Three Colors: Red
Why we chose this film
Red is, in our opinion, the best of the Three Colours trilogy.
It may seem odd, that this movie is supposed to symbolise ‘fraternité’ which stands for an ethical or moral relationship between people who are driven by a common goal or cause.
The ethics of the two main characters appear to be radically opposed, however the clear lines that separate them at the start become blurrier as they grow closer.
Judgement emerges as the main theme as the story unfolds.
We realise how quick we are to judge actions or behaviours in others.
We believe that our moral compass enables us to distinguish between good and bad, but how sure are we really?
Our judgements, as well as our actions and behaviour, are driven by our past experiences.
Accepting that we all are a product of our past, may allow us to open our minds and hearts to others.
Moving away from judgement enables us to provide room for improvement and growth.
It inspires us to see potential not only in others, but also ourselves.
Film Summary
In the dense, archly mysterious films of Krzysztof Kieslowski, bold but ineffable patterns shape the characters' lives. Coincidences, missed opportunities, overbearing visual clues and strange, haunting parallels: all of these contribute to a gradually emerging sense of destiny. Stories develop like photographs in a darkroom. They are sharply defined only in retrospect, when the process is complete.
The arrival of his "Red," is an event in its own right.
In fact, "Red" succeeds so stirringly that it also bestows some much-needed magic upon its predecessors, "Blue" and "White." The first film's chic emptiness and the second's relative drabness are suddenly made much rosier by the seductive glow of "Red."
Not for nothing is red the warmest of these three colors, which Mr. Kieslowski has taken from the French flag. Nor is it unhelpful that Fraternite, the theme that follows Liberte and Egalite in his series, is potentially the most engaging of his subjects. "Red" gets an additional leg up from the presence of two exceptionally fine actors, Irene Jacob and Jean-Louis Trintignant, who are perfectly suited to playing polar opposites here. They act their roles in an intricate story of friendship and deliverance while also serving as tuning forks for the director's larger intuitions.
In addition to being the best-acted of these three films, "Red" weaves the most enveloping web. Working more assuredly and less arbitrarily than he did at the series's start, Mr. Kieslowski plays deftly with the crossed wires that either connect or separate his principals in mysterious ways.
Early in the film, a literal image of telephone cable is enough to question what it means for these characters to communicate. When Valentine (Ms. Jacob) makes a phone call to her lover, Michael, a phone is seen ringing in the apartment of Auguste (Jean-Pierre Lorit), who lives across the street from Valentine. Why? Valentine and Auguste do not precisely know each other. But maybe they do, or should, or will. Mr. Kieslowski is particularly expert this time in constructing puzzling, overlapping patterns that bind lonely people together. A higher order can be glimpsed, quite movingly, beyond such bonds.
The idea of fraternity emerges through Valentine's highly charged encounters with a judge (Mr. Trintignant). Though not a love story in any conventional sense, "Red" is very much about the redemptive power of love.
"Red," which is itself filled with echoes and foreshadowing (greatly heightened by Zbigniew Preisner's insinuating music), culminates in a ferry crossing. As a red advertising billboard of Valentine becomes a prophecy, she is brought together with the principals from "Blue" and "White." This juxtaposition of destinies, which is not made to tie up narrative loose ends, is satisfying without being pat.
New York Times
