Three Colours: Red

Essay by EssaySwap ContributorHigh School, 12th grade February 2008

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In my opinion the movie Red should be considered a great movie because of four major key points, which include acting, cinematography, the use of the colour "red" and the theme of connection between people.

Red is a movie about the connection between people. The theme of connection is best summarized by the opening scenes when we see telephone lines crossing. These telephone lines are like our connections with people. It is the same in life. We are connected with some people and never meet others, but it could easily have happened otherwise. Red cars and telephone conversations in this movie emphasize this theme perfectly. Connection between the young judge and the retired judge is another strong element of this theme. There are similar events happening to both of them for example, the retired judge was betrayed by the woman he loved thirty five years ago, a fate the young judge is experiencing now and both chased their lovers across the English channel to win them back.

After Rita (the old judge's dog) was run over, he gives his dog away to Valentine. Similarly, after the young judge sees his girlfriend with someone else, he tries to get rid of his dog by leaving him on the street. Before the final scene of the movie, there were five scenes where the young judge (Auguste) and Valentine appear together in the same frame but they don't know each other, which suggests the world of invisible connections between people.

The Use of colour "red" in different scenes of this film is beautiful. The colour red shows passion. A red light is blinking while the names of the actors appear on the screen. As Valentine talks to her boyfriend on the phone, she tells him that she slept with his jacket; the colour of jacket is red. Red cars and red bowling balls also emphasize the incredible use of colour "red" in this film.

As we know cinematography is one of the most important elements of every movie. In Red this element includes the movement of camera and lighting. For example in the opening scenes the movement of camera as it races along the invisible network of wiring, through several switches along undersea cables is so interesting to watch. It shows the invisible connections between people and the notation of privacy in the world we live in. In the scene where Valentine tells Joseph about her brother for the first time, natural light comes through the window (from the right angle) and makes this scene glorious to watch. The beautiful tracking shot of Valentine on the stage, where she is surrounded by hundreds of flashbulbs is also amazing to watch.

Acting was perfect in this movie. Especially Valentine the main character of the story who was perfect for her role; she is a lonely, loveable, idealistic girl who has nothing in this world except an emotional boyfriend and an addicted brother. On the other hand, we can see the old judge, who has an isolated, hateful and cruel character. Each character learns something about life to develop his/her own character, for example Valentine learns that the connection between people are more complex than what she realises or the retired judge recovers some of his idealism and loses his cynicism.

All of the above key points and supporting ideas come together to make this, Kieslowski's masterful work, a beautiful and great movie. Red is the conclusion of Kieslowski's masterful trilogy, after Blue and White, named for the colours in the French flag. He announced his retirement after making this movie. Personally I liked Red because it's a great mystery movie and its central theme is about the mysteries of everyday life, which is more exciting than the theme of other movies.