between those who are devout Christians (dressed
most often in white or gray costumes) and those
nonbelievers who have only doubt and despair
(dressed in black). But his color scheme goes
beyond costuming to encompass distinct contrasts
in lighting (both artificial and natural), settings
(interior and exterior), and the chess pieces in a
232 CHAPTER 6 CINEMATOGRAPHY
12Black and white versus colorStagecoach[1], made in
1939, was the first film that John Ford shot in Arizona’s
Monument Valley. Bert Glennon’s black-and-white
cinematography in Stagecoachprovided a portrayal of the
Old West that was different from Winton C. Hoch’s depiction
using color cinematography in The Searchers(1956) [2], one
of the last films that Ford shot in Monument Valley. Although
the expressive photography was state of the art in both films,
the use of black and white and of color was not a matter of
aesthetics but was dictated by industry standards.
12
Black and white in The Seventh SealIn the climactic
battle between the allegorical figure of Death (Bengt Ekerot,
left) and Antonius Block, the Knight (Max von Sydow, right)
inThe Seventh Seal(1957; cinematographer: Gunnar Fischer),
director Ingmar Bergman dresses both men in dark costumes
but uses light and chess figures to distinguish between
them [1]. Light from the upper left streams across the image,
illuminating the Knight’s blond-white hair, the Christian cross
on his sword, and his chess pieces. There is just enough ambient
light to outline the pale white face of the figure Death,
shrouded in his hood. While this lighting and color strategy
raises our expectations, we soon see that, in the chess game
against Death, the Knight loses. The concluding shot [2] is
one of the most iconic images in film history: Death leading
the Knight and his squire, wife, and friends in a solemn dance
of death. Again, notice Bergman’s use of black and white: the
dark-clad figures move upward on the mountain between the
black earth and the white clouds. Death unites all.