The look in House of Cards The look in House of Cards flirts with been obvious but actually shows itself brilliant and highlights a important principle in filmmaking and visual design. It is obvious to notice the look is built often with high contrast; darker side to camera (to us audience); characters are often side lit (suggesting of course, two different sides). This is a sure a very fitting approach for the content and perfectly executed. It would however a bit more obvious if not for a brilliant element: The characters are often lit darker than the environment, even in the close ups and even when not aiming for a silhouette look (which also fits and it is used). The more intuitive or maybe ”classic “cinematography approach often does the opposite in the attempt to make the characters stand out on the screen and detach from the background. House of cards stands as a important example of how the look should in first place consider the story, characters and scene goals rather than just aiming for a great visual. Nothing fits this story better than reinforcing the idea of dark figures immersed in an environment that should be a beacon of light, though it is now a fading. The work is consistent throughout the whole series and the Consistency is what make us believe in the world we are presented, as well as lead us to emotional associations with the visual elements that are been manipulated. The extensive use of the foreground and visual frames within the frame also reinforces the idea that characters are trapped, surrounded, even caged sometimes. ( I recommend the film Warrior (2011) as another great example of this approach - cinematography by Masanobu Takayanagi) This approach also helps shaping a more tridimensional look, reinforcing a story that always presents so many sides and dimensions that we are not aware off. Composition also take is high consideration symmetry and strong leading lines. It plays with the idea of offering us things that seem to bee fitting and in the right place, first satisfying our desire for stability, just to later have this undone, altering it, constantly breaking and fixing balance as the story develops doing the same. As audience we don’t point it out, we may not see it, but this compositional approach done consistently as it is, sure helps us feeling it. Just some initial impressions =) (attaching some frames to illustrate been careful not to give spoilers)
Posted on: Mon, 04 Aug 2014 20:08:37 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015