The horror genre is not just about the jump scares and visual effects. Sounds play into the mix of creating ambience and atmosphere for the actors on screen to execute chilling scenarios. “Noise” might just be one of those “see less, listen more” films, but not without purpose. Directed by Kim Soo Jin, starring Lee Sun Bin, Han Soo A, Kim Minseok, Ryu Kyung Soo, Jeon Ik Ryeong and Baek Joo Hee, follow along Korea’s upcoming horror hit.
“Noise” tells of two sisters, the hearing-impaired Ju Young (Lee Sun Bin/이진경) and her little sister, Ju Hee (Han Soo A/한수아), who finally achieved their dreams of owning their apartment after the death of their parents. However, with each passing day, Ju Hee begins to grow restless from a mysterious and unidentifiable noise coming from the unit above them. With Ju Hee going missing one day, Ju Young starts searching for her whereabouts in the house and starts to be haunted by sounds linked to her sister’s disappearance and the presence of a malevolent spirit in the building
As you can imagine from the title, the movie is based on auditory horror, where the visuals aren’t its scare factor, rather, from the chilling sounds of teeth grinding or the ring of a phone cutting through the silence. Its protagonist, Ju Young, is hard of hearing, making sounds around her the focal point of each scene, where directors utilise her hearing aids as a way to create more tension with the ongoing horrors.
The film starts by introducing viewers to the noise plaguing the two sisters, which takes a toll on both of them as the movie progresses. The film utilised audio sensory horror heavily, where each sound was seemingly amplified, adding rich environmental points for the movie. Each sentence and creak was heard clearly, and each passing second of silence had an immense effect in maximising the scares.
Lee Sun Bin delivered a stellar performance in the movie, playing on the realistic horror of simply being unaware of the horrors surrounding her. Directors used her character’s hearing aids as a way to shut off or turn on the audio, seemingly inviting viewers to join in on her experience as the film progresses, making it highly more immersive than your regular jump scare fest. She executed the role perfectly, working with grief and loss to her character, where she evolves to be almost manic in the search for her sister, as well as playing the role of the hearing impaired by actually learning sign language for the film.
Besides its protagonist, the film also amplifies the scares with its lack of screams, seemingly working with the emotional turmoil that plagues the residents, as the case evolves into something far more sinister. Rather than throwing around screams to add to its horror points, the film uses how its characters deal with loss and revenge, losing their sense of reality and going into madness, taking paranormal horrors to the physical plane. Moreover, the film blurs the line between the supernatural and the material plane, where viewers could confuse the paranormal noises with those of mundane tasks, creating a far bigger mystery of discerning the source of each sound.
Supporting characters played a big hand in adding to the plot, with writers angling the peer pressure of other tenants, adding tension and anxiety to an already stressful situation. Han Soo A was also one of the highlights as she portrays a young lady constantly perturbed by the noises around her. Her performance in the film added to the scare factor as she goes from baseless annoyance to downright madness.
Despite its interesting build-up to its big unfolding, we believe the film to be lacking in its finale, as the many characters confused viewers about who the actual perpetrator was and the motive behind it. The linking of characters and their relationship with each other was not fully delved into in the film, leaving room for plot holes that were not explored. Where the plot remained interesting, elements of predictability were scattered in the second half of the film, where we wished it could have evolved into something more out of the ordinary.
Overall, “Noise” is a great start to a new era of Korean-produced horror films, where chills and thrills aren’t always executed in the form of jump scares. Despite its predictability later in the film, the directors still managed to keep things fresh with its play on everyday sounds and immersiveness. The pacing of the film kept us sitting on the edge of our seats throughout the entirety of the movie, which gains a plus point for engagement from the audience.
Watch the trailer here:
“Noise” premieres in cinemas nationwide on 17th July 2025
Alyssa Gabrielle contributed to this article.
