The Color Red In Schindler's List

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Spielberg’s movie, Schindler’s List, shows an Americanized version of Oskar Schindler during the Holocaust. An interesting part about the film is not only its lack of color, but the few scenes that contain color. The movie is played in primarily black and white, but there are four scenes where the audience witnesses red. Why would Spielberg only show four scenes with color, and why the color red? It is a strategic move for Spielberg to portray the film the way he did because of the message he sends with the color scheme. Color is more meaningful when there are very few moments of color, and the color’s importance is more recognizable during the scenes in the film. Why make a film, such as Schindler’s List, in black and white on purpose? Colors are normally affiliated with feeling, and Spielberg uses that to his advantage in the movie. Black represents authority and power, but it is also a sign of submission. Nazi soldiers and the Jews always wore black in the film. It shows the authority the Nazi’s have over the submissive Jewish people. Soldiers relentlessly killed Jewish people and treated …show more content…
Why did Spielberg use the color red in the movie? Each scene that has red exemplifies something that is happening to Schindler. Lit candles at the beginning of the movie show that something is going to be sparked in Schindler. It is a foreshadow of the love that he will develop for the Jewish people later in the movie. Red clothes symbolize heaviness, and Spielberg shows two parts of the movie with a red coat. Schindler is impacted greatly in these moments and the audience notices eminent changes in him following seeing the coat. The final sighting of red in again a candle. This candle shows that the spark that was lit in the beginning is still strong. Schindler knows he’s done the right thing by saving as many Jews as possible, although he wishes he could’ve saved