Il rumore della vita

This is an unusual movie in the sense that if you are not interested in the subject matter, I'm not sure you will gain anything here. There is nothing fancy big budget tricks to sway you in a cinematic experience but what they did here is very clever and if you like movies that make you aware of a formerly unnoticed thing, check this one out. I happen to enjoy the discussion of sound, music, patterns, and the unseen forces all around us. It is a very cerebral approach to something that we all never knew about: how the sounds around us might actually be affecting us. Talk about the elephant in the room! Peter Sarsgaard plays a man (also named Peter) making a map of New York City based on the different sounds of the neighborhoods. He had his three handy tuning forks (which can be seen on the movie poste there) which he uses to determine the frequency of an area, then assigning a musical key to the area. He makes a living by "reading" people's apartments to determine the sound of the ambient rooms and then telling the occupants how they can best shape the frequencies in the room to create a more harmonious living space. He discusses the sounds of appliances and he has even created devices of his own to counterbalance other sounds. It is really a very interesting concept and there is a lot of exploring to do there but that is not what makes this movie so captivating. Peter is trying to branch out with his abilities so he buddies up with a company that makes home products to help people relax by changing the smells and sounds of an environment, something Peter seems to immediately find tacky. And within conversations the world of Peters beliefs really open up. He does not believe that his "tool", his ability to confront the sounds of a space in a very unusual way, should be commercialized to the masses. I'll leave the rest up for you to discover. A really great performance by Bruce Altman as Harold, the man trying to recruit Peter to work for the big company. And of course Peter Sarsgaard in as solid as a performance as we know him for. Unfortunately I found the storyline with Rashida Jones' character Ellen to be really lacking in anything that provided a satisfying plot. Not to say she did a bad job just seemed like lazy writing to fill a full movie with, therefore her scenes really seemed uninspired. Also too many montages, I get it New York City is a beautiful symphony of sounds but once or twice is enough, more than that and i'm really not sure what I'm watching anymore. The somber piano soundtrack also was a little disheartening, lost the flow of the movie. I know that is a lot of complaint for something I rated 7/10 but all the actors really did a great job and it is very clear that once the director got more than one actor in a scene together really, honestly, some movie magic happened and it was hard to look away let alone be uninterested in the concept of these sounds and rhythms guiding our days in ways that we could not be aware. This movie is clearly about the sounds that shape our lives and resonate in us creating the people we are but with each discussion of this I feel a deep underlying notion trying to be made that sound is just the factor that it is possible to be aware of. That is we notice the sound, if we stop and listen we will undoubtedly notice a dozen minor sounds happening around us all the time but just imagine what else is there pushing us in all directions...society is a maliable entity and it's because it's made up of individuals and we are, like, 60% water. What do you think resonates very easily through water? That's right, sound. So sound is the starting point. There is a pattern there and I think once we are able to resonate with it completely something truly good will come of it. Be aware, take notice, and, of course, thank the filmmakers for making a good movie here, thanks

I liked this movie. It's different and unexpected, despite a bit slow. I liked the way it ends, graciously. Go watch it!

This was such a beautiful movie. The more I think about it the more I love it. There were so many layers that you don't even realize them all while you're watching it that make it so deep and beautiful. Peter Sarsgaard was seriously created for this part & Rashida Jones spoke so freely & honestly throughout that I couldn't help but feel empathetic in every one of her scenes. Can't wait to recommend this movie to all my film lover friends!

Not an action movie (pun intended), but a slowburning movie. Mysterious and mesmerizing story. Best served in a quiet and dark room, because this movies' photography and sound is as delicate as can be, with many scenes so dark, that it is barely visible what is happening, only further adding to the mesmerizing effect though...

The story: Peter Sarsgard plays an analyst of sounds, who has got a super sensitive ear and who helps people "tune" their homes, by removing certain dissonant sounds, until that day he isnt able to help one particular woman, played by Rashida Jones. What is going on inside Rashida Jones' house?

The good: the acting is great. The sound effects are mesmerizing. The story (terrific climax at the end) is wonderfully delicate, mysterious and (again!) mesmerizing.

Any bad? It's quite a dark and moody slowburning movie, almost depressing in nature, therefore not suited for the impatient or happy go lucky. However this movie is highly recommended for the art house movie fans of subtle and dark, mysterious stories, provided one darkens it's room before watching it, because of the very dark lighting techniques one often cant see very well what is happening on screen.

This movie needs to be heard as much as it needs to be seen. Terrific soundtrack. Using headphones quite effectively enhanced the claustrophobic, mysterious effect this movie had on me!

End note: if you liked this movies theme and spirit, you must try out the brilliant classic movie "The Conversation", directed by Francis Ford Coppola. It has got an almost similar theme, but it is much more intense and suspenseful...

The "House Tuner" may sound cool as a new promising occupation, but this movie actually didn't open a new territory or new phase. It only gave you an either dark cloudy low cast New York or gave you a dim, dark home office of this guy's apartment. The camera purposely used certain darkened, tinted lens to emphasize the dreary conditions living in the big city. City noises are everywhere, inescapable, all the man-made sounds were so random, so abrupt, so unpredictable, like some most pieces composed by the crazy Igor Stravinsky. But at least this guy used music instruments to create those crazy, unpredictable scores. But in the big city, all the noises, the sounds are all man-made mechanical craps, there's no way you can decide any part of the city is in B minor or whatever. The city noises created by traffic or other things if coming afar, it usually is called "white noise". Appliances at home if plugged, the electricity circuit would definitely cause noises.

When this guy pointed out that the female client's depression, all-day-night-feeling-tired, or whatever was coming from her toaster, I just couldn't help myself. Are you serious?! Yo, she's too lonely, okay? Her job was too boring, okay? And this certified male loner would have declare her problem was from a toaster? Jesus.....There's nothing wrong with her, all she needed was a man, a romance, a lover, a man slept next to her at night, regular sex, then she'd be automatically rejuvenated and happier. It absolutely got nothing to do with the toaster, Okay?!

What we saw in this movie were: The New York weather were constantly cloudy and chill, the city noises were so loud, abrupt and constant. Most people in New York were not happy but like working ants. Everybody lived in a quite dark apartment. Nobody wore bright colors but dark clothes. Everything and everybody looked so depressed. There's no way to solve this big city phobia, the only way to escape is smoking pot, drink hard liquor or chain smoking. House tune? Save it, man.