Breakfast at Tiffany's

Ariela Guerrero

How Music Enhances a Scene

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fL4j9mZfUdg

            The last scene in Breakfast at Tiffany’s always makes me feel so many emotions. I believe what makes the scene so emotional is the music. As composer Gabriel Yared said, “[Music] is meant to elevate the audience and have a timeless nature.” It is for the heightened emotions that I chose to write my second blog post on this movie theme song. The scene starts out with sadness and desperation and ends up romantic and hopeful. At the beginning when Holly is desperately looking for her cat and crying, the music is just slow and makes you feel desperate and sad. When she still can’t find him, she stops and has a very worried look on her face. At that moment, the music enhances the point of the scene because it peaks off, the pace is faster and it becomes louder. The fact that the pace and loudness of the music have increased indicate that something is about to happen. “Loud sounds tend to be forceful, intense and threatening. Quiet sounds strike us as delicate, hesitant, and often weak.” (Giannetti, 208) This quote accurately describes what is happening here. At the beginning she is weak and sad, so the music is quiet. Then, when the music becomes louder, it is threatening because something is about to happen. What happens is that Fred, her lover appears, and the music becomes even louder and changes into a tone of hope and resolution, and she finds Cat. She hugs and cuddles Cat for like a minute, which would be ridiculous if it weren’t for the music that makes it sweet. As she turns to Fred and they kiss, the song becomes a lyric song as opposed to just music, which makes it more romantic.            

            Besides the music there are other sound factors that enhance this scene, such as Holly’s tone of voice. As Giannetti said in his book Understanding Movies, “Tone of voice can be far more communicative than words...” (Giannetti, 205) In this scene Holly’s tone of voice becomes louder as she continues to search for her cat. The fact that her tone becomes louder indicates that she is becoming more worried. Another factor in this scene is the rain, this appeals to pathos because it enhances the emotions of the audience. “Like most diplomats, he’s skilled in hiding his feelings, but the sorrow that overwhelms him is poetically suggested by the sound of falling rain, as though even the heavens are weeping for his loss.” (Giannetti, 210) In this quote from Understanding Movies, we can see how the rain can fill a scene with sorrow.

            Besides the final scene, there are other scenes in the movie that are affected by music. Giannetti said, “Beginning with the opening credits, music can serve as a kind of overture to suggest the mood or spirit of the film as a whole.” (Giannetti, 208) In the opening scene the music is a classical and slow suggesting the movie will be romantic and a somewhat sad. This type of music is used frequently through the movie to make scenes sadder, or more romantic. I believe that music in a movie can also appeal to logos because it can tell you a lot about the time period. In this movie for example, there is a scene when Holly makes a party in her house in which the music is characteristic of the 60’s.

            In the scene where Holly sings the famous song Moon River, the lyrics in the song appeal to logos because they make us understand she is singing about Fred. In his book, Louis Giannetti explains how characterization can be achieved by adding lyrics to a song. The song says, “We’re after the same rainbow’s end”.  This indicates the song is about her and Fred, because both where in search for money, and they both lived out of services in bed. This song also appeals to ethos because it became so famous and characteristic that it gives the movie credibility. Moreover, music is used in this movie about two times to create suspense.

            I gave a rating of 5 slurpees because based on the above examples I came to the conclusion that the music accurately enhances what the directors are trying to point out throughout the whole movie, not just one scene.

Date Night Soundtrack

           

           The wide variety of music in Date Night including several well-known songs combined with 

other not so well-known songs convinces the viewer of the occurrences happening in the movie. Even though the main characters, Tina Fey and Steve Carell, are placed in dangerous situations, the fun and upbeat music provides the viewer with comic relief. The music helps the audience establish the moods of the scenes and appeals to ethos, pathos, and logos.

During the car chase scene

the song Cobrastyle by Teddybears is playing. This is a very popular song so the viewer of the movie instantly recognizes it. This could appeal to ethos. The movie has gained credibility because a well-liked song is in it. Cobrastyle is very upbeat and fast paced. “Music can also provide ironic contrast. In many cases, the predominant mood of a scene can be neutralized or even reverse with contrasting music” (Kurosawa, 216). Instead of adding intensity to the car chase, the music makes the scene funny. This car chase scene is different than most because the car that is being chased is attached to a taxi. The taxi driver is yelling and having a conversation with Tina Fey and Steve Carell about what to do. With the song Cobrastyle playing, it lightens the mood and depicts the car scene as comical instead of being a very scary experience. If one were to hear the song by itself, they would not think of a car chase. It works though and appeals to logos because the genre of the movie is a comedy and is kept comical even in dramatic scenes like the car chase. This is possible because of the choice of music.

