Blackmail (1929)

Blackmail (Alfred Hitchcock) was one of the first sound films ever made.

When watching the film, I was very impressed with the quality of sound for such a early sound film.

Despite such innovative film technique, the film still used off-screen sound and cutting within dialogue.

An interesting thing I found about the movie is that the actress playing the main character was the woman we hear in the film. With out this knowledge, I would have never guessed it was not her voice being use in the film. This comes to show how images can become manipulated by sounds.

Without a doubt, sound is an important element in the film. The film utilizes sound to underscore its themes of eavesdropping.

The film begins as a silent film. Very little dialogue is exchanged after the introduction of the characters. However, the audience is given signs that Alice is having a secret affair with a man. Like most Hitchcock films, the viewer is indulged with watching. The lack of sound gives the viewer hunger for explanation. But when sound is introduced, the viewer learns to depend on sound for meaning.

Consequently, when more dialogue is introduce, the viewer becomes more involved in the sounds of voices and music in the film.

Like the character who becomes involved in the murder for eavesdropping, the viewer is intertwined by the storyline knowing what is and is not being said.

Sound helps intensify some of the scenes in the film. For example, one of the most memorable scenes when Alice is haunted by the repetition of the mentioning of the word "knife". The viewer becomes engaged in the same emotion as Alice because the viewer is presented with the same sounds that the character hears. In another scene, the non-diegetic sound of laughter serves the same purpose as the sound of "knife", conveying the emotions of Alice's guilt.

Without sound, this film would not have had the same effect from the viewer. The film shows that sound is very important in cinema. Although film is a visual medium, sound is the important element that completes one's film experience.