The voyeurism of film
and its many different gazes are often associated with the visual but there is
also the auditory gaze. Cinema is the combination of the visual and audio. The
Conversation (Francis Ford Coppola, 1974, USA) builds tension by revealing
parts of a recorded conversation throughout the film mostly when the
protagonist Harry Caul works on the tape of the recording. Harry Caul is
considered the best wire tapper but he fears people might be hurt because of
his work. For this analysis I screened the Blu –ray edition of The Conversation (Francis Ford Coppola, 1974,
USA). The intended aspect ratio is 1.85:1 and shot on 35 mm film. The Blu- ray has
been digitally re-mastered and presented in an aspect ratio of 1.78:1.
On the Blu-Ray of The
Conversation (Francis Ford Coppola, 1974, USA) scene 6 titled He’d Kill Us
If He Got The Chance displays using a piece of audio to build tension. The
titular conversation that is the basis for the films mystery is captured in the
film’s opening scene. Later on in Harry’s workshop “the conversation” that has
been dubbed onto reel to reel tape and is being played and replayed as Harry
tries to make previously inaudible sections now audible. The mystery has
started to grab hold of Harry despite his adamant protests to the contrary. The
watcher can see how curios and manic Harry is becoming.
The sound editor Walter Murch and the score by David
Shire play a large role in creating the mood of the film and give insight into
the psyche of Harry Caul. The Blu-Ray uses the original theatrical mono mix.
One of the most significant choices that highlight how this particular scene
highlights the auditory gaze is the use of sound board mixing with both the
score and the replaying of “the conversation”. During the editing process a
full sound board was used to alter both the score and the recorded
conversation. As slight but consistent alterations are made to the soundscape
as the film progresses the audience is left wondering how accurate their
recollection is? As harry becomes more paranoid the score becomes more
electronic. When Harry is replaying the conversation over and over again trying
to reveal the inaudible portions the slight differences in the playback due to alterations
made on the soundboard makes the audience question themselves similar to how
conflicted Harry Caul is with his job. His worry that his work could lead to a
murder is growing. Even something like faith that gives many practitioners
solace creates even more conflict in Harry Caul’s psyche.
This scene is notable for Gene Hackman acting with the
late John Cazale. Their dynamic in this scene shows how two different people
can react to the same piece of audio. Jon Cazale’s portrayal of Stan is the
audiences POV character. He says what everyone’s thinking in many ways he is
giving voice to the actions of Gene Hackman’s Harry Caul who refuses to admit
to his growing obsession with the piece of audio in his possession. Harry
claims to be only interested in the work and fetishizing the technical aspects
of his career but as we see in the juxtaposition to Stan’s questions and statements
he is on his way down the rabbit hole to see how far it goes.
The Conversation (Francis
Ford Coppola, 1974, USA) is about technology and privacy. In this particular
scene technology, time, or physical distance can’t separate Harry from his
guilt and paranoia. Harry Caul is replaying a scene over and over again and
just like memories the scene is slightly different every time he plays it. We
may think of video or audio recordings as concrete recreations of life but The Conversation (Francis Ford Coppola,
1974, USA) through the auditory gaze shows recordings can be just as ephemeral
as memory.
