Sound Essay

In the opening scene of Terminator 2 uses sound very effectively to set the mood and atmosphere of the whole movie in general. It is very important as the beginning as selective sound it used. There is a shot of the current world we are living in, the busy roads that are usually really loud but the producers decided to remove any diegetic sound and this removes the realistic effect. This is effective because the movie is about robots and the future and that is fiction so it’s not realistic so it ties in well. This makes it peaceful but also eerie, this contrast in how it’s meant to be ( a loud and bustling city) makes it seem as if something is not right, which keeps the audience on edge. Instead they have inserted a non-diegetic sound of a really low pitched electronic sound (similar to a robotic sound) which makes it very tense- as low pitched music is usually associated with something scary or mysterious. It has a gradual crescendo, each time we hear that sound, it gets louder and more instruments are added. This successful use of sound builds up the tension and makes the audience expect a climax of something bad to happen. Instead, there is silence for a brief second. This is really effective as that silence leaves time for the audience to ask questions and their curiosity grows- making them more interested in the film.

 As the camera slowly pans to Los Angeles 2029, we see that everything has been destroyed. We hear a choir singing high notes. They have decided to use this choir to make it feel tense because the choir is usually associated with Church, and the Church connotes many things but the ones that link mostly to the scene would be: Life and Death. As the camera pans to show the wreckage, it is very calm and the electronic music returns. The mix of high and low pitches create an interesting contrast. The notes start to elongate, really extending that eerie feel. Afterwards we see a robotic leg crash a skull and this is synchronised with the sound as there is a loud crash sound. This breaks the tension and stuns the audience as it was previously really quite- adding that horror effect. 

Next, the camera pans up so we can see the robot and we hear non-diegetic sound of laser guns and gun shots and explosions which have been created by use of technology. Even though this is not realistic is makes it seem real and we are seeing the explosions and hearing them and our senses are activated and we aware of it happening- therefore feeling as if we’re watching something real. 

A few minutes after an action packed loud scene, the sounds get muffled out and this is similar to sound perspective which gives an impression of distance in sound. However it’s also similar to selective sound and it wants us to focus on the characters flashback and the burning sound. This is effective as it doesn’t drag and make it too loud and action packed within the opening scene so it calms down and goes back to the similar background music as the beginning. However there is an emphasis of the burning sound. This makes the audience concentrate on the burning, which sends a powerful strong message.

 After the dramatic opening there is a voice over/ commentary narration which sets the mood and informs the audience of what is happening. It also makes it calm at the same time and tense which is an interesting combination
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