1. ENG 2273 - Introduction to Film Studies
Assignment 2 : Film Analysis of Blue is the Warmest Color
(dir. Abdellatif Kechiche, 2013)
_________________________________________
Name: Wong Yuen Ting
Student Number: 11045782
Teacher: Mr. WONG Yu Bon Nicholas
Due Date: 27th
March, 2014
2. Introduction
I think Blue is the Warmest Color attempts to bring out the theme that the story of
Adèle is also the story of ours by intensifying the sense of reality, which allows the
audience to be in the shoes of the main character, Adèle. The purpose is attained by
the use of the close up shots, long take shots, and the gradual change in lighting and
motifs. The techniques of camera work and Mise-en-scène create a detailed portrait of
the mental change of Adèle, which naturally evokes a strong affective resonance in the
audience. Moreover, the slow editing also brings the audience closer to the characters
by providing them with sufficient time to digest everything in the plot, before moving
on to the next scene. In this essay, there will be a further discussion on how these
skills are used to bring out the theme.
Camera work
A great number of close-up shots are used in the film to make the main character,
Adèle, vividly comes to life. In the world of cinematography, close-up shots can act as
a magnifying glass which brings the audience closer to the characters. (Gaudreault,
2011) In this case, not only do the close-up shots magnify the image, but also the
psychological profile of Adèle. The close-up shots often focus on facial expressions of
Adèle, so the audience can observe every little change on her face and be immersed
into every raw emotion of hers. The most interesting part is that close-up shots are
constantly used even in the sex scenes. Figure 1 and 2 are the close up shots captured
in two of the sex scenes. The first one is the scene when Adèle and Emma had sex for
the first time, and the second one is the scene when they started to grow apart.
Through these close up images, the shift of her emotions, from blissful to
disappointed, is revealed in front of the audience. The close-up shots in the film create
a strong bonding between the audience and Adèle by unmasking her raw emotions on
the screen. The detailed portrait of the her feelings successfully created a consensus
among both heterosexual and homosexual audience, as what she experienced in the
film is also the story of the audience who used to seek or is seeking for love.
3. Figure 1
Figure 2
The change of exposure is also carefully arranged to highlight the contrast in the
emotions of Adèle in different stages of her life. At the beginning of the film, when
Adèle started dating Emma, the shots tend to be overexposed. Overexposure refers to
the washed-out images created by the excessive amount of light that passes through
the camera lens. (Malkiewicz, 2012) The overexposed shots, together with the
sunlight, create a harmonious atmosphere, which symbolize the relationship between
the main characters. In these shots, the audience can feel the heat and sparkles
between the characters through the excessive sunlight on the screen. The scene shown
in figure 3 is one of the examples. The glowing images created by overexposure
generate a perfect, flawless nature which is the way how they perceived each other at
the beginning of their relationship. However, their sweetness and intimacy soon
fade away. Figure 4 is captured later in the film. We can see that the shot is more
4. naturally exposed compared to the beginning ones. The images created by normal
exposure are rather flat and dull. These prosaic images unveil that the relationship
between the characters became monotonic and boring as time goes by. Lastly, nearly
at the end of the film, more underexposed shots are used to portray the emotion of
Adèle. One of the examples is the scene when Adèle dreamed about Emma and cried.
(Figure 5) The underexposure in this scene creates a gloomy atmosphere which
echoes to her emptiness and desolateness. The change in exposure signifies different
stages of their relationship, from intimacy to disconnection. This clear flow of
change gradually unmasks the feelings of Adèle and drags the audience into her
emotion.
Figure 3
Figure 4
5. Figure 5
Mise-en-scène
The color blue is constantly used in the film as a conspicuous motif that symbolizes
the comfort and love that Adèle was searching for. As the frequency of its appearance
gradually decrease, it implies that the relationship between Adèle and Emma gradually
withers. At the beginning of the film, the eye-catching blue hair of Emma
immediately caught the attention of the audience. (figure 6) As the film goes on,
Emma gradually became the tower of strength which gives Adèle warmth and
supports to deal with the pressure in school. As they became closer, the motifs
appeared more and more frequently on the screen. However, after a period of time, the
hair color of Emma eventually became blonde, as if her love for Adèle was washed
away bit by bit. (Figure 7) The change of her hair color signifies the beginning of the
end of their relationship. Starting from this point, the motifs seem to disappear in the
film, until the scene when Adèle was completely immersed into the blue ocean.
(Figure 8) The color blue appears again after Adèle lost Emma, indicating that she
was still living in the shadow of Emma. I think the arrangement of color motifs in the
film successfully bring out the regrets and pains experienced by Adèle. After tracking
her emotions for three hours, her pains strongly influenced the emotion of the
audience and create a sense of loneliness.
