Sound Analysis - Captain Philips

Captain Philips is a multi-layered examination of the 2009 hijacking of the U.S. container, Maersk Alabama, by a crew of Somali pirates. Directed by Paul Greengrass and produced by Bravo Platoon Film Production, the film premiered in theaters in 2013 and won a number of different awards for its visuals and sounds. This essay will analyse the different types of sounds present and their effects on the audience in Captain Philips during a 2min sequence mid-way through the film (24:55-26:55) when the Somali pirates chase Maersk Alabama.

The film represents a dramatic mediation of the actual events of 2009 surrounding the captain of Maersk Alabama, Richard Philips. In order to create tension throughout the film the director implemented a significant amount of non-diegetic sounds; mainly soundtracks. At the starting point of the sequence the Somali pirates are swimming towards Maersk Alabama at an alarming speed. At this time the soundtrack is quiet and calm, but when Philips asks the chief engineer to turn of the limits on the containers engines, the soundtrack overpowers all of the other sounds and becomes very intense through the sudden and impactful increase in volume. This application of sound has a tremendous effect on the audience as it increases the tension of the situation and displays how extreme it has become. Eventually the Somali pirates boat breaks down at which point the soundtrack instantly stops. The following informs the audience that the protagonist of the film has overcome the situation and applies a sense of relief. If the sequence was to be reimagined without the soundtrack it would provide no sense of tension or seriousness as the audience would only be presented towards number of quick shots of a minor boat chasing a container. In this particular sequence the soundtrack is what makes up most of the sequence and is responsible for achieving a number of reactions from the audience.

Except for non-diegetic sounds, which are mostly used for setting the mood or narrating a storyline of a production, another principal aspect of sound appearing in the extract is diegetic sound. Any voice, musical passage, or sound effect presented as originating from a source within the films world is diegetic. For the duration of the scene, the dialogue is a key group of diegetic sounds responsible for informing the audience about what it is the characters are planning to do. For instance when Philips notices that the Somali pirates are nearing the container he orders his crew members to change certain setting on deck and prepare the ship for full thrust. In addition to the following, the way that Philips talks notifies the audience of how well he is able to cope with the stress of being chased by pirates, and at the same time, command a crew running a container. When the Somali pirates are shown during the extract their voices are louder and angrier, displaying that they are not able to cooperate as well as other characters. Thus, if the dialogue was to be shown separately from the sequence the audience would still be able to describe the motives of the characters voices they are hearing and possibly in what situation they are in. Dialogue is just a part of all the diegetic sounds present in the extract, though, in this specific segment, all of the other diegetic noises are pleonastic.

Pleonastic sounds are exaggerated diegetic sounds used to allow the audience to relate to a scene in a particular way. In this extract, all of the diegetic sounds except for the dialogue are pleonastic because the tonality of the objects that make them is higher than expected. An illustration of this within the segment would be the loudness of the pirate’s skiff crashing against the ocean during the chase. Moreover the sounds of the containers engines; the phone being picked up and smashed by captain Philips; the static form the hand-held radio and the thruster being pushed forward are all pleonastic sounds. Furthermore, the pleonastic sounds within the segment also create sound bridges that make transitions more fluent. For instance, the pleonastic sound of the thruster being pushed towards its limit, followed by a transition to another scene opening with another pleonastic sound of the increasing roar of the engines, is an exemplar of how this type of sound creates smoother transitions. At the end of the segment, all of the sounds stop and the visuals presented become nearly silent. Through taking out the non-diegetic and diegetic sounds present within a scene the director was able to create an enormous implication of something significant happening at the end of the chase. Continuing in the segment the pleonastic sounds are accountable for setting the right background noise in accordance to the scene and pointing out the important things happening.
In conclusion the sounds present in the extract of Captain Philips are an overpowering addition to the visuals shown on screen, both informing and having an emotional effect on the audience. The extract displays a successful use of diegetic and non-diegetic sounds with the right categories of sounds chosen to be within the scenery - excluding contrapuntal sounds. Finalising the extract is an example of a good balance between visuals and sounds that satisfies the audience.