Sound and Saving Private Ryan

Saving Private Ryan

"It Doesn't Make Sense"

• Assess how the scene or sequence would play differently if you changed or removed a key category of sound.

This scene is awesome in it's simple complexity. There are a multitude of soldiers standing around. There is any manner of possible noise that could be going on and yet there is silence. PVT Ryan (played by Matt Damon) is giving his speech and there is no background noise to detract from it. If they made it into the typical noise-fest that a military encampment is--it would detract from the sense of desperation to understand why he gets to go home. 

    Explain how the different categories of sound are being used in your chosen film.

• Assess the impact of sound in establishing the theme.
• How does the use of sound inform the mood of the scene, or the film overall?
• Can you identify specific sounds in your film that allow you to infer a particular genre?
• Since each category of sound may produce a range of effects, how might you characterize the effects in your film? For example, realistic and expected sound effects may have a different effect on a viewer than exaggerated or unexpected ones.

The sounds, sparse music, and dialogue make the whole film what it is. You hear the sounds of the gear. You hear the sounds of the weapons, the wind, the walking, etc. It draws the watcher into the film and setting. For there to be so much silence in some of the scenes as the Soldiers scan the horizons and ensure their safety, you feel their tension. The sounds of the weaponry definitely lead the watchers to know that it is an action film. The dialogue and conflict lend to the drama genre. 

Reference

Saving Private Ryan (4/7) Movie CLIP - It Doesn't Make Any Sense (1998) HD. (n.d.). Retrieved October 10, 2014.