"The Sheltering Sky" A beautiful fusion of Ryuichi Sakamoto's famous score and the magician of light. Expressions that seem strange in modern times

Expressing the beauty of nature and arousing feelings with the highest quality images and sounds

Storaro has a motto that ``color is a symbol of an object,'' and is characterized by the use of light (lighting) to express this idea. ``The Sheltering Sky'' also uses orange light, which is close to red, symbolically. The characters are illuminated in orange colors that clearly do not exist in real life, such as hotel rooms and train cabins, to express their hidden feelings and passions. This effect of orange light was also used in `` Last Tango in Paris, '' but in ``The Sheltering Sky,'' which is also set in the Sahara Desert, the sense of unity with the background makes it feel even more vivid.

The orange light is applied from the side of the person, and the center of the face is clearly divided into orange and jet black darkness. In ``The Sheltering Sky ups, you can feel many moments like Rembrandt's paintings, which use the contrast of light and shadow as a technique.

"The Sheltering Sky" (c)Photofest / Getty Images

If I were to name a scene where Storaro's visual beauty and Ryuichi Sakamoto's score create the ultimate chemistry, the first is the opening. In the 1940s, the credits begin with a black-and-white scene of New York, then switch to color footage of North Africa, showing the seawall of a harbor, where a human hat suddenly appears on the edge of the seawall. The scene where the main characters disembark and walk up is captured in extreme close-up, and Sakamoto's main theme flows through this unusual composition, foreshadowing the disturbing love story that will unfold in the future. The synergistic effect of images and music creates a strong impact as the ``grasp'' of a movie.

The other scene is in the middle, at the cliff where Port and Kit are riding their bicycles. There are no people in sight across the vast landscape, and the scenery is so beautiful that it can be said to be synonymous with this film, and it remains imprinted in the minds of those who watch it. Fascinated by the beauty of the vast landscape, the two of them unconsciously end up leaning on top of each other on the cliff. It was evening, and as the orange glow of the sun illuminated the two of them, the shadows cast by the cliffs slowly changed in shape and area. Even though orange appears frequently in the movie, this is the only color that is pale and warm, perhaps because it represents Port and Kit's happiest moment. Eventually, Ryuichi Sakamoto's score overlaps with his exhilarating feelings, evoking both a cinematic catharsis and an overwhelming sense of sadness.

There are pros and cons about the final development and how Africa is depicted.