Dystopian Tunes: Role of Music in Creating Atmosphere Within the Context of "Repo the Genetic Opera"

Abstract

Music has always been an indispensable element of cinema since the silent movie era. Yet with the advent of sound, music became a part of the movie as a defining element. Sound effects and music are being used in horror and science fiction genres in order to emotively affect the spectator and bring them into the world that is created in the movie; and are as important as the visual setting and narrative structure. Dystopian science fiction movies, which are a subgenre of the science-fiction genre, depict a dark future and use music to support this depiction. Generally, rock and metal music are utilized in these kinds of movies because the critical words of songs and heavily distorted electric guitars suit well the environs depicted in dystopic science fiction. In this paper, the musical "Repo! The Genetic Opera" (Daren Lynn Boussman, 2008) will be examined and how the dystopic atmosphere of the movie fits to its music; and how the music plays an essential role in creating this atmosphere will be studied. Combining the slasher subgenre with dystopic science fiction and linking it to the musical and the gaining of a cult following in a short amount of time is the reason why the movie is chosen.