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Diegetic Techniques Used In Mary Shelley's Frankenstein

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Horror genre movies have been going around for years, and have always been a success. However, horror movies have had been lacking diegetic and synchronous sound. Movies such as The Cabinet Of Doctor Caligari (1919) use their mise en scene such as their sets design, camera angles, non-diegetic soundtracks and tint to enhance the lack of sound , to increase the tension. However it is different for the infamous horror movie, Frankenstein (1931).
Frankenstein, in defiance to this norm, uses a lot of synchronized sound or diegetic sound elements. The movie does not use any soundtrack, and utilizes generic set designs. Its application of diegetic sound is used to increase the tension and to create a more spooky feeling throughout the whole movie: natural sounds such as thunder and rain, muffled or creaking sounds of footsteps when people are approaching from behind or walking up the stairs, are used frequently in the movie. Even without any soundtrack or tint, it creates spooky or …show more content…

Here the sound of the thunder gradually decreases. This arrangement of sound once again increases the eeriness of the atmosphere and in turn the excitement of all the characters and us the audience. As the monster reaches the ground, the hand of the monster starts to move, and Dr. Frankenstein’s face gradually shifts to show elation. Slowly, he said: “its moving!” and as he speaks the sound of the thunder dies down. The director wanted us to once again focus on what Frankenstein is saying. He later then shouted, “It’s alive!” and he claims that in the name of God he know how it feels like to be a god. From this dialog, and the tone of his sound, we could once again clearly see that Dr. Frankenstein simply sees himself as a much more superior being than the others, even comparing himself to God, the creator of all

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