The landscape and color palate of a film can greatly influence the viewer’s response and reception both consciously and subconsciously. Psychologically, a viewer’s experience can be altered by the presentation of certain colors and shapes, to create atmosphere, mood, and to root deeper metaphors under the surface of a general storyline. Director Stanley Kubrick’s films span a wide range of genres, from science fiction to horror, with elements of both utopian and dystopian human interaction and environments. Several of his films, including but not limited to 2001 a Space Odyssey (1968), A Clockwork Orange (1971), and The Shining (1980), and Full Metal Jacket (1987) feature characters whose actions are driven by personal internal conflicts. In expressing these conflicts Kubrick partakes in a subconscious manipulation of the audience through his use of color and shape in both landscapes and costumes in his films. This project will discuss the psychological implications of color palate and set design for several Kubrick films, elements which indicate order and dramatic shifts from said order to a psychotic break or intense change in the characters. Of particular interest is Kubrick’s shifts from primary to secondary color palates, and his contrast between linear and circular shapes in films where color is not a frontal consideration. These elements of the film represent psychological states faced by the characters which dictate their movements from reason to mental instability.
About the presenterJennifer Gagliardi
I am a scholar focusing on spectatorship and the psychological implications of film. I received my BA in English Literature from St. Joseph’s College, where I wrote a thesis on Science Fiction cinema. I studied at Oxford University in the summer of 2015, applying Terror Management Theory to film. Most recently I obtained my MA in Art History and Criticism where I focused on film and media studies, and the manipulation of the moving image