Innovation in movie making is as common in Hollywood as working lunches. The Jazz Singer added sound. Gone with the Wind revolutionized background matte painting. The French Connection redefined chase scenes. Goodfellas mastered the modern Steadycam tracking shot. It’s time to add another title to that list: Act of Valor.
Act of Valor has changed the way weapons sound in movies. As my son and I watched the movie’s plot unfold, I was startled by the sound of the weapons used. As a sound engineer who creates sound effects and foley, I always listen carefully to movies. I try to break apart the sounds and figure out how they were captured and created. In Act of Valor, I heard weapons sounds like never before. Loading, cleaning, removing safeties, carrying, firing, the expulsion of cartridges, reloading, impacts, ricochets, and more. Everything sounded different. Everything sounded genuine.
Directors Mike McCoy and Scott Waugh’s commitment to authenticity extended to the soundscape. We want movies to be bigger than life. The sound engineers of Dirty Harry knew that. At the climatic moment when Harry says, “Go ahead punk. Make my day”, he fires his .44 Magnum. The sound engineers needed this gun report to move the audience. It was a defining moment. They slowed down the recording, mixed in other explosive sounds, added reverb, and increased the volume. In doing so, they changed the sound of weapons in movies… Until now.
When most guns are captured by mics, the sound is closer to a single firecracker explosion than Dirty Harry’s Smith and Wesson model 29. When engineers changed the sound in Dirty Harry, they altered our perception of gunfire. Star Wars’ weapons further blurred the line between reality and movie-magic. Throughout the 1980s, guns sounded bigger and badder. Clancy movies, the Mission: Impossible franchise, the Bourne series, and others have tried to be more realistic.
Act of Valor outdoes them all.
Engineers captured the sounds all of the different weapons used. When you see a weapon fired on screen, you hear that weapon. They also recorded live fire—real rounds hitting real targets.
The directors repeatedly used the words “real” and “authentic” when discussing the creation of this movie. Since SEALs were carrying and firing the weapons, what you see looks far more natural than even when the best military advisors train actors. Again, “real” and “authentic”. The desire for authenticity carries over into the effect weapons have on objects, enemies, and soldiers.
At the climactic moment of the movie, viewers watch the impact of a weapon. My jaw dropped. I’ve never seen anything like it. I won’t spoil the moment for you.
Hollywood has criticized the acting. Critics have vilified the military’s involvement. But no motion picture artist can argue with how the weapons are used. I hope they take lessons and apply them moving forward. Otherwise, their movies may sound plastic and fake.
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