such a heavy weight onto
the audiences' shoulder, and giving them a remaining feeling of
uneasiness and queasiness throughout the entirety of the rest of the
clip.
1:47 and 1:49 into Vertigo - Footsteps are heard on either side of the church
Diegetic
soundtrack is used very effectively throughout the sequence,
especially at 1:47 and 1:49, when the female characters' footsteps
are heard, however she is nowhere to be seen. The diegetic soundtrack
in this short, two second sequence within the larger sequence is
asynchronous. This adds an element of mystery into the sequence, and
connotes that she is close by, however isn't willing to be seen by
the male character who is looking for her. It gives the audience an
idea of where the female character could have gone without actually
having her see go there; even though the male character can also hear
the footsteps, it gives the audience the impression that they have a
better idea of where the female character could be and it adds a
certain thrill, as the audience wants the male character to follow
the female character up the right path, and to catch up with her in
time.
2:26 into Vertigo - an asynchronous scream is heard, letting the audience know that the female character had just thrown herself off of the tower.
Another
good example of the use of asynchronous diegetic soundtracks in the
sequence would be at 2:26, when a scream is heard, but the character
who is screaming is nowhere to be seen. It lets the audience know
that the female character has most likely thrown herself off of the
tower moments before they are able to see her fall through the
window, and also lets the male character know that he has nothing
left to hope for; that his fears had come true. The scream also
connotes that the female character wanted to make it clear to the
male character, and any other characters around them, that she had
just thrown herself off of the tower; usually when commiting suicide,
it is done quietly and at peace, however she seemed to be in a hurry
to end her life immediately.
The
sequence brings across a very sincere and tense feel, as the
soundtrack is usually very hectic, heavy and boisterous. As the
sequence is all about the female character who is running away from
her lover, and is ending her life in a hectic way, the soundtrack
portrays this with usually being at a fast pace; it seems to convey
that the female character is quickly slipping away from the male
characters grasp, who isn't willing to let her go. By using a heavy,
quick and loud non-diegetic soundtrack ontop of/behind the diegetic
soundtrack, it achieves the feel of something not being quite right;
it puts the audience on edge as they hear the soundtrack constantly
heighten its' volume and speed, letting them know that something
isn't quite right, and that something is going to happen within the
scene. The soundtrack also foreshadows a lot of things; in this case
the non-diegetic soundtrack did a good job, as even louder and more
obtrusive bursts of sound connote that there is an element of shock,
and realisation. The audience realises things alongside the
characters thanks to the soundtrack.
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