This kind of imagery is irresistible for lyricists who want to convey tension and danger.

The singing conveys far too much vocal tension for that.

Pumped up to the point of explosion, the Rock moves laboriously, and chases, sword fights and battles are too chaotic to convey tension.

Ms. Connelly, while very beautiful, displays an extremely limited dramatic range and even resorts to biting her nails to convey tension during one important scene.

Bitterness permeated her words, her feelings, even the way she stood, conveying both alert tension and total defeat.

These simple signals conveyed tension but she did not know how to read them accurately.

Mr. Gregoropoulos may have had a few of these - with others or with himself - for, in a restrained way, his work conveys much intellectual tension.

Even his vocals, which usually convey romantic tension through a thin, brittle timbre, sound more plummy and relaxed.

By contrast, the songbook standard "More Than You Know" conveyed as much emotional tension as a warm bath.

The film is so devoted to sustaining a continuous high-decibel commotion that it lacks all narrative coherence, and its chases, sword fights and battles are too fragmented to convey tension.