1. Jackie Kolo
Comm 360
Paper 2
How Sound Helps Tell the Story in M
In the film “M”, Fritz Lang effectively used sound to tell a story. The film would not
have been as big of an impact if it were not for the clever use of sound. From the use of off-
screen voices, realistic sound effects and the effective use of silence, M is a masterpiece. The
film is a great example of the transition between silent films and films beginning to incorporate
sound and how sound can be used as an efficient storytelling instrument.
Some feared at the time that the incorporation of sound into film would undo the art of
cinematography that had come so far. This was due to the lack of movement the actors and
cameras could do because of the very sensitive microphones that were used at the beginning of
the sound era. Actors would have to talk into pieces of the set with microphones in them such as
a bush. It really limited the actor’s ability to move around and well, act. However, from the first
talkie, The Jazz Singer that was released in 1927, talkies became very popular in the 1930’s. In
1931 when M was released, filmmakers started to have a better understanding of microphones
and how they could make them work efficiently. That being said, Lang was able to incorporate
sound into the film effectively by creative editing and planning.
While some early talkies used sound as a novelty or a gimmick, Lang made it essential to
his story. In the film, the killer whistles a familiar tune (“In the Hall of the Mountain King”)

2. while he’s walking around town that gives him away as the culprit. Sometimes the audience
knows he’s around not because we see him but because we hear his theme. The use of whistling
adds a creepy effect that shows the kind of potential that movie music can have in a movie. For
example, Michael Meyer’s theme in Halloween alerts the audience that it is him and that he is
going to murder someone.
Lang also used sounds in many other ways. Another example is his use of voice-overs. In
the beginning of the movie when Elsie first goes missing and her mother is calling her, it cuts to
shots of places Elsie could be but is not. We see the staircase, a laundry room, her spot at the
dinner table set and ready for dinner, a ball rolling around outside, and finally the balloon getting
tangled up in the telephone wire. All the while, Elsie’s mother is voiced-over the different scenes
and her voice gets more distant the further we get from her home. By the time we get to the ball
rolling and the balloon, it is silent. This is a very creative use of visual and audio working
together because it lets the audience know that Elsie is gone without even showing a drop of
blood. We also see the use of a voice over in the scene where a police psychologist gives his
profile of the killer. The scene cuts to a shot of the killer himself in his apartment with the
psychologist still heard in voice-over. This device is now of course, a basic way of filmmaking.
Think of how many movies about the FBI or policeman stands before a room full of agents and
describes the fugitive they are looking for, and as he talks it cuts to images of that very fugitive.
This is a good way of introducing the villain of the story because the cops are explaining and
describing him, and we get to see what the villain looks like.
Another successful way sound helps tell the story is in the scene where we see the wanted
poster, Elsie’s ball bouncing, and ironically, the murder’s shadow appears over his wanted
poster. You can hear the conversation between him and Elsie, but you do not see what he looks

3. like, just his shadow. This of course is followed up by the murderer whistling his creepy tune and
the purchase of a balloon for Elsie from the blind beggar who will eventually recognize him
because of this theme.
Although sound is a huge part of this film, I also think the use of silence is just as
important, particularly the lack of music. The lack of music makes the dialogue and sound
effects stand out more. I found that throughout watching the film, I jumped a few times when a
street scene went from complete silence to a car honking or a bell ringing (although this may be
because I turned the volume up a little too loud in the beginning because I couldn’t hear anything
at first-sorry classmates!)You can’t hear the busy sounds of the street much or the sounds of
shoes walking on pavement like we have in today’s movies. So much of the film’s sound focuses
on dialogue, the murder’s whistles and random sound effects.
The sound effects in the film were never without purpose though. For example, in the
scene where the beggars are on the trail of the murderer and watching him closely, he takes a
little girl into a sweet shop and you can tell when they exit the shop because the bell on the door
rings. You don’t have to see them actually leave the shop but you know where they are. Other
times sound effects really stood out were when the beggars are whistling to each other, when a
fire truck goes by and the quiet scrapping of the murderer in the attic. The beggars whistling to
each other showed at all times where the murderer was and that he was constantly being
watched. The fire truck going by caused a sense of chaos to the scene and the quiet scrapping by
the murderer trying to break out allowed for the beggars to find him and take him into their
custody.

4. The use of sound in M was so successful because of the new and creative ways Lang was
able to experiment with sound. In today’s movies, voice overs, and sound effects are used in
almost every film and television show. It is a smart way to “show” what is going on in a scene
without actually showing it. M ultimately proves that for its time, the use of sound was a very
efficient tool in telling a story well and especially one as controversial as a man murdering
children.