Shading and Colors in the Persepolis Film

The Film Persepolis was a really nice animated film. It was captivating and really entertaining. What I really liked about the film though, was the coloring and shading of different scenes.

Persepolis first starts out as a color film. In the beginning, Marji is seen in an airport full of color. However, soon after, as she begins to reflect on her childhood, the film suddenly turns to black and white. This has two effects on the movie. It first lets us know that the film is like a flashback. Often times in animation, we see scenes turn black and white to reflect something that happened in the past. In the animation, It really gives Marji a chance to narrate, as she reflects within her flashback of the past. If it was like a standard animation film, we wouldn't really be able to hear her thoughts. Often times, in regular films, if a character suddenly get a thought, we won't know it until they say it out loud to someone else. However, in Persepolis, by basing much of the film as a reflection (by having color scenes in the beginning and middle before turning to black and white), the directors give an excuse to have Marji say her thoughts out loud without having to talk to another character. This keeps the film really true to the book in that we can know the thoughts of both Marji in the book, and Marji in the film.

I also really like the shading in the film. It really emphasizes the mood of Marji and the events occurring within the film. When Marji was really happy and life was good, the scenes tended to be brighter. For example, in the film, when Marji reunited with her family, the whole film became really white and bright, symbolizing her happiness. However, in Vienna, when she slept on the streets, the whole film became dark. All of the people and scenes became almost pitch black, symbolizing her depression. This can be compared to explosions in movies. Often times, in a modern film, when the director wants to show thrilling scenes, he/she will put in explosions. The reflects the mood of the movie by showing that the characters are pumped up and ready for battle. Just like in the color Persepolis, explosions symbolize how the characters are feeling. It shows them being hyped up. However, in Persepolis, rather that having lots of explosions like in Michael Bay films, they prefer to use more color to show thrilling moods.

Overall, I really loved the film. It is the combination of shading and color that really makes this film one of the most visually pleasing animation films that I have ever seen.