The movie ends with Tina Fey and Steve Carell holding hands walking on their front lawn back to their house. The song (Your love has lifted me) Higher and Higher by Jackie Wilson is playing. “The final scene from a movie is often the most important. Because of its privileged position, it can represent the filmmaker’s summing up of the significance of the previous scenes” (Kurosawa, 211). In the beginning of the movie Steve Carell and Tina Fey are portrayed as a boring couple from New Jersey. Their romance is not like it used to be and the couple is beginning to think they are in a rut. However, by the end of the movie once they have both gone through the thrilling experience of getting away from the “bad” cops who think Tina Fey and Steve Carell have something that they want, the couple’s romance is stronger than ever. The lyrics of the song including the line “Your love, lifting me higher, Than I’ve ever been lifted before, So keep it up, Quench my desire, And I’ll be at your side, forever more” show exactly what the characters are feeling in the moment. “Performers no longer needed to compensate visually for the lack of dialogue. Like stage actors, film players realized that the subtlest nuances of meaning could be conveyed through the voice” (Kurosawa, 211). Tina Fey and Steve Carell do not talk in the last scene. The look and kiss that they give each other paired with the music appeals to pathos. You can see that they both are truly happy and in love. The experience they have gone through has bonded them and made them even closer. The tone of the music is cheerful and makes the viewer feel content. The song Higher and Higher is popular as well as Cobrastyle so it makes the movie end with a very credible source.

            I think the music selection in Date Night is effective at enhancing the viewer’s emotions towards the characters in the film. The music helps distinguish the genre as a comedy and displays ethos, pathos, and logos. 

Agent James Bond 007

           The James Bond series has lasted about 50 years, and many different theme songs have been used in the movies.  Even the main character, James Bond has had seven different actors portray him. However, the latest three movies with Daniel Craig have had some interesting and different theme songs. I decided to work on Quantum of Solace and Skyfall because they have some interesting differences in the introduction of the movie even though they both follow the same format.

            In the most recent movies of the agent James Bond, there is an existing format of how the movie develops. Each movie begins with an action scene where Bond is performing some kind of a mission that leads to the introduction of the movie and the main theme song. In the case of the movie Quantum of Solace, two criminals are chasing Bond in a car race. Obviously, during the action scene, bond gets rid of the two other cars. After successfully completing his mission the introduction soundtrack begins. The song contains hard rock, which is intended to make Agent Bond look like a tough guy. After Bond shoots a bullet the voice of a women is introduced to the song, and Bond walks around with his gun showing that he has everything under control. After, the music starts to calm down, and several women dance in circles around him with the beat of the drums. The producers are trying to communicate that he has everything under control, and that there is no better agent than James Bond.

            The introduction caught my attention and gave me an idea about how the rest of the movie would be. I decided to compare Quantum of Solace with Skyfall, because of the big difference in music and the introductory scene. During the introductory scene, Bond is fighting with another person on top of a train and his ally had been given the direct order of shooting the enemy from a long distance. Unfortunately she misses and Bond falls into a ravine. As soon as bond hits the water, the introduction and the soundtrack begins. Adele sings with a low tone while Bond sink deeper and deeper, being dragged by a hand through the riverbed. The lyrics are really depressing; she repeats, “this is the end” several times. As she sings, a graveyard appears, making me wonder if Bond’s death could seriously be real. Bond looks confused, as many shadows move around him. He tries shooting them but he looks really inexperienced and unprotected. I think that with Adele’s music and the scene, the weakness of James Bond is clearly communicated to the audience.

            It is shocking how different these two introductions are. Throughout both scenes, Bond represents the ethos because he is obviously recognizable. In Quantum of Solace, he demonstrates authority, and great skills. In both scenes, pathos was easily recognizable because of the music. In Quantum of Solace, the upbeat and hard rock music denoted pathos like adrenaline and powerful emotions. On the other hand, in Skyfall, I felt depressed, sad and uncertain of what was going on. James Bond seemed to be vulnerable and weak for the first time, and I wondered if the whole series was going to take a drastic change to a different main character. The logos in every movie are supported by the high reputation and worldwide known series of movies since 1962.

