Desperate Housewives S05 Ep10: Sound

When Porter is telling his parents and lawyer he has an alibi there is initially no non-diegetic sound. The audience are not aware at this point that he actually does not have an alibi and is mistaken. As the audience have not been made aware of this humourous element yet, there is only diegetic sound and so the audience expect him to have an alibi. They do not expect there to be a joke at this point.

Porter then says 'I went to her [Edie's] house, but only so I could break in and steal her gun.' At this point non-diegetic music begins to play in the backgrounded. It is light-hearted and often used in Desperate Housewives to make the audience aware that the scene they are watching is intended to be funny and make them laugh. Now the audience may assume that Porter doesn't in fact have an alibi and is now confessing to another crime and therefore not helping his case. The music then continues throughout the scene, which is made funnier by Porter's confession of hiding the gun in Lynette's flour jar. Finally he asks 'do you think that will help?'. The silence that follows increases the comedy element, as the non-diegetic music gently continues in the background. When Lynette then tells Porter it is not an alibi, the music stops to reinforce the reality of this fact and make it funny for the audience. It then picks up again and and continues till the end of this scene.

The next scene begins just after the music for the previous scene has ended. The music was light-hearted but as it has stopped it indicates not only a new scene but also that at least the beginning of the next scene will not be funny. At the beginning of this scene only diegetic sound can be heard as Edie and Dave exchange some dialogue. The camera then moves in on Dave as he looks out onto the street. He begins to turn his head but then something catches his eye. At this point non-diegetic music then begins. This notes are prolonged and the music is slightly sinister. The music reinforces the significance of something catching his eye and stopping him form turning back to what he was doing. It indicates to the audience that what he has seen is important to the narrative and that it is also something slightly sinister.

Edie's voice then fades slightly and almost sounds like an echo as we are shown what Dave is looking at. The audience is at this point put into his character's position and made to feel as though we are him and are in his head. We are able to not only see but also feel from his point of view the effect what he can see is having on him. This reinforces the significance of this scene. We are then suddenly brought back to reality as the glass in his hand smashes. It is quick and effective because the audience is put in Dave's position and therefore like him we are not aware of what is going on around him. The sound of glass smashing brings him and therefore the audience back to reality. The eerie music continues till the end of this scene and until the woman and child leave, indicating there is something sinister attached to this story and to the woman and child he can see. The sinister music begins once Dave is made aware of the presence of the woman and child and then stops when they leave reinforcing the idea that something about them is not quite right.