Matthew Stebbins

MUS189A Fall 2015

Music Report

Film
DUE: Wednesday October 7, 2015

GENERAL REPORT GUIDELINES

1) Your Report must be typed, double-spaced, in 12-point font with one-inch
margins, and stapled.
2) All responses should be written in complete sentences. In addition to
content, your Report will be evaluated on grammar, punctuation, and
organization.
3) Please note the point values assigned to each prompt. You should
respond to those with larger point values with more sentences. For
prompts with smaller point values (10-15 points), 6-10 sentences should
be sufficient; for prompts with larger point values (25 points), 10-12
sentences is appropriate. Your Report will be scored out of 100 points
total.
4) Do not forget to indicate your name at the top of your Report.
DIRECTIONS
For this Film Music Report you must watch a movie of your choice at home or
presented at a local movie theater.
QUESTIONS
Once you have watched a movie, please respond to ALL 5 questions below to
write your Film Music Report.
1) Briefly describe the movie: plot, characters, theater, audience, etc. (10
points)

The movie that I have chosen to give my Film Music report on is

Star Wars Episode 3: Revenge of the Sith. This is the third and final
movie for the prequels. The plot of the movie is that Count Dooku
and his droid army are continuing to fight the republic and the
galactic senate. Obi-Wan and Anakin are Jedi knights who have
tracked him down in a space fight and confront Count Dooku. Count
Dooku is holding chancellor Palpatine hostage. During their battle
Obi-Wan is injured and Anakin has to step up to fight him. After

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disarming Count Dooku, Palpatine orders Anakin to kill him. Anakin
knows that it is not the Jedi way to execute someone like this, but
he does it anyway. After this event they continue to pursue General
Grievous, Count Dookus second in command, to the outer rim and
Anakin does not gain the respect from the Jedi council to be
considered a master. He is left behind while Obi-Wan chases
Grievous. He becomes close with Palpatine and realizes that
Palpatine is the sith lord that the Jedi have been looking for. Obi-Wan
tracks Grievous to an outer rim planet and begins an attack. Mace
Windu and three other Jedi strike against the sith lord and Mace
Windu is close to killing him when Anakin steps in and kills Mace
Windu. The sith lord, known as the Emperor turns Anakin to the dark
side and renames him as Darth Vader. During this point in the
movie, most Jedi are spread across the galaxy fighting the
Separatist Alliance. The Emperor orders the republics clone army to
execute order 66. The clones turn on the Jedi and start to kill them.
Anakin then heads to the Jedi temple to kill the children and others
learning to become Jedi. Only two Jedi survive the slaughter, ObiWan and Yoda. Both meet up and discuss what must be done to
save the Jedi. Obi-Wan is sent to confront Anakin and Yoda decides
to face the Emperor. The Emperor who is still in control of the
Galactic Republic announces that the war is over and that the
republic will be reorganized to form the first galactic empire. In the

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end, Yoda cannot defeat the Emperor and exiles himself to his home
planet. Obi-Wan defeats Anakin, but does not kill him. Perhaps the
most famous scene in this movie is when the Emperor finds Anakin
and turns him into the iconic Darth Vader that is known today. The
audience that this movie addresses is anyone who purchased the
movie or went to see it in theaters.
1

Identify a specific scene or moment from the movie when music is used.
Briefly describe the scene & the features of the music. Would the music in
this scene be considered diegetic or non-diegetic, and why? If the music
is diegetic, describe how the audience is cued to understand what they
are hearing as coming from the fictional world of the film. How does the
music contribute to the scene, and what do you think motivated the
filmmakers to include it? If the music is non-diegetic, describe how it
functions within the scene for the audience. What does the music tell us
about the scene or the ongoing plot of the movie? How does the music
contribute to the scene, and what do you think motivated the filmmakers
to include it? (25 points)

The scene that I have chosen to identify is when Anakin is

battling his master Obi-Wan on the planet Mustafar. The scene
switches back and fourth from the battle on Mustafar to a battle
between Yoda and Darth Sidious that occurs within the senate. The
music that is used is composed by John Williams. The music features
trumpets, horns, a full orchestra, strings, and some wind
instruments. There is a chorus that sings as well. I believe that the
scene has both diegetic and non-diegetic music. When the battle
causes the deflector shields of the building to fall above the lava
there is a loud warning noise that echoes throughout the facility.
This alerts the audience that something is happening. This is

