10 Horror Films With Terrifying Sound Design
5. The Shining (1980)
Hailed as one of the greatest horror films ever made, Stanley Kubrick’s adaptation of The Shining still continues to chill audiences to the bone all these years later.
Taking place in the lavish Overlook Hotel during the winter season, the film follows Jack Torrance (Jack Nicholson) and his family take up residence in the hotel when Jack takes the caretaker job. Isolated from the outside world by heavy snowfall, an already unhinged Jack begins to fall apart at the seams as the hotel takes hold of him.
From incorporating impossible corridors and windows into the set design, subtly moving props during shots, and even terrorising actor Shelley Duvall to get the most out of her performance, Kubrick did everything he could to ensure that his Overlook Hotel was as unnerving as possible. Likewise, his implementation of sound design was just as crucial in accomplishing this.
Not including the sensory-shattering cacophony that is its score, Kubrick deploys other subtle tricks within his film to raise the tension without viewers even noticing. One of the most effective of which is the Room 237 scene where Kubrick plants an ominous heartbeat into the soundtrack to build suspense as Jack walks towards the bathroom.