In at least 2 paragraphs, discuss the use of color and the use of light in this film. Choose a topic you would like to explore in the film and how Nicholas Ray presents it cinematically.
Lighting is one of the most crucial elements of the film, Bigger Than Life. To speak to the audience cinematically, Nicholas Ray utilizes color and lighting in a variety of ways. One such use is when Ray juxtaposes the lighting with what is happening onscreen. When Ed is playing catch with his son, Richie, the throwing of the ball become more and more intense eventually culminating in Richie being unable to catch his father’s steroid-powered throws and Ed berating him for not being able to do so. The scene is well lit with soft lighting. It is the middle of the day and it is sunny outside. This kind of lighting usually implies a lull in the action or a space to breath between more intense scenes. However, Ray surprises the audience by having one such intense scene happen in a soft, well-lit set. this juxtaposition makes the scene shocking and by subverting audience expectations becomes all the more effective in establishing the harmful effects of Ed’s cortisone. Lighting is used another time in the film when Richie is studying for school. This time, ray does not concern himself with fooling the audience, instead, he very blatantly shows how lighting implies the monster that Ed has become. In the low angle shot, Ed is hovering over Richie who is in the foreground trying to do his studying. Ed, though he is in the background, takes up much more of the on screen space than Richie, immediately implying his dominance over him. The shot is dim with the main sources of light being directly focused on the characters and thus, emphasising the shadows. Furthermore, the lighting comes from below which produces unsettling and unnatural lighting of Ed’s face. The most important part of the lighting in this shot, is Ed’s shadow on the wall. It is even larger than he is and it appears to be coming directly out of him. The shadow is also misshapen, making it seem as though it is the shadow of a grotesque monster. So, it is obvious that the shadow protruding from Ed is representative of his inner-demons that are tormenting the family. Color can be seen being used effectively toward the end of the film when Ed goes into his full breakdown and attempts to murder his son. As Ed bursts through the door his son is hiding behind, we see an implied POV shot of Richie in the ground. Next, the film cuts to an extreme closeup of Ed’s face grimacing in horror. Then, shockingly, the film cuts to a brief shot of red encompassing the frame. The red is moving around slowly and we only see it for a brief second before cutting back to a medium shot of Ed doubling over in pain as Richie runs past him and out of the room. This red is clearly representative of blood and the bodily harm that Ed wants to inflict upon his son. The POV shot was used to establish that the audience was briefly seeing things from within Ed’s mind. Then ray uses the kuleshov effect to show that Ed’s seeing of his son is what is causing him discomfort. Finally, the red is likely what Ed is seeing in his mind with the color representing both the violence Ed is capable of, and the rage that Ed is overwhelmed with at the sight of his son. This jarring use of color is just one effective way that Ray places the audience in the mindset of a character to help us better understand the narrative .
Nicolas Ray’s use of color in Bigger Than Life is to show the audience a glimpse of the characters’ minds, feelings, emotions, and even personalities. Regarding color, there is much of it used in this film. The main character, would wear dark colored clothing, like dark blue or gray. This shows how dark and in pain the character feels, because he is suffering from a pain that will kill him and the medication he takes to make it go away makes him psychotic. Either way he has to deal with an important problem. One interesting use of color used was when Ed’s wife wore a faded green outfit. This was at the dinner table and as they ate, Ed tells his wife that he is staying solely for the boy. To me, this faded green shows how the wife’s energy, hope, and tolerance is fading due to her husband’s new behavior. This is different from the white gown she wore earlier in the film that gave her this stunning radiance. She was much more lively, hopeful, and pure before her husband went psychotic due to the medication. She was caring and the innocent wife who could not help but wishes that she could. She has turned into a wife whose efforts are in vain and not appreciated enough by her husband. She is losing that innocence and radiance while her husband gets darker and more menacing and prideful. The lighting plays a very important role in the film by setting the mood and tone. The importance of the lighting is very evident in the scene when Ed is trying to teach Richie and he will not let him eat dinner until he gets a math question correct. There is very low lighting in the room, giving the shot a dark and menacing mood, portraying Ed as some kind of evil dictator as he hovers over his son’s shoulders. Lou, his wife, walks in telling them that dinner is waiting for them. In the room is a massive shadow that is as tall as the wall. This shadow is right next to Lou and is hovering over everyone in the room, even Ed himself. The shadow is the monster inside of Ed. It is large and intimidating. One important thing to note is how the shadow hovers over Ed, showing how the monster, the medication, has taken control of him. He is no longer who he used to be. He is the monster, which is, in a sense, bigger than life.
