From director Kim Soo-jin and screenwriter Lee Je-hui, the South Korean horror film Noise sees Seo Ju-hee (Han Soo-a) obsessing over her apartment being totally silent. She is seen sound proofing her home at the beginning of the film with one small section left undone in the ceiling. Ju-hee has been hearing things; something that clicks, scratches, and knocks. That open spot hints at being the source of the sound. Meanwhile, Ju-hee’s downstairs neighbor calls her from the front door phone and appears at her doorstop every night threatening absolute quiet or he’ll become violent.
Ju-hee’s sister Ju-young (Lee Sun-bin) is deaf and works at a factory. She used to live with her sister in the same apartment, but moved out to live in a work dormitory and because her sister was hearing things that she never did. Now it’s been four days and Ju-hee is missing. It’s up to Ju-young and Ju-hee’s boyfriend and co-worker Ki-hoon (Kim Min-seok) to figure out what happened to Ju-hee and whatever the source of the noise is.
Noise utilizes sound the same way that Sound of Metal did. Ju-young has hearing aids and a speech recognition app on her phone that the film toys with in different ways. When Ju-young turns off her hearing aids and the film goes quiet, her phone will pick up a speech pattern that translates to unsettling texts. People who hear this noise become brainwashed in a way and lash out in murderous ways. You’d think someone who has a hearing disability would be immune, but Ju-young is just as in danger as everyone else. Noise explores the fact that no one is safe.
For much of the film’s duration, Noise plays with the fact that Ju-hee could be the only one hearing this noise. Her interactions with Ju-young while they lived together have Ju-hee hearing things that Ju-young never did (she can hear when both hearing aids are on). So you’re left wondering if Ju-hee is overly sensitive to sound or if she’s hearing things that don’t actually exist.
The supernatural horror film thrives on this paranormal entity being the cause of everything, but shifts to something more psychological and revenge based during its finale. The entire building and all of Ju-hee’s neighbors have this unhealthy infatuation with silence but people who die don’t seem to leave. Notes are left on Ju-hee’s door after her disappearance that begin as basic warnings and evolve into elaborate threats written in blood.
Something happened in 604, Ju-hee’s unit, that results in one of the best and creepiest shots in the film. Ju-young begins having these vivid nightmares and seeing things that aren’t there. The neighbors are all keeping secrets; some by their own accord and others forced into it because the building is facing reconstruction approval. The basement is locked and full of trash, whether that is due to laziness or if there’s something to the smell is explored later in the film.
The performances are genuinely creepy in Noise with many characters teetering between sinister demeanors and sympathetic intentions. People are dying, but there’s also a reason for that and it’s a sensible reaction. But maybe it’s because the film changes course that it isn’t as great as it could have been. The ending leaves things in a place that aren’t fully satisfactory like things are better, but this sort-of-paranormal BS is going to keep happening for potential franchise purposes.
Noise is an auditory nightmare fueled by uncertainty and a foreboding atmosphere. It’s really good at times, but slightly disappointing with its explanation behind its implied creepy cacophony. Authentic moments of dread are drowned out by the echoing reverb of halfhearted writing.
