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Monday, 29 November 2010
No Country For Old Men Coin Toss Analysis - Sound
In this clip from No Country For Old Men, Chigurh walks into a gas station and asks the man at the till to call a coin toss, the man does not realise but he is calling it for his life.
In this scene, there is actually no non-digetic sound used. Only digetic sound is used, this could be in order to build suspense in the silence between the dialogue. When neither character is speaking, the silence creates a sense of feeling uneasy, like the feeling the man in the gas station would actually be feeling in this situation.
The dialogue itself is quite quiet and both characters have low voices, this has the effect of building tension because you find yourself on the edge of your seat, waiting to see what is said next... The other digetic sounds used also help to biuld suspense. For example, Chigurh's footsteps at the beginning of the clip when he first walks into the gas station. You cannot yet see him, the camera focuses on the attendant, but you can hear his slow footsteps as he approaches the till. This can have the effect of making the viewer question who is going to appear as they might expect that the director would try to throw them off track with a red herring, so they might expect it to be someone other than Chigurh.
The sound of the coin being tossed in this scene also appears to help the director build that sense of uneasiness and tension. This high-pitched 'ding' helps to break up the dialogue, which is quite soft and gentle. This juxtapositioning of sounds sort of throws the viewer off track, surprising them slightly. You do not actually see Chigurh ge the coin out of his pocket so you do not expect the sudden 'ding'. This could be used to break the tension in this scene to then build it back up with the dialogue, like a false climax.
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