Colours of Film: The Story of Cinema in 50 Palettes

by Charles Bramesco

‘What’s so wonderful about Bramesco’s book, outside of a visually splendid layout that embraces the first word of that title with detailed color breakdowns of each palette, is how much it enhances the critical language of the average viewer.’ – Brian Tallerico, Editor of RogerEbert.com

Taking you from the earliest feature films to today, Colours of Film introduces 50 iconic movies and explains the pivotal role that colour played in their success.

The use of colour is an essential part of film. It has the power to evoke powerful emotions, provide subtle psychological symbolism and act as a narrative device.

Wes Anderson’s pastels and muted tones are aesthetically pleasing, but his careful use of colour also acts as a shorthand for interpreting emotion. And let’s not forget Schindler’s List (1993, dir. Steven Spielberg), in which a bold flash of red against an otherwise black-and-white film is used as a powerful symbol of life, survival and death.

In Colours of Film, film critic Charles Bramesco introduces an element of cinema that is often overlooked, yet has been used in extraordinary ways. Using infographic colour palettes, and stills from the movies, this is a lively and fresh approach to film for cinema-goers and colour lovers alike.

He also explores in fascinating detail how the development of technologies have shaped the course of modern cinema, from how the feud between Kodak and Fujifilm shaped the colour palettes of the 20th Century's greatest filmakers, to how the advent of computer technology is creating a digital wonderland for modern directors in which anything is possible.

​Filled with sparkling insights and fascinating accounts from the history of cinema, Colours of Film is an indispensable guide to one of the most important visual elements in the medium of film.

Genres: Film, Art, Nonfiction

334 pages, Kindle Edition

Published February 7, 2023

About the author

Charles Bramesco is an author whose writing has been published in Vanity Fair, Newsweek, The Guardian, The Verve, New York Magazine, and others.
He is also a well known for TV and movie critic.

Reviews

[Jay · Rating 3 out of 5]

A friend got me this for my birthday. It’s a lovely thick coffee table book full of colourful annotated stills from some of the great moments in cinema. I haven’t read the whole book from cover to cover, I’ve just read through the introduction and the pages on most of the films I’ve seen (probably about 20 or so out of the 50 featured). Bramesco’s concept is a fun one: he’s writing about films that have used colour in a notable way and he wants to show how the use of colour in film has changed through the years. His writing is perhaps a little on the highfalutin/thesaurus-y/slightly pretentious end of the critical spectrum (something I’ve noticed film criticism seems to be prone to far more than literary criticism). I don’t begrudge this, mind you — man’s gotta have passion! This is a nice book to have floating around the house. I’ll continue to occasionally pick it up whenever the fancy takes me.

[Louise · Rating 5 out of 5]

“…all that colour can do and be in cinema… This book is the beginning of a feast.”
Fantastic book exploring the role of colour in film to convey mood, sense and more. Really enjoyed the style of brief film resume and explanation of relevance of colour in each film through a thorough exploration of film history.

[Primus · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall it's a fine book, unfortunately it's just not what i was hoping for or expecting

I would have preferred if the book focused on one film from each era of Hollywood and was thus able to have a deeper dive into them cause overall the book feels quite underwhelming. And i feel like the fidelity of some of the shots selected for the colour palettes was lacking.

[Christina Barber · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Colours of Film: The Story of Cinema in 50 Palettes” by Charles Bramesco is a gorgeous exploration of the use of colour in film, both from the perspective of technique and for its dramatic and emotional qualities. Spanning more than a hundred years, from Méliès’ 1902 film, “A Trip to the Moon” to Steve McQueen’s 2020 film, “Lovers Rock”, Bramesco presents fifty iconic films and their colour palettes. Each film is presented in a one-page analysis of the colours used, the particular evocation of emotion or theme intended by the director, and includes a commentary on the techniques employed to achieve the desired colours. As much a book about the films themselves as a history of colour technique in film spanning the days of laborious hand-tinting, the use of layered films and Technicolor, Kodachrome and Fuji film, down to the modern advent of digital technologies. A discussion about the possibilities and limitations of each medium was well-integrated into the synopses and descriptions. Featuring films from across genres and from different countries, the author presents a balanced curation of films organised into four periods. Vibrant pages depicting iconic scenes accompanied by their colour palettes makes this an intriguing coffee table book for film enthusiasts and lay people alike.

[Cate · Rating 2 out of 5]

Shallow. Lovely colour palettes arranged from often bad quality screencaps of stunning films, making moronic claims about colour – particularly in early film – which could have been corrected with a little research or humility. Comes across as uninterested in films for the first half of cinematic history.

[David · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars to be fair.

It's a (small) coffee table book. No real deep dives are contained within. But there are occasional moments of insight and historical reveal. The author seems to be more comfortable talking about film from the 1960s onwards (much of the opening chapter is a water-treading slog). There are some bizarre film selections made.

[Jemma · Rating 4 out of 5]

My only wish is that there was more theory and analysis! But this book works wonderfully as a brief introduction into the colours of film, and makes a great coffee table book which you can pick up and start reading from any page.

[iris the dead flower · Rating 5 out of 5]

i will be the most annoying person ever about this book from this moment on for the rest of my life

[mini iz · Rating 5 out of 5]

a literal treasure i love this book

[Mandelaeffects · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting book - I wish it went into depth with things more?? It’s not quite a coffee table book, but not something you could really reference, either. It’s somewhat in between.

[Mo · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book combines brilliant expertise, well researched information about colour in all forms in film history and beautiful imagery.

[Fozz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Can’t wait to rewatch some the films in this book and see them through a new lens.

[Sophie Scott · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love technicolor