 |
| Figure 1- Black Narcissus, Original Poster (1947) |
Black Narcissus is a film about a group of Anglo-catholic nuns who are sent to the Himalayas in order to carry out a task of making a new school and hospital for children and young ladies. From the moment they arrive in their new surroundings up in Mopu Palace high in the mountains, the nuns start to feel uneasy and sick. They claim there is something in the atmosphere, and as the film goes onto introduce the nuns to Mr Dean (the only male character) the otherness that was bothering them slowly begins to unfold and become more clear...
Jack Cardiff was the cinematographer for Black Narcissus. A cinematographer is somebody who works alongside the director to control the camera and lighting when working on a production, they are responsible for creative and technical decisions relating to the image being created: the visual impact of the film falls back to a cinematographer. Cardiff's role was very important in Black Narcissus, he was one of the first British cinematographers to ever work in technicolour, and he delivered. 'He gave me half of my performance with the lighting' (Byron, K. 2007). Lighting is a major part of this film, when looking at figure 2 (below) the lighting is extremely prominent around her eyes and the top half of her face only. The surrounding areas are very dark and fade into blackness around her, this darkness represents the great evil beginning to take over her. "Ok, that’s good, that’s good, that’s good because if that gets the menace I think, it’s slightly dark and colder.” (Cardiff, J. 2007). The use of the dark lighting around Sister Ruth brings a feeling of much darker emotions emanating from the character herself, almost foreshadowing in some senses of her breakdown to come. Before the nuns arrived at the new 'palace' (actually a forer brothel) there was not nearly as much darkness used, as they were in a secluded, safe holy space dedicated to their religion. Darkness only forms once the characters move to the brothel and meet Mr Dean.
 |
| Figure 2- Sister Ruth (1947) [Film Still] |
Along with lighting comes colour. As one of the first cinematographers to work in technicolour (the process of colour motion form 1916 until the 1950's) the colour and lighting go hand in hand with one another to create some beautiful effects for the film. 'Black Narcissus is one of the high points of color design and lighting in cinema...' (Morris. G, 2001)
 |
| Figure 3- The Lipstick (1947) [Film Still] |
Using semiotics, looking at the scene when Sister Ruth applies her red lipstick in a standoff-type situation with Sister Clodagh, figure 3, the colour red is heightened, it stands out much more in juxtaposition with the saturated palette around her. Red also has connotations to things such as sexual desire, anger, danger and seduction. (Marshall, P. 2008) This is a leading ideal towards sexual desire due to the fact that Sister Ruth has been growing more and more interested in one of two male characters in the film, Mr Dean. This red is prominent in Sister Ruth's spiral of madness as her dress is also red, as is her hand mirror (figure 4). Although her dress is actually red, the way in which Cardiff has directed the lighting, it appears to be black. Most of the room alongside this appears black as well. Black is the colour of evil, sexuality, power and anger. This fits the scene and the way Sister Ruth is acting extremely well, she becomes dangerous and full of mystery that can all be routed down to her sexual desire for Mr Dean. 'Cinematographer Jack Cardiff created an otherworldly atmosphere that reflects the psychological arc of the film’s characters’ (Criterion, 2018)
 |
| Figure 4- The Red Trio (1947) [Film Still] |
The fact that the Nuns are placed into an old Brothel to be made into a school may have a lot to do with the fact that Sister Ruth does slowly descend into a state of madness and sexual desire. The way the nuns are ina major juxtaposition with their morals against the building's past, it is almost as though the building had its own personality against them from the start, like a haunted house. '..Pleasing dynamic parallel though are explicitly different in how their buildings effect the psychological and sexual make-up of the people unfortunate enough to be housed within their haunted walls.' (Scovell, A. 2014) The building they are working in to provide a safe place dedicated to religion and children is the complete opposite, there are paintings of sexual women on the walls, which looks quite unordinary when seen in the same frame as a nun. (Figure 5) This can also reference back to figure 3, where Sister Ruth is putting on bright red lipstick. Lipstick is something typically used to get a mans attention or indicate sexual desire. The fact that this all happening inside a brothel is also indicative of a sexual nature growing inside Sister Ruth. The lipstick is really the character finally giving into her desires after being a nun for so long.
 |
| Figure 5- The Brothel Remains (1947) [Film Still] |
In conclusion, it can be said that Black Narcissus has many different semiotic readings throughout the film. This can be referencing colour, lighting to all lead back to sexual nature hidden deep under the surface of the film. However, if one applies semiotics to the film title 'Black Narcissus' it can be argued that it is the polar opposite of a white lily. The 'Lily symbolises purity and refined beauty. White lily symbolises modesty and virginity.' (The Flower Expert, 2018). With this quote in mind, it can be said that the Black Narcissus is the counterpart to this lily, representing sexual nature, arrogance and a dark truth. When applying semiotics to a film, it becomes easier to start seeing why things have been put into a shot, or shown in the film. Everything has its purpose (mise-en-scene) and with this in mind, Black Narcissus becomes an incredibly well-constructed film with all elements included.
Illustrations:
Fig. 1, Black Narcissus, Original Poster (1947) [Poster] At: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0039192/ (Accessed on: 15 November 2018)
Fig. 2, Sister Ruth (1947) [Film Still] At: https://www.mfah.org/calendar/black-narcissus (Accessed on: 15 November 2018)
Fig. 3, The Lipstick (1947) [Film Still] At: https://www.bfi.org.uk/news-opinion/news-bfi/features/black-narcissus-exoticism-eroticism-powell-pressburger (Accessed on 15 November 2018)
Fig. 4, The Red Trio (1947) [Film Still] At: https://www.criterion.com/films/632-black-narcissus (Accessed on 15 November 2018)
Fig.5, The Brothel Remains (1947) [Film Still] At: http://chuiteng.weebly.com/blog/black-narcissus-marred-by-casual-racism (Accessed on: 15 November 2018)
Bibliography:
Byron, K. 2007. At: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tuwU_f42dUk (Accessed on: 15 November 2018)
Cardiff, J. 2007. At: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tuwU_f42dUk (Accessed on: 15 November 2018)
Criterion, 2018. At: https://www.criterion.com/current/posts/5697-the-lush-technicolor-of-black-narcissus (Accessed on: 15 November 2018)
Marshall, P. 2008 At: http://filmdirectingtips.com/archives/157 (Accessed on 15 November 2018)
Morris. G, 2001. At: https://www.criterion.com/current/posts/5697-the-lush-technicolor-of-black-narcissus (Accessed on: 15 November 2018)
The Flower Expert, 2018. At: https://www.theflowerexpert.com/content/aboutflowers/flower-meanings (Accessed on: 15 November 2018)
0 Comments