In recent classes we were invited to more actively consider the importance of sound and how such may be a powerful tool in creating meaningful cinema, particularly when our expectations of what sound ‘should’ present itself as are disrupted. While our discussion of such in class pertained more explicitly to the inclusion of sound, since said discussion I have been considering the possibility of the exclusion of sound and how silence may be employed in an engaging fashion. I feel as though such may not be done without some degree of sound, for example at the beginning and end of a piece, due to the fact that an expectation for sound is so deeply ingrained that it is essential in order to establish audience engagement; even in early cinema, music was quickly incorporated as ambient sound for the purpose of enhancing the viewer’s investment in the image. However, the exclusion of sound may be used to emphasise certain moments and invite the audience to question their acceptance of the image with which they are presented. This has been demonstrated by the film Only God Forgives (2013), in which director Nicholas Winding Refn has allowed silence to prevail on two occasions during the film. Such was to the effect of emphasising barriers to communication between characters, inconsistencies between perspectives and the emotional qualities of the image presented. Ultimately, the viewer is invited to reflect upon their own understanding of the characters and plot at the moment of silence as they search for the reason for the silence. While these moments within the film are ineffectual in isolation, within the context of the film as a whole they are powerful and exploitative of their disruptive effect with respect to the audience’s expectations. I feel that noting the power of silence within this film is worthwhile in the context of the use of sound, particularly where said use is contrary to expectations, as it highlights the importance of the careful employment of sound and draws into light that sound does not need to create meaning in visual images but is a powerful tool when used to enhance the meaning of images.