Why is sound added?
Sounds are added into opening scenes to create tension and atmosphere. Sound can be used to tell the audience what the characters are feeling. Sound can also be used to build up tension, for example in Hush the heartbeat sound is used to create tension. Our opening scene is symbolic and so intense sound is what creates the tension within our scene.
Hush
Within the film Hush, in the final fighting scene near to the end of the film, the man is strangling the woman, as she is loosing her life a heartbeat sound effect is played over the top, this then gives the audience a sense of feeling that she is going to die especially when the heartbeat starts to slow down and fade out. The film is a silent film and so this heartbeat effect interacts with the audience in a fearful way because it is showing that she is going to die.
Saw
At the start of the Saw trailer there is a clear male scream before the drums start to play. Within the Saw opening title sequence there is dramatic sounds over the top of a series of images. these sound are loud drums, with what sounds like a woman scream in the background which fades in and out between the drums. At the end of the title sequence it sounds like photos are being taken by a camera.