6. Figure 6
Figure 7
Figure 8
The sex scenes and nudity are also used as the motifs to reinforce the development of
the main character, Adèle. There are three sex scenes in the film, plus a nude scene
nearly at the end of the film. The first sex scene appears in the very beginning of the
film, when Adèle had sex with a boy for the first time. In this scene, there are a lot of
7. close-up shots on Adèle’s face capturing her facial expressions. (Figure 9) From her
face, we can tell that she was pretending to enjoy the sex because she looked kind of
distracted and disengaged whenever the boy turned away. This scene unveils the
sexual confusion that Adèle had and acts as a hint foreshadowing her sexual
preference. The second and the third sex scenes appear in middle part of the film,
when Adèle and Emma took their clothes off and their passion exploded. Compare to
the first sex scene, the second and the third sex scenes focus more on the body
movements and connections between the characters. (Figure 10) Although some
critics argued that these two sex scenes are too explicit and lengthy, these two scenes
in fact act as indicators which reveal the intimacy between Emma and Adèle in a
powerful, yet honest way. While these two scenes emphasize on the connection
between the characters, the nude scene serves the opposite function. In the nude scene,
Emma refused to have sex with Adèle in spite of her begging, showing that their
relationship had changed. Like the function of the color motif, the sex scenes in the
film also clarify the change in the life of Adèle. They act as the hints that guide the
audience to disclose the underlying feelings of Adèle.
Figure 9
8. Figure 10
Editing
In order to create a naturally unfolding story, long-take shots are frequently used in
the film. Like most of the French films, Blue is the Warmest Color is slowly paced,
without fancy editing skill and special effect. One of the key features in the film is the
long take shots used through the whole film. Normally, a shot remains onscreen only
long enough to convey the meanings. Unlike the normal ones, long take shots last for
longer than we thought it should be. These shots can provide the audience with more
time and space to digest the plots and draw their attention to the details on the screen
as the film progresses, like the use of motifs and the gradual change of exposure.
(Kawin,1992) In other words, it allows the audience to recognize the interrelationship
between different plots and maximizes the function of camera work and
Mise-en-scène. Another function of this technique is that it can make story less
dramatic and more realistic. In the film, there are a lot of long shots showing the
everyday activities, like running to school and having dinner. These long shots shorten
the distance between Adèle s and the audience and create a illusion that the life of
Adèle is actually a reveal of our lives.
Conclusion
To conclude, the director of Blue is the Warmest Color tried to put forward the theme,
that the story of Adèle. Is also the story of ours , by shortening the distance between
9. the female protagonist, Adèle, and the audience. To attain this purpose, he used
different motifs and the techniques in camera work to portray the emotional change of
Adèle in details, so as to evoke a consensus among both heterosexual and homosexual
audience. He also used long take shots to make the story more realistic and amplify
the importance of the motifs, as well as the camera work.
Reference List
Gaudreault, Andre. Film and attraction: from kinematography to cinema.
2nd edition. 1. United State:The board of trustees of the university of illinois.
2011, 45. Print.
Kawin, B. F.. How movies work. 2. 1. United State:University of califonia
press. 1992, 202. Print.
Kilday, Gregg. "Oscars: why sex isn't Blue is the Warmest Color's only
problem (analysis)." The hollywood reporter magazine. 301213: . Web.
<http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/blue-is-warmest-colors-oscar-66
1394 >
Malkiewicz, Kris. Film lighting: talks with hollywood's cinematographers
and gaffer. 1. 1. New York:Prentice hall press. 2012, 76,93. Print.
Scott, A. O.. "For a while, her life is yours. ‘blue is the warmest color,’ directed
by abdellatif kechiche." New york times review. 24/10/2013: 1. Web.
<http://www.nytimes.com/2013/10/25/movies/blue-is-the-warmest-color-di
rected-by-abdellatif-kechiche.html?ref=movies >.
10. MOVIE REVIEW RUBRIC
Level 1
(F/D)
Level 2
(C-/C/C+)
Level 3
(B-/B/B+)
Level 4
(A-/A/A+)
Knowledge/
Understanding
Does not
incorporates the
elements and or fails
to adequately
demonstrate a
thorough
understanding of
the purpose of a
review
Incorporates some of
the elements and
demonstrates some
understanding of the
purpose of a review
Incorporates most
elements and
demonstrates a good
understanding of the
purpose of a review
Incorporates all
elements and
demonstrates
complete
understanding of the
purpose of a review
with considerable
effectiveness
Thinking/Inquiry Little or no
significant summary;
no details from the
movie and little
evidence from
summary to support
reviewer’s opinion
Contains no
significant
evaluation of many
aspects of film to
support reviewer’s
opinion
Summary is either
much too short or
much too long; may
be vague or tell too
much; few details
from the movie and
little evidence from
summary to support
reviewer’s opinion
Contains insufficient
evaluation of many
aspects of film to
support reviewer’s
opinion, including
directing, acting
cinematography,
editing, scenery,
special effects and
soundtrack;
Summary is either a little
too long or not long
enough but does not give
away ending; not quite
as compelling; fewer
details from the movie
and evidence from
summary to support
reviewer’s opinion
Contains some
evaluation of many
aspects of film to support
reviewer’s opinion,
including directing,
acting cinematography,
editing, scenery, special
effects and soundtrack
Writer gives a brief
summary of film
without disclosing
ending; includes
enough info to satisfy;
details from the
movie and evidence
from summary
strongly support
reviewer’s opinion
Contains sufficient
and knowledgeable
evaluation of many
aspects of film to
support reviewer’s
opinion, including
directing, acting
cinematography,
editing, scenery,
special effects and
soundtrack
