In the still from the film, Bright Star, the main characters John Keats and Fanny Brawn, played by Ben Wishaw and Abbey Cornish, are shown in a passionate embrace. The two are about to become engaged, though their love for one another is frowned upon by her family and his friend. The disapproval of friends and family do not deter the couple from being together though.
In this particular still, the camera is eye level, helping to create the illusion that the viewers are also in the woods, as though they are part of this special moment between the characters. To help bring us in even more, it is a Medium Shot, which gives us a good view of the couple, yet allows us to see the wooded areas and mist in the background, adding to the ambiance of romance. The lighting also helps create the mood. I believe the director wants it to appear very natural and real, and to give the illusion that it’s being shot with available light. However, the lack of shadows and the brightness seem to point to the fact that High Key lighting is being used in that particular scene. Sometimes, it takes more work to create the feeling that no lighting or stage setting was actually used. Upon examining the colors used, mainly in the wardrobes of this scene, it is apparent that the colors symbolize both the romance of the scene and the not yet known tragedy of Keats untimely death. The pinkish red of her dress is symbolic for their deep love for one another, and the dark blue shade of his jacket points to not only the forbidden nature of the relationship at the moment, but also to the fact that their engagement will not end with a marriage, rather a funeral.
In your blog, you did list important elements that were relevant to the photo. However, I would like to say that this particular scene itself is a painterly still. When a director wants to make a painterly scene, he/she is trying to create a romantic picture. As you said in your blog, you do list out the important elements to create a romantic scene, such as: the colors in their costumes, the lighting, and the angle. In the textbook, Giannetti mentions that a painterly still/scene does embody all of these elements as you mentioned. Other romantic films, like Braveheart (1995) and Pride & Prejudice (2005), do have painterly scenes with their characters. In Braveheart (1995), the painterly scene occurred between William Wallace (played by Mel Gibson) and the French Princess (played by Sophie Marceau) in a forest. In Pride & Prejudice (2005), the painterly scene occurred towards the end of the film, which was between Mr. Darcy (played Matthew McFayden) and Ms. Elizabeth (played by Keira Knightly).
ReplyDeleteI love your discussion of the color and would like to add. The colors of love and death are certainly the same throughout this film. In particular, many of Fanny and John's scenes are shot with a blue filter or with some kind of blue in the shot. If blue is not present, it is a symbol of the couple struggling with each other or society tearing them apart. I found it interesting at first that blue was the color of love in this movie because it hadn't occurred to me that the love would end in tragedy (then again, it's BBC and I should have known better), but I soon realized that it was a symbol of love both beautiful and tragic.
ReplyDeleteI hadn't actually thought much about the red. It's true that in a lot of scenes, Keats wears blue and Fanny wears pink. I thought it symbolic of masculinity/femininity, but it also vividly sets the lovers apart from their surroundings. Their tragic love glows despite their tragic fate.
Available lighting is definitely used to create a natural atmosphere. BBC period pieces (or period pieces in general) often use available lighting to really put viewers back in that setting.