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There are few horror subgenres as shocking as body horror. In a medium filled with countless approaches to petrifying audiences, there aren’t many films that are as immediately horrifying as those that use their runtime to showcase the many ways our physical bodies can be destroyed. There are many acclaimed films in this genre, from the Palme d’Or winner Titane to almost every movie from the Cronenberg dynasty. Hidden amongst these is a title that most certainly deserves more appreciation: Alex Noyer‘s 2021 film, Sound of Violence. Following an audio engineer with a perturbing case of synesthesia, the film pushes its concept further than any other body horror for the way it takes into account every facet of the viewing experience.
Sound of Violence understands this kind of filmed pain in a way that few other films do, recognizing how the thrilling fear of body horror comes from a person’s physical empathy for the carnage taking place onscreen. The movie then pushes this concept, offering moments of bloody horror that utilize every sense of those watching so every moment is unnerving — and sickeningly beautiful — on many levels. There are many great body horror movies out there, but Sound of Violence’s use of all of the human senses redefines just how terrifying this genre can be.
Jasmin Savoy Brown Kills Alot More Than ‘Yellowjackets’
Sound of Violence follows Alexis (Yellowjackets’ Jasmin Savoy Brown), who viewers first meet as a young child sitting at a tense family dinner. Alexis is deaf, and we must watch along with her as her father brutally murders Alexis’ brother and mother. The young girl only survives because she sneaks up and smashes her father’s head with a hammer. It’s the kid’s first act of violence, and it does two very important things: it suddenly allows Alexis to hear, and it creates a dazzling image of lights that immediately intoxicates the impressionable young girl. She grows up into a troubled audio engineer, struggling to find the perfect sounds for her music while trying to hide the huge crush she has on her roommate, Marie (Lili Simmons).
Things only become worse when she discovers her deafness is returning — but then she remembers what helped her hear all those years ago. And, even better, she remembered just how good it felt to watch all of those dazzling lights appear the minute she made someone suffer. This sends Alexis down a carnage-riddled rabbit hole, one that viewers are not only made to watch in shock but hear in excruciating detail.
Body Horror Has Never Sounded So Sweet
The best body horror projects are built by their gore, and Sound of Violence provides all that viewers can ask for in a startlingly melodic way. Alexis needs the sounds of others being tortured for her music but isn’t content with just your basic violence; she constructs elaborate contraptions and situations to put her “musicians” through insufferable amounts of pain while recording every second. Even in a film with such prominent musical themes, it’s startlingly how well the plot combines noises with pain, as seen in horrifying sequences when a harpist tears her hands apart on a modified instrument or Alexis uses a keyboard connected to a “murder chair” to torture a man.
The peak of this plot’s inventive bloodshed comes when someone discovers Alexis’ secret, so she decides to make them the centerpiece of their song…by carving out their torso and placing a speaker inside, all while they’re still alive. These moments are gut-churning on their own, but shockingly enough, they’re not the most jarring parts of the film; rather, it’s the effect they have on Alexis — and by extension, the audience — that truly makes the movie such an unnerving watch.
Body horror is an innately immersive experience, with filmmakers using gore as a way to bring viewers into the pain and fear of those suffering onscreen. Sound of Violence goes even further, though, by not only immersing watchers in the victims’ terror but Alexis’ euphoria as well. Viewers witness the dazzling lights she sees during her murders and her euphoric, almost drunken expressions during these scenes stress the joy coursing through her from the sounds. Even more, by combining this violence with musical notes or letting viewers listen to her in-depth recordings, audiences experience a special focus on the sounds of flesh tearing that few other films take the time to spotlight.
‘Sound of Violence’ Terrifies You On Every Level
Sound of Violence capitalizes on all senses to make these terrifying scenes genuinely mesmerizing experiences, ones that are capped off by the unabashed emotion shown by Alexis throughout the plot. Her moments of villainy punctuate an endearing performance, one that turns this monster into a relatable, troubled young woman who acts cute around her crush and feels bad when people don’t like her music. It’s this emotional resonance that puts the final cap on a truly full-body horror movie; one that doesn’t leave a single sensation out when trying to shake viewers to their core.
By turning these brutal moments into a literal full-body experience it creates an encompassing showcase of everything horrifying in its unique premise. From visuals and audio to its emotional stakes, every facet of the viewing experience comes together to pull viewers in — even if it repulses you.
Sound of Violence is available to watch on Tubi in the U.S.
- Director
- Alex Noyer
- Release Date
- May 21, 2021
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