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diegetic music. I think it makes the scene more dramatic and adds a
sense of wonder to the audience because they do not know how
Obi-Wan and Anakin are going to react to the shields falling. It also
adds excitement because now not only do Anakin and Obi-Wan have
to watch out for each-other, but now they also have to worry about
the lava and possibly falling in. Another example of diegetic music is
the sound effects that the lightsabers make. When the lightsabers
clash there is a sound similar to an electric strike. The lightsabers
also make noise when they are turned on and swung around. This is
a sound that the audience can hear and can also be heard by
Anakin and Obi-Wan. This sound is important because as it parallels
the sound of a sword being unsheathed. Without looking at the
screen the audience can recognize what is happening because of
the sound. I think the moviemakers put this sound in because it is
distinctly recognizable. It is one of the coolest movie sounds
possible and if it was left out, the scene would lose some of its thrill.
There is also non-diegetic music that is played during this scene.
The music is played by the London Symphony Orchestra and the
voices are from the London Voices. The music is complements the
battles that occur at the end of the movie. As Yoda and Darth
Sidious are raised up on the platform into the empty senate building
the power and force of the music intensifies and the voices become
louder and more dramatic. The camera zooms out and shows the

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entire building empty as they fight in the middle of it. The music
tells us that this is an important moment. The voices that are
singing are rarely heard throughout the movie but when there is an
important moment the music becomes louder and the voices
explode with power. Important battles or actions in the movie are
played with powerful orchestral music. The music adds suspense
and anxiety to the scene because it is uncertain what will occur
next. It keeps the audience on the edge of their seats. The music
supports the actions and setting of the battle. I think the filmmakers
wanted the music to be epic and legendary for the final movie of
the prequels. They knew that the final battle had to be supported
with music that made it sound important. For the star wars
franchise this is one of the most important scenes in the films
history and the music for it had to make it seem so. The filmmakers
did a wonderful job of timing the music with the actions and events
that happen in the end of the film.
3) Identify a second scene or moment from the movie when music is used.
Briefly describe this scene & the features of this music. Again, would it be
considered diegetic or non-diegetic music? Explain why. How does the
music contribute to the scene, and what do you think motivated the
filmmakers to include it? (25 points)

The second scene that I am choosing to identify is the opening

scene of the movie. Anakin and Obi-Wan are flying in their
interceptor ships and are preparing to run the gauntlet to General
Greviouss ship. Their mission is to make it to the ship to rescue

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chancellor Palpatine. The scene opens up on empty space and
Anakin and Obi-Wan fly into view with a republican cruiser in the
shot as well. You can hear the screams of the engines and the
swoosh of them flying by. They curve up over the ship and the
entire battle comes into view. The music up until this point had been
drums and light orchestral music and strings, signaling the sound of
battle and the entrance of the two Jedi into the battle. There is no
dialogue in the scene, which makes the audience listen to the music
and take in the visual aspect of the film. Once again there is both
diegetic and non-diegetic music in this scene of the film. The
diegetic music in the film is the sound of the engines, and the
speaking that occurs between Obi-Wan and Anakin. The sound of
the engines contributes to the feeling of the space battle. Its a
constant hum during the course of the scene and the characters
talk over it as if they are used to it. I think the filmmakers wanted to
make the audience feel as if they were in the cockpit with Obi-Wan
and Anakin. This is diegetic music because the characters can hear
each other speak and communicate and can also hear the roar of
the engine and respond to movements in the ship that correspond
with engine sound.
The non-diegetic music is a little more tricky to describe because
of the situation. Right when the scene opens there is a swoosh
sound that plays when they pass by the screen. I think that sound is

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added for the audience because sound does not travel in space.
They played that sound there to give the audience the feel of flying
a space ship. Another diegetic sound is the trumpets that play right
before Anakin and Obi-Wan engage with the vulture droids. It is
used to signal the actions that are about to occur. The trumpets
stop as the ships zoom by each other and return each others fire.
The audience is given a clue of when the fighting is about to occur
because of the trumpets stopping. That is something that only the
audience could hear. It is non-diegetic music because the trumpets
are added for the audiences suspense and the sounds made by the
ships cannot be heard in space so it is just for the audience to hear
what is visually happening. The sound effects are added to the
scene because it would be boring without the laser zaps, or
explosions. Without the sound effects added to the battle, the only
sounds made would be the ones that came from Obi-Wan or
Anakins mouth. The filmmakers needed to add these sounds to
make the movie better and keep the audience interested. Without
these sounds the battle would be boring and lose all of the intensity
and thrill that comes with the sound effects.
1