Lighting is one of the most crucial elements of the film, Bigger Than Life. To speak to the audience cinematically, Nicholas Ray utilizes color and lighting in a variety of ways. One such use is when Ray juxtaposes the lighting with what is happening onscreen. When Ed is playing catch with his son, Richie, the throwing of the ball become more and more intense eventually culminating in Richie being unable to catch his father’s steroid-powered throws and Ed berating him for not being able to do so. The scene is well lit with soft lighting. It is the middle of the day and it is sunny outside. This kind of lighting usually implies a lull in the action or a space to breath between more intense scenes. However, Ray surprises the audience by having one such intense scene happen in a soft, well-lit set. this juxtaposition makes the scene shocking and by subverting audience expectations becomes all the more effective in establishing the harmful effects of Ed’s cortisone. Lighting is used another time in the film when Richie is studying for school. This time, ray does not concern himself with fooling the audience, instead, he very blatantly shows how lighting implies the monster that Ed has become. In the low angle shot, Ed is hovering over Richie who is in the foreground trying to do his studying. Ed, though he is in the background, takes up much more of the on screen space than Richie, immediately implying his dominance over him. The shot is dim with the main sources of light being directly focused on the characters and thus, emphasising the shadows. Furthermore, the lighting comes from below which produces unsettling and unnatural lighting of Ed’s face. The most important part of the lighting in this shot, is Ed’s shadow on the wall. It is even larger than he is and it appears to be coming directly out of him. The shadow is also misshapen, making it seem as though it is the shadow of a grotesque monster. So, it is obvious that the shadow protruding from Ed is representative of his inner-demons that are tormenting the family.
ReplyDeleteColor can be seen being used effectively toward the end of the film when Ed goes into his full breakdown and attempts to murder his son. As Ed bursts through the door his son is hiding behind, we see an implied POV shot of Richie in the ground. Next, the film cuts to an extreme closeup of Ed’s face grimacing in horror. Then, shockingly, the film cuts to a brief shot of red encompassing the frame. The red is moving around slowly and we only see it for a brief second before cutting back to a medium shot of Ed doubling over in pain as Richie runs past him and out of the room. This red is clearly representative of blood and the bodily harm that Ed wants to inflict upon his son. The POV shot was used to establish that the audience was briefly seeing things from within Ed’s mind. Then ray uses the kuleshov effect to show that Ed’s seeing of his son is what is causing him discomfort. Finally, the red is likely what Ed is seeing in his mind with the color representing both the violence Ed is capable of, and the rage that Ed is overwhelmed with at the sight of his son. This jarring use of color is just one effective way that Ray places the audience in the mindset of a character to help us better understand the narrative .
Nicolas Ray’s use of color in Bigger Than Life is to show the audience a glimpse of the characters’ minds, feelings, emotions, and even personalities. Regarding color, there is much of it used in this film. The main character, would wear dark colored clothing, like dark blue or gray. This shows how dark and in pain the character feels, because he is suffering from a pain that will kill him and the medication he takes to make it go away makes him psychotic. Either way he has to deal with an important problem. One interesting use of color used was when Ed’s wife wore a faded green outfit. This was at the dinner table and as they ate, Ed tells his wife that he is staying solely for the boy. To me, this faded green shows how the wife’s energy, hope, and tolerance is fading due to her husband’s new behavior. This is different from the white gown she wore earlier in the film that gave her this stunning radiance. She was much more lively, hopeful, and pure before her husband went psychotic due to the medication. She was caring and the innocent wife who could not help but wishes that she could. She has turned into a wife whose efforts are in vain and not appreciated enough by her husband. She is losing that innocence and radiance while her husband gets darker and more menacing and prideful.
ReplyDeleteThe lighting plays a very important role in the film by setting the mood and tone. The importance of the lighting is very evident in the scene when Ed is trying to teach Richie and he will not let him eat dinner until he gets a math question correct. There is very low lighting in the room, giving the shot a dark and menacing mood, portraying Ed as some kind of evil dictator as he hovers over his son’s shoulders. Lou, his wife, walks in telling them that dinner is waiting for them. In the room is a massive shadow that is as tall as the wall. This shadow is right next to Lou and is hovering over everyone in the room, even Ed himself. The shadow is the monster inside of Ed. It is large and intimidating. One important thing to note is how the shadow hovers over Ed, showing how the monster, the medication, has taken control of him. He is no longer who he used to be. He is the monster, which is, in a sense, bigger than life.