Mad Max: Fury Road returns briefly to cinemas this weekend in a special ‘Black and Chrome’ edition. A style gimmick or is something much more interesting revealed by taking out the colour?
The first Captain America film in black and white would have been a daring, interesting move. Having him wake up in colour would have made the ending far more effective.
Nolan's Memento uses B&W brilliantly as both a plot device to illustrate short term memory loss and as a method of storytelling to better present the different temporalities.
I'm a big fan of Gary Ross' Pleasantville, which starts in color and then goes to black and white once the kids gets sucked into the 50s TV world. That film has a very smart use of color as the black and white world becomes more self-aware. Pleasantville is a really underrated film.
Pleasantville is a very splendid film. The use of colour and monochrome sequences to convey changes in mood and character development is intelligently done. A film worth watching.
I caught this when it was briefly released, based on my initial cinema viewing and subsequent blu-ray viewings I wasn't completely sold on a black and white version of the movie simply because of how good the movie already looks. Having said that, I went down to my local world of cine to catch a viewing, just because any chance to re-watch this movie on a big screen is a bonafide treat. It's funny because the film has become so revered and celebrated, so watching in black and white feels like you are remembering the film as this silver-age Hollywood Classic that exists in the same space as the earlier cinematic masterspieces like Casablanca or Citizen Kane. Even the shot of Furiosa when she breaks down on the windswept sands has a touch of Akira Kurosawa about it. Fury Road is a movie about the binaries of good and evil, or right and wrong existing within this morally grey world. The black and white seems to emphasise this feeling. The naive war boyz who believe to have this one purpose in life to be reborn in Valhalla and the brides of Immortan Joe are both white indicating a sense of innocence within the wasteland. Furiosa and Max are more tinged with darkness and realism. The wasteland feels like a wasteland, during the day, you can still feel the heat of the sun, feel it scorching your retinas, but at night - for instance when the party reach what is left of the green place - it has this much more soothing enchanted feel to it before the film kicks starts itself into it's delirious action climax. I truly think it is enchanced by black and white. It was always a great movie, a simple premise done extremely well, I guess when you limit the colour palette in such a way - it still shines brightly.
I saw the Black and Chrome version yesterday, in the same cinema and screen that I had watched Fury Road on it's first day of release. And although I do prefer the colour version, particularly because I love the fact that just about every shot is either blue, orange or both, I found there were several scenes and shots that I do prefer in black and white. The night time scenes, which I expected to be the most similar to the colour version I actually found to be the most different, as I'm so used to seeing those scenes bathed in blue hues that seeing it so dark and black was really disarming. The action at times is easier to follow in the Black And Chrome version too without the distraction of colour. The only shots that I felt really did suffer are the handful of shots that show plants. As there is literally only a few shots that show the colour green at all in the film, these shots of green oasis really stand out in the colour and lose their impact in black and white.
It was interesting seeing this in B&C, still had the same spirit of the colored one. And this time, I saw it in 4DX 2D (but this particular screen didn't have any water/wind effects and physical effects [including feet]), and it was absolutely incredible.
I had my difficulties with some of the night scenes in Fury Road...they work fine with their extreme Cameron'esque blue but as soon as yellow lights are added (to create a nice teal and orange contrast) the artificallness of the colour pallett becomes blatantly obvious and it looks like somebody drowned the screen in yellow and blue. I would be interested to see how those scenes look in black and white and wonder if they made them quite a bit darker, given that the night scenes were generally pretty bright for as such and relied on the deep blue to give the viewer of feeling of this being night.
Godard played with colour conventions in Eloge de l'amour in a really interesting way. Memories are shown in super highly saturated digital video, and the present was shot in pristine black and white film. I love the idea suggested, that memories are often more vivid than the present.
Andrew Bujalski's Computer Chess i think is a great example of deciding to release it in monochrome, you can see the black and white of chess but with the grey area on the usuage of technology. Think a monochrome version of 'There will be blood' would be fantastic a decade on from it's release.
Hi Mark, your video reminded me of Down With Love (2003), there are a few key scenes where they switch from colour to black & white to emphasize an emotion or point. The most humorous being after Rennee Zellweger's long confessional monolog, when it pans to Ewan McGregor's face~ look of astonishment in black & white^^.
Growing up we didn't have a colour TV for some time, so not an uncommon experience seeing colour media in B&W. Really enjoyed the B&W variant hope you do also.