               I think that Agent James Bond series does a spectacular job on the way they use music to communicate with the audience. Gianetti and Lundsford stated that “The pitch, the volume and tempo of sound can affect our senses to any given noise” (Understanding Movies, 208).  In both of the movies I previously talked about, the high-pitched and low-pitched sounds were successfully used to control the emotions of the audience. Furthermore, according to Gianetti and Lundsford “Music can serve as a kind of overture to suggest the mood or spirit of the movie as a whole” (Understanding Movies, 214). In both movies, the introduction gave me a good idea of how the whole movie was going to be. I decided to give them five slurpses because of their successful skills of using sounds and music in their movies. 

Quantum of Solace: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iGng9NLo37Y

Skyfall: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f6acw690AqQ

Django Unchained Soundtrack

“Django Unchained” is an action driven, blood filled movie about the a slave turned bounty hunter, Django, on his search to find and kill the infamous Speck brothers in return for his freedom.  Not only is “Django Unchained” and action filled movie that keeps the audience drawn in, but also the soundtrack finds a way through its Western sounds and beats to continue to keep the viewer’s head at a constant head bob, shaping a mood that the viewers can feel as if they are in the past Wild West.

The movie opens with the song “Django” by Ricky Roberts and Luis Baralov, which consists of a Western beat that includes the use of both tambourines and strung instruments.  The lyrics are constantly singing the title of the movie and the main character, “Django”.  As the scene opens, a line of slaves are walking through the wilderness, almost walking to the beat of the music.  The logic behind this music is to set the tone of the movie beginning right from the opening scene.  This song has a rugged sound to it, which creates ethos with the viewer because the slaves are walking through the rugged wilderness, having the music match the ruggedness of the slave’s journey.

Another major song in the movie is the song “Freedom” by Anthony Hamilton and Elayna Boynton.  This again has a Western feel to the song and opens with Django asking a girl who is working on the plantation if she recognizes the two men in the distance, to reassure him that the men are indeed the Speck brothers.  As soon as Django spots one of the brothers, the scene turns to a flashback of him and his wife trying to escape from a plantation and being caught by the Speck brothers with the singer of the song singing the words “freedom”.  The lyrics ”facing the truth that I discovered” is talking about how Django and his wife are now facing the truth that they will never escape from their plantation.  The music and scene use pathos to draw on the viewer’s emotions as they watch Django’s wife whipped by the Speck brothers as Django is begging them, while on his knees, to whip him instead.  The song creates a feeling of sadness, making the viewer feel as if they are in Django’s position being so close to freedom, yet not being able to get away.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6eYaXXj0r94

Finally, my favorite song from the movie, “100 Black Coffins” by Rick Ross, draws on the viewer’s logos as the viewer’s ear is drawn to the famous commanding voice and beat of Rick Ross.  The soundtrack begins with whistling and chains clinging together which fits perfectly with the scene as the slaves are following Django and the other men as they make their way to the plantation owner’s “Big House” while being chained together.  The songs lyrics “I need 100 black coffins for 100 bad men” combined with a loud commanding beat is foreshadowing an event that is coming up in the movie that involves Django going on a killing frenzy in order to gain not only his own freedom, but also his wife’s freedom too.  “Loud sounds tend to be forceful, intense, and threating”, which is exactly what the scene is trying to exhibit to the audience (Sound, 208).   “Music can be used as foreshadowing, especially when the dramatic context doesn’t permit a director to prepare an audience for an event" (Sound, 214). The song is preparing the audience for the massacre that Django is about to put on in the scenes coming up.  This song sets the mood for the viewer and the fast taps of a snare drum draw on the intensity of the scene. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XMR9P1EzL6Q

Overall, I believe the soundtrack to the movie “Django” did a very good job keeping the viewers drawn in and creating an intense Western feel to the film.  As a result, I give the “Django” soundtrack five Slurpees for its use in the film.

Rocky

     

     Rocky is a movie made in 1976 starring Sylvester Stallone about a boxer Rocky Balboa. The movie exhibits the classic underdog story and the American Dream. Rocky is a good guy that works hard but hasn’t caught a lot of breaks. However, he gets a chance to fight against the world heavy-weight champion Apollo Creed. Rocky uses this chance to make something of himself and he goes the distance with the best fighter in the world.

