Sound (Chion article)

The presence (or lack there of) of sound with film has always been of paramount concern to me with my movie making and movie watching experiences in life. One reason I am so drawn to film is because I believe it is the ultimate art; that is, it combines so many different mediums that enhance so many of the senses – sound being one of the important factors here. The absence of sound or minimal sound can add stronger tones or moods to a film than a film with sound. Take a look at the Coen brothers’ film, ‘No Country for Old Men’. In the first fifteen minutes, it only uses diegetic sound and contains no dialogue. But this still used sound effects and diegetic sound. Rarely do we see films without sound. The only films I can think of without any sound are those made by Stan Brakhage, Andy Warhol, Yoko Ono, other Fluxfilmmakers, and a few other avant-garde filmmakers that I’ve seen recently. Even back in the day during the silent-era of movies live music would accompany a film.