알모도바르의 <페인 앤 글로리> 색채 미학 연구

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to discuss the color aesthetics of Pedro Almodovar concerning Pain and Glory and thus delve deep into his films. As Spain’s leading film director, Almodovar is known as a master of colors. His originality in color lies in using splendid primary colors to reinstate the so-called 'anti-social' characters, who have been customarily described as dark, in order to emphasize their individuality and identity. In particular, red is used as a color symbolizing the pain and desire of the protagonist. The color system built around red gives shape to ‘desire’, a key subject matter that penetrates through all his films. In other words, for Almodovar, color is not simply an element of spectacle but is a cinematic mechanism to reveal the subject of a film. This is in line with Eisenstein’s method to emphasize the relevance of a subject in using colors. Eisenstein insisted on revealing the theme using color movements, which change according to the dramatic flow, rather than a one-on-one correspondence between a figure and a color. Aligned with this concept, the author attempted to focus on interaction and change of colors while analyzing the Pain and Glory. In this film, which is one of the most autobiographical works of his career, Almodovar gives shape to the process of introspection using the primary colors of blue, red, yellow, and green. Each of those colors is linked to the subject and changes organically. Red symbolizes the pain and passion of the protagonist connected to the past. Blue is a color symbolizing the ambivalent emotions of resignation and tranquility. Red and blue repetitively conflict with one another. This is a visualization of the protagonist’s changing emotions. Yellow, which was used as the color of glory, is a light of creation he obtains through the process of introspection. Green, which serves as a bridge to the past in the course of his march towards yellow, symbolizes childhood innocence as it forms a contrast to the artificially adorned present life. Having found himself and reconciled with the past through green, the man recovers yellow, the color of glory, and starts the creation of new work. Ultimately, this film expresses the process of the protagonist’s introspection to regain passion from a state of resignation and marches towards glory through the interaction of colors, red, blue, yellow, and green.