That Sounds Scary
Gabrielle Margocs' Independent Study @ Austin College
Scene 3 - Cry for Help
One of the most emotionally effective scenes to me personally, was one of the shortest of both films.
Kairo
Taguchi uses a cellphone as the digital means to reach out to the others.
A low frequency violin warms the background, as Taguchi whispers “tasukete” (Japanese for “help me please”) to a coworker over the phone.
The voice is a loud, hoarse- perhaps an even annoyingly dissonant to some- whisper, repeated again and again in desperation.
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(I could not find a video clip, but here is the audio from the scene)
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Pulse
Josh communicates through an instant messaging group that his friends are chatting in.
Similar to Kairo’s BGM, a low violin trills quietly rise to a powerful startle, as IM messages (supposedly sent by Josh) read "help me", and is seen by only the scared group.
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To the forefront of the music are bright, edgy notification sounds of the messages being delievered. Every time Josh types "help me", this plays, and is numerous.
Compared to the Japanese version, Josh’s pleading is more rapid as well as visually startling, against Taguchi’s slower and hissing unseen whispers.