Colors of a Hero
Introduction
Colors are everywhere. They are present in the objects that people interact with on a daily basis. They add texture to plain things and make them extraordinary in the eyes of their viewers. They also tell stories on their own. For example, the changing of seasons become more evident due to the colors being produced by nature. Spring is associated to green, since it is the time of rebirth and trees begin to be filled with luscious leaves. The soil is once again being invaded by grass.
On the other hand, summer is dominated by pastel colors. They have a cooling effect to counter the heat. Fall banners earth-toned colors to commemorate the withering of nature. Winter is plain as cold white as the season itself. It reminds people of the feeling of desolation and sometimes loneliness.
People associate many things with different colors. It becomes simpler imagine or describe using colors. This statement can be supported with the presence of idioms consisting of. For example, when a person is feeling depressed, he or she can say I am feeling blue. A person expressing anger or envy can be describes as red with anger or green with anger respectively. These expressions add depth to the descriptions of emotions being felt by others. They left the observers or listeners make sense of the feeling by visualizing the emotions themselves.
Colors are most prominent in the visual arts such as painting. Of course, painters rely on their mastery of color and their ability to blend them together to create masterpieces. However, the use of colors in the arts is not limited to the painting. Even in literature, colors abound. They tell a tale of their own. They captivate readers by allowing them to see the plot uncover before their very eye. The degree of prevalence of color in literature drove Charlotte Peepless King to conduct a semiotic analysis of colors in the works of Stendhal and other novels (2002).
Today, in times of multi-media entertainment, various elements are being put together to create a work that can stimulate almost all of the sense to create an experience that will last. This is the technique being used by films. They blend together audio and visual content to make audiences feel that they are caught in the events of the film. However, the contributions of colors in films stay strong. Colors help in setting the mood of a scene. It adds excitement to every frame. Of course, the aesthetic value of color is also noteworthy.
Zhang Yimou took the use of color in films to the next level in his 2002 film – Hero. According to Corliss (2002), the use of colors in Hero creates context. This means that the use of colors in the movie actually meant something more than aesthetics. This also suggests that colors played an important role in the overall design of the film. In addition, the dominance of a specific color at one point of the film suggests that they are representing an idea that is important in understanding the movie within the correct context. The following sections of the paper will attempt to uncover the color and their possible meanings to understand better the clockwork of Zhang Yimou’s Hero.
On Colors
In the past, Zhang Yimou has been identified with the color red. That is why is should not come as a surprise that this color was used as one of the main color tones for the movie Hero. In the film, the red signified the unleashing of emotions and passions. In retrospect, red is deeply rooted in Chinese culture is came to symbolize luck and prosperity. During the communist rule in China red was seen as the color of the revolution, although, it actually connotes passion during those times (Chiu, n.d.).
This is also the case in the films context. The battles that transpired between nameless and the three assassins were fueled by their passions to push forward their ideals. However, the use of red by Yimou in his films challenge narrow interpretations
“…because it is at once an inheritance from and a rebellion against tradition.” (Ye, 1999).
The use of red was followed by blue when the king suspected the story told by Nameless (Jet Li). In the traditional Chinese color scheme blue ca nbe interchanged with green and thus could represent suspicion as the idiom dailumao (Chui, n.d.). The blue color scheme was use during the presentation of the emperor’s version of how nameless came to slay the three assassins. This means that blue is a way of saying that the emperor doubts the true intentions of Nameless for slaying the three assassins.
After hearing the emperor’s version, Nameless pushes on to tell his second version of the story. The flashback at this point is dominated by color scheme of combined green and white, which translate to peace. Upon recounting the second version, the use of green and white becomes clear as the scenes clearly advocates peace by not killing the emperor and letting him unite the warring states. The realization of the second version told by Nameless to the emperor came when he made the ultimate selfless sacrifice as the other assassins; he did not kill the emperor and faced death.
On the colors of a Hero
Based on the plot of Hero, it can be said that the Zhang Yimou should by his ground and the perceptions of the Chinese writer who wrote that heroes are supposed to fight for their countries and their people (Bear, 2002). When Nameless decided not to kill the emperor, he was thinking of his country and its people. He concluded that if he does not kill the emperor then there is a good chance that the divided country will be united, the warring will end and the people will be out of danger.
This means that the picture of a film of a true hero is someone who is willing to make the ultimate sacrifice of letting go of life so that many more can live. In addition, it can also be stated that a hero, based on the film, is someone who can kill his or her own ego for the benefit of others. This is based on the decision of Nameless to spare the life of the emperor despite the chance of killing him easily. For a warrior, sparing the life of an enemy is considered are a cowardly act if not the acceptance of defeat. That is why when Nameless decided not to kill the emperor he also decided to kill a part of him, both literally and metaphorically.
Therefore, a hero, based on Yimou’s and the film’s perspective is someone willing to be stripped of the title hero. It is often the case that hero come into being during times of trouble. During these times, they are given the opportunity to display their skills and thus they are being acknowledge as heroes.
However, times of trouble mean a chaotic environment that endangers lives. If the definition of a hero is to be based on tradition, then a person becomes a hero when he or she is able to restore or maintain peace and when peace is experienced there would be fewer opportunities to be heroic, thus the stripping of the title itself.
Conclusion
According to Zhang Yimou, he used various color schemes to present different points of view (Bear, 2002). In the discussions made above, it became evident how Yimou was able to play with color to add texture, depth and character to the movie itself. Since the question of being a hero is composed of various perspectives in reality, it is only natural that the director attempted to capture the very essence of the formation of a hero.
The use of color allowed the audience to differentiate the various perspectives involved in the formation of a hero in the film. This, in turn, provided clarity as much as it provided aesthetics. The raising of both the form and content paved the way for the cinematic success of the movie. Both the intellectual and artistic craving of the moviegoers were fed by the scene of Hero.
Credit:ivythesis.typepad.com
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