The use of color in motion pictures has given emotional life and relevance to otherwise less important surroundings. The representation of the world in black and white shades is difficult for the modern film viewer to comprehend. The everyday world is viewed in color through our own eyes and contributes to draw significant parallels with our own societal perceptions. Colors can accentuate the symbolic importance of a single object as well as develop an overall mood or tone.
The film Donnie Darko (U.S.A., 2001) uses color to convey a distinguished perception to the viewer related to characters and moods. Donnie is visited by a black sinister looking rabbit named Frank, a representation of Donnie’s fragile psychological state. The representation of the black bunny, rather than a pink or white character, easily persuades the viewer to assume that the character represents bad or sinister motives rather than happy or friendly ones.
The color choices associated with a scene can also foreshadow events or moods associated with a character. Throughout the film Donnie is typically seen wearing a white shirt, white is typically viewed as a clean, pure, almost angelic type color. Throughout the film during Donnie’s encounters with Frank, Donnie is most often seen wearing a black or dark color shirt, intuitively signifying that things are about to go off course. During one scene Donnie is in the movie theater with his new found female companion, Gretchen, when uncharacteristically Frank shows up to join them. Donnie’s encounters with Frank had always been alone until now. Symbolically, Donnie was wearing a white t-shirt with a black zip-up hooded jacket. This simple color choice shows the parallel between the good versus evil struggle that Donnie is dealing with and represents his positive encounters with Gretchen and the negative thoughts associated with Frank.
The associations of black and white with good versus evil are easily apparent; there are many other subtle color cues that often occur within a film. Pink is often associated with love while red can be more closely associated with sex or lust. The calming effects of a blue or green can work to set a relaxing mood for a scene, in contrast oranges, reds, or yellows can signify impending violence or confrontation. From birth colors are seen and associations good or bad are developed. The addition of color to the movie screen has worked to play on those emotions and develop a stronger subconscious emotional attachment to scenes portrayed on screen.
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