Noise (2007, Australia)Listening to people means more than just hearing them--it means empathy, especially in the most vulnerable of times. Noise (2007, Australia) focuses on the stories of two people in Melbourne: Constable Graham McGahan (Brendan Cowell) and Lavinia Smart (Maia Thomas). Lavinia is the sole survivor of a horrifying massacre aboard a subway, where she glimpsed the face of the murderer, and is haunted by the likelihood that the killer knows her identity. Graham is a low-level police officer who is assigned to take statements about a murder suspected to be related to the shooting at a remote operating site. This assignment follows a blackout he experienced and subsequent injury due to complications related to tinnitus, which afflicts him with a periodic ringing in his ears.
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Noise is a procedural thriller, but one which focuses far less on the detective work than how the brutal slayings affect those in the "inner west" of Melbourne. The detectives which arrive on the scene and take command of the investigation come across as either ineffectual or indifferent to Lavinia's state. The lead investigator even comes across as outright rude and unfeeling, setting a negative expectation for Lavinia, and even takes out his anger on Graham at one point after a key piece of evidence turns up during a narrow window when Graham temporarily left his post to stop an assault. The encompassing flaw of these investigators is that they really don't listen to the needs of people like Lavinia or Graham, and are both incapable of getting in touch with the deeper pulse behind the killings or even gauge the reactions of the community, because they are not really a part of the community. Graham is a more down-to-earth kind of guy; he's even told that he doesn't really seem like a cop, the implication being that he is more relatable than his peers. Graham is not without his flaws; he is a bit lazy, smokes pot, and keeps things from his girlfriend. Graham conceals his visit to the hospital following his bump on the head, even if his intention is to avoid worrying her, but these character flaws make him come across as more human. Graham is a protagonist that is designed to give the audience a look at the everyday realities of police work from an outsider's perspective, which is a clever way to engage the audience. That Graham suffers from tinnitus makes him more sympathetic as it becomes clear what his real role is when he is assigned to the caravan--to provide an outlet of support while gathering information about the killings from the members affected by it. This isn't something Graham comes to immediately; Graham nearly provokes an officious confrontation with a man with an open bottle of liquor and a belligerent attitude, who he later learns is the surviving fiance of the most recent victim of the killer at large. The man, Dean (Luke Elliot), and Graham eventually bond, sharing stories about each other and even discuss more lofty themes, such as what determines one's afterlife. On the other hand, while Graham may not be a professionally trained detective, when a foul-mouthed local with a chip on his shoulder named Craig (Henry Nixon) comes in, Graham senses that he doesn't have any real evidence to offer up except for offensive epithets, and defensively snubs the creep. Although Graham claims he isn't from around the area, his gradual involvement in the lives of these residents makes him a part of the lattice of the survivors, his mere presence a beacon of security.
Much of Noise is set at night, during the twilight hours when Graham works--from the time he relieves his predecessor, Constable Rhonda Harris (Maude Davey), to the time he is relieved by his successor with the laughably normal name, Constable John Smith (Simon King). It is during these late hours where Graham contemplates this purgatorial assignment, where the world exists in a kind of half-life state. Noise portrays the urban outskirts of Melbourne in washed out color palettes, drenched in the pallor of a fluorescent glow. This muted aesthetic parallels the affected distortion of sound that Graham copes with, and how his senses are somewhat stunted by it. Since Graham must focus his hearing when he tries to listen to what others are saying, the implication is that he is a better listener than others, just as Dean observes at one point. This may also account for why Graham is more sympathetic to "Lucky" Phil (Simon Laherty), a mentally handicapped young man with a pet dog who comes to visit the caravan for biscuits and to offer nuggets of information. In another procedural thriller, these encounters with Phil would be sources for clues, and a guy like Graham might "crack the case" with his acumen. While Graham is not unintelligent, the focus of Noise is not to recycle these tropes, but to show that answers may instead present themselves when one becomes involved in the proverbial terroir of the community. When Graham and Lavinia finally meet, the crucial element that connects them comes from listening, even more than honesty. Lavinia comes to Graham for answers about whether she is safe from the killer who no doubt knows who she is and how to find her. And Graham struggles to choose between the protocol of his job and offering the answers which Lavinia needs to hear to understand that someone is invested in her well-being, or at least acknowledges that hers is a real problem, and not just a faceless "case", forgotten when silent.
Recommended for: Fans of suspenseful thriller that deals with the aftermath of a horrific crime and how it affects those in the community. Noise also underscores the importance of the police as more than mere enforcers of policy but as a shield of security for that community.
Much of Noise is set at night, during the twilight hours when Graham works--from the time he relieves his predecessor, Constable Rhonda Harris (Maude Davey), to the time he is relieved by his successor with the laughably normal name, Constable John Smith (Simon King). It is during these late hours where Graham contemplates this purgatorial assignment, where the world exists in a kind of half-life state. Noise portrays the urban outskirts of Melbourne in washed out color palettes, drenched in the pallor of a fluorescent glow. This muted aesthetic parallels the affected distortion of sound that Graham copes with, and how his senses are somewhat stunted by it. Since Graham must focus his hearing when he tries to listen to what others are saying, the implication is that he is a better listener than others, just as Dean observes at one point. This may also account for why Graham is more sympathetic to "Lucky" Phil (Simon Laherty), a mentally handicapped young man with a pet dog who comes to visit the caravan for biscuits and to offer nuggets of information. In another procedural thriller, these encounters with Phil would be sources for clues, and a guy like Graham might "crack the case" with his acumen. While Graham is not unintelligent, the focus of Noise is not to recycle these tropes, but to show that answers may instead present themselves when one becomes involved in the proverbial terroir of the community. When Graham and Lavinia finally meet, the crucial element that connects them comes from listening, even more than honesty. Lavinia comes to Graham for answers about whether she is safe from the killer who no doubt knows who she is and how to find her. And Graham struggles to choose between the protocol of his job and offering the answers which Lavinia needs to hear to understand that someone is invested in her well-being, or at least acknowledges that hers is a real problem, and not just a faceless "case", forgotten when silent.
Recommended for: Fans of suspenseful thriller that deals with the aftermath of a horrific crime and how it affects those in the community. Noise also underscores the importance of the police as more than mere enforcers of policy but as a shield of security for that community.