Three Colors Trilogy
June 2003 Reviewed by: Anthony Di Marco Format: DVD	(all ratings out of 5): Overall Enjoyment Picture Quality Packaged Extras Sound Quality

Filmmakers have used analogy, metaphor, and symbolism to express how people relate to one another, the world, and themselves, for as long as filmmaking and story telling have existed. But the human condition is not an easy concept to realize, or visualize. Much of what makes up human nature is internalized and therefore abstract. It is tough to get inside someone’s head and know how they feel, or what they’re thinking. A film that attempts to explain an abstract concept runs the risk of being either overly cerebral or literal. Body language can be too quick to register on camera, while sitting too long on a shot can kill the dramatic flow of a film. It takes a consummate filmmaker to give structure to an intangible idea. It takes a lifetime of wisdom to add texture and wit to those ideas.

If you are familiar with Krzysztof Kieslowski’s Three Colors you know that each film represents a color of the French flag. And each color corresponds to a word that represents French philosophy as it relates to life: Blue is liberty, White is equality, and Red is fraternity. Kieslowski does not simply make literal observations about the human condition through these terms. His life experience has given him insight into the irony of human existence.

Liberty can mean freedom or familiarity. In Blue, Julie tries to free herself from pain by disconnecting herself from the familiar. She throws out everything that reminds her of her past: her home, her name, and her worldly possessions. The audience sees a woman who has died emotionally, a wife and mother who would rather forget her deceased husband and daughter than live with the grief of their loss. However, Julie finds that life is not willing to let her forget her past. What is familiar to her is already ingrained. Her love of music, a secret admirer, and her mother give her reasons to exist. She learns that the only way to find freedom from her loss is to accept it, embrace it, and move on with her life.

On the surface, White condemns the hypocrisy of the legal system as it applies to divorce and matters of the heart. But below it Kieslowski digs into the ideas of equality, love, and hate, and what he believes they mean within an egocentric society.

We hear a plea for equality as an impotent man loses all of his possessions and self-respect at the hands of his frustrated wife. He has not killed anyone or stolen anything. Karol’s only crime is that he is unable to consummate his marriage. But rather than treat her loving husband with respect and understanding, Dominique attacks Karol with selfishness and cruelty. She knows how much he loves her, but believes her sexual satisfaction is worth ruining his life. Director Kieslowski deftly argues that equality cannot be attained through love if not reciprocated. Karol’s bittersweet and spiteful act of revenge upon his shrewish wife allows him to attain equality with her. But the love shared between the two in the final scene shows how tenuous the line is between love and hate.

Ultimately Kieslowski is fascinated with the way society has eroded human relationships. In his world, laws, material possessions, and technology have alienated us from what truly makes us happy. Red is not about technology nurturing fraternity, but technology contributing to human isolation. Although the Judge and Valentine communicate via technology, they rarely have contact with other people. The film makes it apparent that human contact is a requirement for maintaining sanity. When we are shown the Judge eavesdropping, his mental and physical condition becomes that of a drug addict in need of a fix. And like the drug user, the Judge displaces his need for genuine human contact with artificial means.

Given the rich visual storytelling, the quality of each film’s image is extremely important, and the viewer of these DVDs won’t be disappointed. The beautiful cinematography of each story is pristinely transferred. Colors are balanced and rich, while MPEG noise within the image is slight. Blue, White, and Red contain some excellent references for judging black detail and color separation. There are many scenes where shadow detail captivated me. A scene in Blue where Julie stares at her daughter’s light fixture contains crisp detail in the way the filtered blue light caresses her face. And you can practically feel the frigid atmosphere of Karol’s industrial hometown in White. Of the three, Red has the absolute best picture in terms of zero noise and beautifully saturated colors. The scene where Valentine is walking down a runway during a fashion show is striking in its clarity. The image "snaps" as photographers' flashes go off.

Most of the audio mix emerges from the center speaker, with musical flourishes and ambiance making an appearance every so often in the fronts and surrounds. On the whole, these soundtracks do a good job supporting the dialogue-heavy script. The soundtracks are in French, and like many foreign-language films, this DVD uses yellow English subtitles that are extremely clear and easy on the eyes.

Behind-the-scenes featurettes with director Kieslowski, rather short (and in some cases uninteresting) conversations with each female lead, some excellent "Cinema Lessons" with the director, and the obligatory audio commentaries with Kieslowski scholar Annette Insdorf summed up to a very consistent and well-produced collection of extras. My favorite was Kieslowski's "Cinema Lesson." The director takes certain scenes and deconstructs them while explaining why he made certain compositional choices. Interviews with Kieslowski’s peers and admirers were also good, if a shade pretentious. I could only listen to Insdorf for so long before I needed to take a break from her seemingly constant idolizing of Kieslowski.

It takes some patience to sit through five hours of densely crafted film. And in some cases it can be downright boring. White was by far the most accessible, but I can’t say that Red or Blue had me staring at my watch. I was genuinely riveted by the fine acting, the beautiful cinematography, and the brilliant subtext contained in each film. The Three Colors are true masterpieces: fine examples of what mature filmmaking can reveal about the human condition.

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