I always loved the colourised version of The Longest Day, but have struggled to find it available anywhere in the UK other than in black and white, other than my VHS copy taped off TV in the 90's.
Having seen Fury road twice in the Theater I was totally blown away by how vivid the colors were. Especially in the sandstorm sequence. Fury Road as a movie totally blew me away, I had no faith that a Mad Max movie made so many years after Beyond Thunderdome (which in and of itself was not very good) and without Mel Gibson would be any good. When they cast Tom Hardy that gave me some hope and the fact that it was still George Miller directing was a total plus. So ok, the color version of Fury Road is magnificent, it really plays well on the big screen and on the home screen as well. The B&C edition of the film also played well on my home screen. I never had the chance to see it on the big screen or I would have. I think the big difference is that the color version of Fury Road really puts an emphasis on the action and the totality of the events while the B&C version puts more of an emphasis on the characters and their individual motives. The B&C version succeeds in taking a big action movie and making it an intimate character study that has lots of action. All in all I prefer the color version but the B&C edition is definitely worth watching for fans of Fury Road.
I would say the interesting thing about Fury Road and the Mist in black and white is that it greatly hides the noticeably of any CGI effects, lighting tends to be what separates great CGI from lacklustre and when you remove if from the equation it makes it completely indistinguishable from the rest of the film, that I think might be why Miller and Darabont prefer these versions.
I also believe that since black and white films have very outdated special effects, even the worst cgi would look amazing in black and white especially since it's evoking that time period of film. At least from what Ive seen on the mist, the cgi is much more enjoyable in that element.
In Darabont's case I don't think it has much to do with the effects work, he originally wanted The Mist to be filmed in black and white and the studio refused.
Chaz's Dungeon The Mist is definitely better seen in Black and White first time, Fury Road I honestly like better in colour but both versions are real solid.
A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night is probably my favorite example of a modern film presented in black and white. It just fits the world presented in that film so well; I can't imagine watching it in color. While I do think that Ana Lily Amirpour's new film The Bad Batch looks great based on the trailer and that her visual style is still distinctive, the fact that it was in color made me feel like something was missing.
My favorite thing about BLACK & CHROME is that the nighttime scenes are tinted, in a nod to the old silents - very appropriate since Fury Road has so little dialogue and tells its story visually so brilliantly that it could actually work with intertitles instead.
I have the black and chrome edition Blu Ray and its a good contrast between the original and the black and white colouring. one film that makes excellent use of colour and black and white is American History X. the flashback scenes are film brilliantly in the black and white frame...
I think that close ups are way better in B&W because, you can get a "dirtier" feel to the expressions, but actions scenes are better in colour because there'sa clearer understanding of what's going on.
I was watching this and thinking "sure black and white is interesting, but how is it better?" It was then I noticed that whenever the video came back to you, Mark...talking in black and white, that there was a crack in the wall to your right that just stood out, that I would have NEVER noticed if that was in color. lol. I can see where something gritty and texture-rich; like "Fury Road" could really benefit. I'm now very interested in seeing this! Thanks.
Worth noting but Logan is apparently getting a B&W version called the "Noir version", if the description for it on Google Video means anything. Director James Mangold says's he's been working on it for a while now and it should be interesting to see how it stacks up to the color version.
Recently I've tried watching tons of colour films in my collection in black and white, just by turning down the settings on my TV and adjusting the contrast until it looks okay/acceptable. This has given me a slightly different aesthetic experience watching things like The Empire Strikes Back, The Devils (works really well), Raiders of the Lost Ark, Stand By Me, Batman Returns, etc. I wouldn't say it's profound per se, but it does add a new kick to films you love and know inside out.
I'm glad you brought up the colourisation of the old Laurel and Hardy films and shorts, I saw the colourised versions first when I was a kid, now I've seen the originals, it really makes them seem dated and grainy. I can't imagine even films like Clerks and Raging Bull (ignoring the montage) being colourised now.
First movie that pops to mind is the 2013 Michel Gondry film 'L'écume des jours'. Starts in colour and turns into B&W pretty smartly, representing the main characters depression. Not only colour changes but the entire world around the main character. Not his best movie, but definitely worth checking out.
I have the Fury Road B&C steelbook & there is something extra that makes it better than the regular version. The B&C is perfectly suited for the terrain, plus it is not just B&W - it is adjusted more as Miller explains in the introduction
I have the Black and Chrome version on bluray. It looks pretty damn cool. The contrast is really well done. Some of the special effects, like the storm, also look better when they aren't in color.
