Sound of Noise
Sound of Noise
R | 09 March 2012 (USA)
Sound of Noise Trailers

A tone-deaf cop works to track down a group of guerilla percussionists whose anarchic public performances are terrorizing the city.

Reviews
Baseshment I like movies that are aware of what they are selling... without [any] greater aspirations than to make people laugh and that's it.
FrogGlace In other words,this film is a surreal ride.
Mathster The movie runs out of plot and jokes well before the end of a two-hour running time, long for a light comedy.
Stephanie There is, somehow, an interesting story here, as well as some good acting. There are also some good scenes
Christian The first scene in the car is unforgettable and brilliant. The character intros are clichés but work well and bring out assured laughs. The premise is far-fetched but ingenious. Art and music terrorism is well explored and the points well taken, although the anarchist approach relies too much on the opposition to classical music in my taste as opposed to perhaps seeing it as an extension or evolution. Classical music is demonized and various forms of pop are frown upon, yet the final song which may be the best one is a popish bossa nova ballad.The acts of terrorism are in 4 acts of a musical mastermind mayhem. The first one works the best in all aspects and especially musically while the 3 others like the rest of the movie starts to drag. Narratively, some elements are very weak and even if it is a wacky comedy makes for uninteresting moments and unreal connections. I was annoyed at many situations, reactions and characters which may be the case for some viewers.However this film should still be seen for its inventive premise and many memorable scenes. Some scenes are beautiful and some are truly laugh out loud funny. Have a look at it and decide if you want to fast-forward some of it or claim it to be the next best thing like the Young Critics at Cannes and many others did.And let there be silence.
Matthew Stechel Sound of Noise actually manages the very rare feat of laying out a unique spin on the detective/police procedural format. Oh the elements are there, there's a cop, there's a band of "terrorists" who are always two steps ahead, there's a personal connection between the acts of the terrorists and the detective's home life, there's a very neat cat and mouse game between the detective and the leader of the terrorists (who happens to be a blond woman) but of course the fact that the band of terrorists are all frustrated musicians and that the act of terror they're spreading is musical based (they get together at various locations and "play" any object that's around--staging these very performance art like set pieces in areas and pretty much annoying the heck out of everyone who happens to be around) This movie is definitely far more original then any other cop movie is these days. (well any that i can think of as of the time i'm writing this at least) Of course none of that originality wouldn't mean anything if the pacing of the movie weren't tight, or if the lead character's personal life weren't also interesting, or if the suspense of what the detective is actually going to do once he captures this band of terrorists (or even if he wants to capture them given his personal background) I have to give a lot of credit to this movie for being pretty original in that even with a well worn format i still had little idea where the movie was ultimately going to go--and if the last ten or twenty minutes don't exactly play out the way you'd like them to--that's pretty OK because quite honestly i'm not sure i could've come up with a better ending either. (and really the more i think about it the more i quite like the ending--it very much matches the tone and events of what came before and what we've come to know about the 2 leading characters throughout the movie) Will this movie hold up on repeat viewing? i'd like to think so--even if the frustrated musical terrorists ultimately become annoying---i really really really quite enjoyed the detective's back story and how his back story plays into his need to capture this band of terrorists. Its actually kind of a cute love story in a way, a bizarre one, but definitely a cute one. About that background of the cop tho---when you read the following sentence--you're reaction to it should indicate whether you'd be charmed or annoyed by this film. The lead detective happens to not especially care for music because he comes from a family of well known music lovers--his brother is a conductor for the local symphony while he himself is rather tone deaf and clueless about what makes good music--so of course it should fall to him to stop this musical band of terrorists from spreading their own brand of "music" around town. I'm telling you right now--if that bit of whimsy makes you wanna hit your computer screen then this movie is definitely not for you--but then again what are you doing looking at these user comments here in the first place if not to check this one out a little bit???
StevenS Sheehan Sound of Noise is a surreal and ever so slightly barmy Swedish comedy designed to make you look at your household and everyday items in a completely new light. What the film lacks in budget is substituted by the huge ideas incorporated within the story by directors Ola Simonsson and Johannes Stjärne Nilsson who build a world around the ideals of a fine art project.Sanna and Magnus are two musical mavericks, determined to break away from traditional convention yet they find themselves frustrated at the small scale impact their projects appear to have on their home city. The first of which is seen as they speed down the motorway pursued by the police. Magnus manically beats the drums in the back of their van whilst Sanna revs and changes gear in time with their signature metronome.That will give you a heads up of the running theme throughout the film. They want to make a bigger impression with their work by pushing the musical scope of the city, making people stand up and listen to their passionate creativity. The bottom line is they want to dispose of the rubbish music they fear is ruining their soundscape.Meanwhile Amadeus (Bengt Nilsson), a tone deaf police inspector, picks up on their trail that slowly develops into a personal journey to overcome the years of frustration spent as a side note amongst his own family. His father was a world renowned classical composer and his brother Oscar, a childhood musical prodigy, continues the family tradition as a leading composer in the country.A familiar cops and robbers theme develops between the inspector and the musicians, although never over complicated or serious enough to detract from the light and fun tone so evident throughout.The 'musical terrorists' build their movement around four signature pieces of work in the city, incorporating inanimate objects and whatever materials lay nearby. It brings to mind the work of Matthew Herbert, a classically trained British electronic musician who pioneered the use of everyday objects into the modern electro movement.These set pieces are a joy to behold – wonderful short snapshots of music that are warm, catchy and in the case of the last 'Electro Love' quite poignant.Firstly they take a famous patient 'hostage' in a local hospital, then proceed to play music in, around and actually on him, using the operating materials and machines to get the beat and rhythm formed. The bank is next; except they do not want to steal the money instead shred it through the machine whilst the sound bounces off the stamps being hammered behind the desks.Each example gradually grows in scale making the fourth and last by far the most impressive and one of the most original ideas I have seen on or away from film.Scaling up pylons and across the gigantic electricity lines, they shut down half of the cities power supply then use them as chords to reverberate their final piece deep into the city. The stakes are then raised as they play with the power on, creating a rhythm with the power source so the whole city becomes subject to the throbbing lights played in time. Shops, houses, office blocks and whole streets switch between dark and light in a fantastic crescendo leaving you to wonder how such a small film pulled off such an expansive visual treat.Dig a little deeper and you could use this as an analogy for the young generation to have their voices heard, something indicated later in the film when the cities musicians are rounded up. I could also sit here and pick out some of the flaws with the characters or plot but there would be no point to that at all.Just enjoy the feel good factor, stretching the boundaries of your imagination that will leave a content smile on your face as the bossa nova outro sees you through the door.
Enchorde Amadeus Warnebring is the black sheep of the family, completely tone deaf, where as everyone else is musical prodigies. Amadeus went on to be a cop instead and is put in charge of the mysterious investigation where the only clue is a metronome left behind. And soon a group of anonymous percussionists starts to terrorize the city with music.Sound of Noise is a very odd movie. Forget that the dialog and story are somewhat stiff and wooden at times, it is the music that is everything. And it rocks. Especially the piece with the heavy machinery was spectacular, but the performance at the hospital was catching as well. Anyone who likes rhythm is in for a real treat.7/10