Compare the second music example you identified to the example you
selected for the first question. Does this second use of music differ from
your previous example, or is it similar? How is the similarity or difference
between these examples related to what is occurring in the films
narrative? Do you feel the similarity or contrast is dramatically effective?
Was the use of music in one scene more compelling than the other to
you? (25 points)

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The second example I chose is different for two main reasons.
The scene in the second example, Obi-Wan and Anakin are working
together while in the first example they are fighting each other. The
second reason they are different is by the orchestral music that is
played. They both use the same instruments but there is not the
sense of power or force behind the music as in the first example.
The music is played, but not in a forceful manner. Also there is no
vocal accompaniment with the orchestral music. It is simply the
instruments being played. The main difference that is occurring in
regard to the films narrative is that Obi-Wan is working alongside his
apprentice Anakin rather than trying to kill him at the end of the
movie. They are working as a team to try to get to the ship that the
Chancellor is on. I do not feel that the contrast is dramatically
affected. I think that is because at this point of the movie you do not
know what the outcome will be. The space scene happens very
early on in the movie and the music is used to influence the speed
and overall beginning feel of the movie. The music cant be too
dramatic or too lazy. It needs to be just the right amount of force
and tempo to make the scene exciting. The music in this scene does
not want to overwork itself, there are lots of added sound effects for
the audience and the background music does not want to over
shadow the sound effects. The background music does a good job of
providing a serious fighting tone to the scene. The music in my first

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example provides a dramatic mood, it implies that this is the final
stand, the last battle between these two foes. The dialogue between
the two characters as they speak about the Jedi being evil along
side the trumpets and hum from the chorus produce a powerful
image and noise that stays with you for the rest of the movie. I think
that the music in the final battle between Anakin and Obi-Wan does
a better job of setting the scene and fits the scene better than my
second example. The second example does a better job of the use
of sound effects, like blaster noises and the sound of explosions.
Each scene has music that is designed specifically for that scene. I
think that the music in my first example fits better than the music in
my second example.
1

Describe the use of sound in this film generally, including music,

dialogue, & sound effects. In this particular movie, what was the balance
between these elements of the soundtrack? Did any one element seem
prevalent overall? Does this relate to the movies plot or overall genre in
any way? (15 points)

I think that the sound in this movie can make you feel every type of
emotion possible. The type of scene determines the music and sound effects
that are used. The sounds effects are generally based around sounds that
are not commonly heard like the sound of a blaster, or the swing of the
lightsaber. The use of the sound effects are not overused at all, if anything I
think there could have been more sound effects used. The dialogue in this
movie is the basic dialogue that every other movie uses. There are no special
features, just characters talking to other characters. The dialogue does not

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break the 4th wall, as in they do not talk to the audience and there is no
narration. The music goes hand in hand with the scenes of the movie. More
high paced actions scenes are reflected by fast tempo and high pitch music,
and the slower more romantic scenes are show with quiet, peaceful music.
There was a lot of dialogue during the movie, and music and sound effects
both played a crucial role in the film. I think that there was an even balance
throughout the movie with regard to the dialogue, music, and sound effects.
If I had to pick one element that stuck out to me, it would have to be the
dialogue, much of the story is told with words and they need to be heard to
truly understand the meaning of some of the scenes. For example, when ObiWan and Anakin are fighting at the end of the movie and Obi-Wan says, I
failed you Anakin, I have failed you. This is a powerful moment and after
those words the orchestra plays powerful music to show the seriousness and
forgiveness that Obi-Wan shows to Anakin. I think that all the elements play
an equal role in the movie and it does relate to the plot of the movie. Each
element has its own responsibility, just like the characters in the movie, and
if one element doesnt do its job then the movie will suffer. Anakin was
supposed to destroy the Sith but ended up joining then. He did not do his job
and the other characters in the movie suffered. The movie overall has
debatably one of the greatest soundtracks ever and I think that John Williams
went above and beyond the call of duty to build this outstanding soundtrack.

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