Michael Mann's "Public Enemies" is really good in Black & White. It fits the time period really well by complementing the picture. It goes beyond a film noir by the use of the digitally shot cinematography adding a crisp visual look.
"Dead Men Don’t Wear Plaid" with Steve Martin. A great Collage film which gave use the possibility to see stars like Humphrey Bogart, James Cagney, Charles Laughton or Cary Grant in the same movie.
I have a black and white version of Fargo and it's beautiful! Highly recommend people check it out in monochrome, not only does it allow you to appreciate the cinematography in its most fundamental form but I also believe it contributes to the dark themes when necessary and compliments the humour of the 'simple' natured characters also.
I liked the Black and Chrome release but originally this version was supposed to be mute. No dialogue whatsoever, to mimic Miller's slash dupe version of the Road Warrior. Unfortunately they only made Fury Road black and white but there is a fan version that was released much earlier, which is black and white and with removed dialogues (only the music and sound effects). Also Miller took the name Black and Chrome from that fan edit. That fan version is in my opinion far more superior than just a regular black and white version with all the dialogue. Watching it you focus 100% on the visuals, the music amplifies everything. You can find that version online.. if you know where to look.
The problem with that version though, for me, is that so much of Imortan Joe's menace comes from his voice. Turning off that voice robs him of a lot of his power. Ideally you could compensate with music, but you'd have to get the super busy Junkie XL to come in and compose new stuff for it, which maybe explains why they didn't do the full Silent movie treatment for the official Black & Chrome version. One day!!!
Agreed - I thought watching it that a full silent-style treatment would work a treat. Never occurred to me watching the full colour version, but now I think it would really suit it.
I haven't seen Black and Chrome, but I would love to. Fury Road is such a genuine film that I think it could be enjoyed in any way. It really is a modern classic. Not in the vein of Nebraska or Moonlight, but more in the vein of Die Hard or Predator. As you said, the colour palette is awesome in the original, but a B&W version could well fantastically as well.
Saw it last week.... This is the Fury Road that I will remember. I have watched both in the cinema (3D, no thanks). I guess the desert lends itself to black and white and the high contrast. Also good to watch it again and think more about the characters than the crazy, amazing action. Also remember watching Shane Meadow's, 24/7, in black and white.
No mention of Tarkovskii or Alexei German? Both used colour and b/w in several films (German apparently because he wanted the whole thing in black and white but the studio didn't want to let him).
i love the use of black and white in A Girl Walks Home Alone At Night. It was intended to be black and white though i don't think there is even a colloured version out there.
I think one of the reasons Fury Road still works so well in Black and White is because the colour palette of the coloured release is pretty limited as well. Aside from the blue sky (and the very blue sequence taking place during night) the colour palette doesn't really move away from a ton of browns, reds and yellows. I don't think that's something that easily translates for that many movies.
WOW. I watched The Mist in b/w for first time just last night. I most likely order Mad Max (again) blu ray with b/w option. Dead Man (dir- Jim Jamush?) is one of the best b/w films.
I think that Christopher Nolan's 'Memento' contains some innovative use of Black and White photography. The more objective scenes of Leonard Shelby, when he is alone with his thoughts in a claustrophobic motel room are in black and white whereas the subjective scenes are in colour.
Had no idea there was a color version of Nebraska out there. Another film that was hot in colour but meant for black & white with both versions available is the Coen bros' The Man Who Wasn't There. And another recent film that starts in black & white and then goes to colour is of course Casino Royale.
I watched Prometheus in black and white, it made it feel more like a classic scifi, gave me a sense of nostalgia like I was watching The Andromeda Strain, the score fits it perfectly. I'd love to see Covenant in black and white.
The last CRT TV I had was beginning to play up really badly but I found it'd work fine with the colour turned off. So for several months I watched TV in black and white, the first series of This is England was really enjoyable to see sans colour nolans Dark Knight too, to this day there are still films and TV shows I thought were filmed in b/w and still surprise me when I see them in colour.
Recent directed a short film - which I decided should be shot in Black and White - For me it acts as a creative atheistic that fits the tone and mood of the film - Shot in 4K but then made grainy - Which represents the grittiness of the film - Has the visual feeling of the classic French avant grade movies
I've seen both versions of the film and I love both, I still slightly preferred the colored version because if it's bold visual color palette, if the film looked like the first official photos of the movie I couldn't watch that color version of the film after watching the black and chrome addition
Imo MMFR ought to have flipped between black and white and colour where ever it worked better (Explosions etc). I also like the idea of stripping out the voices and running soundtrack and subtitles only. Maybe even using hand drawn comic book style frames which merge with the rest of the film as another story book element.
