Kenneth Branagh's Henry V movie and lighting
One thing movies can take advantage of is the lighting. With it, they can easily manipulate the mood. There are some moments during that movie that I felt really need to be highlighted because of how they used the lighting to enhance the characters and the moods.
First off, Henry V's introduction scene. The doors open and we see Henry V's silhouette, being lit from behind. I think this really portrays how important of a figure everyone saw Henry V, even how important he saw himself.
There is also not a lot of sunshine in this movie. Of course, that region is known for its rather cloudy days, but for these kinds of movies they use that to their advantage. During the battles it was either night or cloudy and raining. These are things that help the mood of the play. Dire times, dire lighting.
Another scene I want to highlight is the one where Catherine is learning English. The lighting gets a bit lighter and lighter as the mood lightens. She goofs around as she points out different body parts she's learned. The scene becomes rather comedic, and the lighting reflects that. However, near the end of that scene she opens the door and beyond the door it is pretty dark and it kills the mood. It makes her stop her goofing around and gets her to be more serious.
Then in the scenes where Henry V is trying to court Catherine the lighting is very medium. It's not super dark like during the battles, but it's not as light as when Catherine was playing around. The lighting reflects the cautious nature of the scene.
Some things you just can't do on a theater stage, so when it came to interpreting this play, Kennth Branagh and the crew really tried to incorporate something that's important for movies and isn't done often for Shakespeare plays because of the nature of their performances. I also think those scenes specifically really highlight how they manipulate light for the mood of the story.
First off, Henry V's introduction scene. The doors open and we see Henry V's silhouette, being lit from behind. I think this really portrays how important of a figure everyone saw Henry V, even how important he saw himself.
There is also not a lot of sunshine in this movie. Of course, that region is known for its rather cloudy days, but for these kinds of movies they use that to their advantage. During the battles it was either night or cloudy and raining. These are things that help the mood of the play. Dire times, dire lighting.
Another scene I want to highlight is the one where Catherine is learning English. The lighting gets a bit lighter and lighter as the mood lightens. She goofs around as she points out different body parts she's learned. The scene becomes rather comedic, and the lighting reflects that. However, near the end of that scene she opens the door and beyond the door it is pretty dark and it kills the mood. It makes her stop her goofing around and gets her to be more serious.
Then in the scenes where Henry V is trying to court Catherine the lighting is very medium. It's not super dark like during the battles, but it's not as light as when Catherine was playing around. The lighting reflects the cautious nature of the scene.
Some things you just can't do on a theater stage, so when it came to interpreting this play, Kennth Branagh and the crew really tried to incorporate something that's important for movies and isn't done often for Shakespeare plays because of the nature of their performances. I also think those scenes specifically really highlight how they manipulate light for the mood of the story.
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