Fade to black

The phrase, 'fade to black' is the customary way of ending a film, or a scene in a film by closing off the light in the camera. In many cases fading to black is done with dramatic emphasis.

The judicial use of music in films to enhance the visual development of a story, and to synthesize the personalities of characters played by actors can be dramatic and emotionally transporting.

These two elements of film making came together in a particularly stunning and powerful way in the final scene of the Robert Durst movie, The Jinx (miniseries). When it was aired on TV, I was attentive to the story as it unfolded, but during the final scene, I was absolutely transfixed as the scene faded to black, with only the sound of Durst confessing to murder on his open mike while he was in the bathroom, away from the camera. As Durst began to realize what had transpired during filming, that he had been shown evidence proving him a murderer, his realization came in spurts, the words interspersed with groans.

My own realization of what Durst had just said paralleled his in intensity. As the fade to black was completed, faint sounds of undefinable musical tones morphed into a wail of anguish that I imagined Durst was experiencing.

I thought the music might be that of a Zen flute or possibly a Buddhist or Tibetan horn, but when I researched the sound track of the movie, Jinx, I discovered the notes were made by a musical saw. It was played by Natalia Paruz, a well known musician who has played the instrument in many movies and TV commercials and street performances.

For a movie that was scripted to end with a mundane fade to black, the unexpected confession combined with the unusual music, created a dramatic and emotionally charged film ending that will be hard to top.