     Rocky may be best known for its theme song, “Gonna Fly Now.” The song was nominated for an academy award, and was ranked 58^th on the American Film Institute’s 100 Years…100 Songs list. The song plays while Rocky trains for his fight against Apollo Creed. “The pitch, volume, and tempo can strongly affect our responses to any given noise.” (Giannetti, 208) In “Gonna Fly Now,” the music starts slow and soft as Rocky just begins his training but builds as he grows stronger. This is a pathos argument that increases the excitement of the viewer. As the music builds so does the excitement of the viewer as they see Rocky grow stronger. The music climaxes when Rocky reaches the top of the stairs and puts his hands up in the iconic victory pose as if he has conquered his training and is ready to fight. The music is dominated by trumpets and electric guitars. The trumpets present an ethos argument of credibility because they relate the viewer to triumphant fanfare. Viewers are used to hearing trumpets when people are victorious, and in this scene from Rocky, the trumpets lend credibility to Rocky conquering his training. The music also stands as a logos argument. Viewers logically assume that as the music grows in strength so does Rocky.

     Rocky matches Apollo Creed’s skill by his ability to take seemingly unlimited punishment, and Rocky goes the distance with Apollo Creed. After the final bell sounds, fans rush the ring and the song “The Final Bell” plays. It is an upbeat song that signifies Rocky’s success against Apollo Creed, and even more so the success of a poor Italian immigrant working hard and rising to fame. The quick beat of the song represents a pathos argument that keeps the excitement from the fight going for the viewer. The higher pitch of the song creates a happy atmosphere that accompanies the celebration of the fans. The playful tune creates a logos argument that states that if the song is happy then the viewer should be happy too. Rocky calls out to his girlfriend Adrian, and the music provides a positive feeling towards their relationship. The happy nature of the song also provides an ethos argument that gives credibility to Rocky as a good person that the audience should be happy for. “The Final Bell” is a good way to end the movie because it is a quick upbeat song that leaves the viewer feeling happy. The audience leaves the movie feeling good about the success of Rocky.

I give the Rocky soundtrack 3 out of 5 slurpees. While the soundtrack produced a classic in “Gonna Fly Now,” the soundtrack doesn’t have many other memorable songs other than “The Final Bell.” The soundtrack also does not have a lot of depth. It features a love song, but other than that there are very few dramatic songs. As an older movie, a lot of the scenes do not even have background music. The fight features very little if any music, and is fought using the noise of the crowd as almost the whole background. I think “Gonna Fly Now” and “The Final Bell” do a good job of presenting rhetorical arguments, but the rest of the soundtrack struggles.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F5-s4abeoak

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V4tT1IkEeQQ

The soundtracks throughout the movie The Lion King stand out as some of the most recognizable songs ever produced. Among the most popular songs are “The Circle of Life” and “Hakuna Matata”, both of which were produced for the sole purpose of the movie. The Lion King became one of the most popular movie productions in film history due to its compelling use of music to set the mood and evoke the audience’s emotion. The appropriate use of rhetorical devices propels the audience to familiarize the music with the film and play a large role in the films popularity.

The music throughout the movie play a key role in establishing the mood and directly affect the audiences sense of pathos, “music can serve as a kind of overture to suggest the mood or spirit of the film as a whole” (Giannetii). In the song “The Circle of Life” the soundtrack uses background vocals to establish the tone of multiple voices coming together for the presentation of Simba. It establishes a sense of coming together as a family for the presentation of a newborn to all of its family, a very relatable feeling to the audience. In the song “Hakuna Matata” the upbeat music and happy lyrics appeal to the audience in a lighter mood and sets a happy tone established between two friends. In both of the songs there is an upbeat rhythm that draws on the happier emotions amongst the audience and establish the mood of each specific scene.

One of the most important devices used during the music was that of logos. Because the intended audience was of all ages the music had to be relatable and logical in its portrayal throughout the film. In the song “Circle of Life” we hear distinct animal sounds such as birds and elephants to aid the visuals as well as intrigue the audience. The song title and chorus also foreshadow the birth of a newborn (Simba), as well as the death of an older character (Mufasa). Another instance of logos throughout this song is that the animal kingdom all comes together for one character, establishing that character as important and the lead role.  The song “Hakuna Matata” utilizes logos because viewers establish that the two characters are very good friends and it describes the type of relationship these two have in relation to the rest of the movie. The happy-go-lucky tone of the song also set the tone of the rest of the movie and establishes the mood amongst these two friends.

Another important role of the music in the movie is to portray the music as credible. Elton John, an award winning artist and songwriter, produced the music throughout the movie. Prior to the films production, John’s music was amongst the most popular on the charts and Disney recognized this and utilized his popularity to establish the music’s credibility.

The Lion King is an incredible movie that has a very popular following. The film has many classic soundtrack hits that are recognizable amongst the bulk of moviegoers. Throughout the film we are introduced to many songs, all of which are relatable and appropriate to the plot of the movie. I believe this movie is a must see, with a rating of five stars.