I would like to start off by saying that I really enjoyed this movie. There are several things related to color that I picked up on, but most of them were already mentioned in previous posts, so I will try to mention diifferent ones that I noticed.
One of the things I picked up on was the use of green in the scenes that seemed to be mysterious or not appropriate, like when Frank went into the gay bar and when Kathy and Raymond went to the restaurant. I also liked how these scenes were shot, along with several others that seemed to be mysterious. The angle in which they were shot caught my attention. instead of having the shot of the scene being straight on, the shot of the scene was tilted slightly, giving the viewer a different angle/perspective to view the scene. By doing this, these scenes stood out, were different from the rest of the scenes in the movie.
Another thing that I liked about this movie, that also caught my attention was the use of plants/flowers to represent life and death. One scene is when Kathy meets Raymond, and Kathy finds out her old gardner is dead, and his son Raymond will be taking over (life). This scene takes place around plants that I believe are mostly green (another mysterious scene). Then there is the scene when Kathy and Raymond are walking through the woods and Raymond gives her a certain type of plant that is rare (this is after she finds out her husband is gay, death of her love life and who she thought he was). This plant stays in the house for the rest of the movie, and shows no sign of it wilting or dying, which I think might represent the life that Kathy and Raymond are bound to have. Then there is the scene where Raymond tell's Kathy he is selling his business to move (death of his present life, to restart a new one). Then finally there is the last scene of the blossoming tree which could represent the new life of Raymond, Kathy, and Frank and the new lives they are going to live. This might be a far stretch, but there are many instances where there are plants and flowers involved in scenes, and I don't want to dismiss that.
Overall I thought this movie was well done, from the colors that were used to the portrayals of race and gender.
Good point, that plants and seasons really do represent shifting emotions in the film. Remember that the day when the school bullies chase Sarah and throw rocks at her, it's a clear fall day that gradually turns cloudy, and by the time they corner her in the alley, it is snowing. Raymond finds Cathy's scarf hanging off one of the birch trees; at the end, after he has been fired, we see the Whittakers' new gardener sawing branches off a fallen or felled birch tree; the same one? It might as well be, symbolically. The innocence and nobility that defines their friendship began at alofty height, but is brought low and destroyed by others.
ReplyDeleteThe color green is complex in cinema; in this film, it is used for a wide spectrum of meanings. Its place in nature and in some scenes is very positive and affirming; but when the saturated green light is seen in the gay bar, it is meant to be menacing. Also, we first see Frank in the police station with all green walls. Green denotes many things: life, harmony, fertility, etc. But also decay, poison. Characters who wear green are often seen as outsiders or alien presences. We may take a look at Sofia Coppola's film The Virgin Suicides later on, which uses the color green very effectively as well.