I saw Schindler's List on a black and white television and thus completely missed the red coat - the film still works but the tendency of Spielberg to go for the heavy Schmaltz was muted.
Saw the chrome edition at the Prince Charles Theatre today. I haven't seen the colour version, but at no point did I wish for colour. It's a bleak, desperate film and the b/w helps convey that mood. Bare bones of plot, character and script, but really enjoyed it for what it was: the best heavy metal car chase ever. Definitely a big screen film!
it is on at my local cinema on sunday. and if i can, i will go. the only thing coming to mind is Death Proof, which is one of it's better moments has Kurt Russell looking never better in black and white. then the shock of colour brings it to life.
The pilot episode of The Walking Dead (also directed by Frank Darabont) looks spectacular in B&W, and is much more in keeping with the look of the graphic novels.
Interestingly enough, I made a black & white short film thriller in 2009, but later released a color version of it as I knew that B&W might not appeal to as many people. I do feel that presenting it in color does alter the mood and atmosphere of it. It's a dark psychological thriller, and the black & white just had such a stronger, more grim vibe to it all. However, considering it was inspired by Michael Mann's Manhunter, the color version is well saturated with color casts and just plays with a different feel in general to me. The black & white version is my preferred vision, and the way it should be experienced. However, if the color version allows someone to engage into the movie that otherwise wouldn't with the black & white edition, then I'm happy for it. The color version was an experiment, and fully my choice to create when I had to reconstruct the entire film after losing all my video files in a hard drive malfunction.
I wish I'd seen the black and white version first, since I've seen the colour version first my brain kept mentally adding the colour back rather than appreciating the black and white
Haven't see the "Black and Chrome" version, but I'm pretty skeptical about it, particularly because I the vibrancy and color palette of _Fury Road_ is something I really appreciated. I'm sure it looks great either way, but I don't see myself loving "Black and Chrome" more than the regular version.
OK just saw Mad Max: Black and Chrome. Here are some thoughts. There were aspects where in black and white it looked almost reminiscent of science fiction epic Hard To Be a God, The insanely detailed and ambitious set pieces, the squalor of the huddled masses, the dust of the scavenged wasteland. In particular the citadel, the sandstorm and the vehicles looked both fantastic and terrifying. Other times where the cartoon-ish action betrayed its b-movie leanings. The x2 speed of some chase sequences and the comic aesthetic of the "war boys". In those moments you are pulled slightly out of the immersion of the film. Or perhaps that could have been the drunk guy at the back of the cinema people kept "shooshing".
The thing Fury Road needed most was more Byron Kennedy, I'm wondering what "Sorcerer" would look like in black and white now, with the Blu-ray version well and truly out I might have to see...
And, of course: If.... which has a monochrome segments, where they apparently ran out of money. Have to say, Max Max FR does look good, from the brief segments shown.
I doubt Mad Max: Fury Road would work as well for me in black and white, the action scenes alone wouldn't be as eye popping and thrilling without those gorgeous colours throughout.
i think the crow is a perfect example of how a film should've been in black and white but was ultimately done in colour. the crow is so much better in black and white, its of course still wonderful in colour but the crow is meant to be viewed in b&w not just because its more stylized but because its closer to the graphic novel too.
Polanski's "The Ninth Gate" looks beautiful in black and white. It's not a great film by any means, but turn the colour off on your TV and watch the dvd in B&W - the way it's shot, it takes on the look and feel of a real old-school noir.
Although I've not seen it for probably decades I did enjoy Coppola's floaty black & white "Rumble Fish" which used colour for the fish in the pet store. Imagine my disappointment when i found my BlueRay of Fury Road contained the useless "threed" version but not the black and chrome versions of the film :-(
The shining is great in black and white even though the coulers of the film are so bold and vibrant it works apart from the elevator seance whith the blood but the rest is great
Brings to mind the original Night of the Living Dead after being colourised. That's defiantly not the way to go. But the other way around can absolutely work.
I really liked the vibrant colours of Mad Max, the film was beautiful. It was also a nice break from the drained saving private ryansque realism so many other blockbusters go for.
I definitely prefer the colour version, but some scenes were improved by the black and white. Pretty much any scene with conversation was better, but nuances in the high-octane action were lost.
