Blog #25 Cinematography Analysis - Twilight Saga, New Moon (2009)
New Moon is the second installment in the Twilight franchise. The film changed cinematographers for this one, going from Elliot Davis to Javier Aguirresarobe. The two films have two very different styles but are both consistent in their approaches. This film is more typical of a drama film shot in the late 2000’s era. It consists of techniques commonly used in the era and feels more mature than the previous film. It feels a lot like the Harry Potter films, where the shooting style changed once more experienced crew members got involved as the films became mainstream and big-budget.
The new D.O.P. on this project - Javier Aguirresarobe, worked on other projects after this, such as “The Road” and “Thor Ragnarok”. He’s also listed as having done Twilight Eclipse after this project.
Here are five points on the shooting style, broken down in detail. This film was shot seamlessly, although the story feels a little stuffed, due to how many love interests Bella has (4 and counting…).
Opening titles - For the opening titles of this film, the film displays an eclipse of a moon in reverse, revealing the title “New Moon“. This was clever. It showed the title visually as it was being revealed. Simple but effective title design. With the music and sound effects going along with the visuals, it created suspense and hype for the film; much needed if it was to compete with the other films Hollywood was producing at the time.
Title design
2. Transitions - The film has some notably smooth transitions, that elevate the film. A noticeable one from the beginning is where the film dollys into a painting of the “Volturi“ organisation. The shot continues into another shot of the Volturi moving around in the same framed position, without a noticeable cut. This was clever problem solving. They do a lot of clever problem solving in this film, utilising visual effects to create smooth transitions and stunning moments. They must have consulted a lot with the visual effects team.
Volturi
3. Rembrant lighting - After studying the lighting in the film for a few scenes, it finally clicked with me: this film uses primarily Rembrant lighting. The film is lit from a side key and little else. There is rarely backlighting but often a light on the background, to create depth. As you can see in the image below, the film uses a soft side light to create a triangle under the eye of the chararacter, creating short-key Rembrandt lighting. This was a popular technique of the era and makes every frame a painting, as they say.
Rembrant
4. Costume as storytelling - In an early scene, Edward is seen dressed in a black suit as he gives Bella bad news: they cannot see each other any longer. The film uses clever costume design and colour to add an extra layer to the emotions felt by the characters. You could have a guess at how each scene is going to pan out on costume alone, which is a second layer of storytelling added to the film.
5. The Volturi - The film still feels kinetic, as compared to the first one. There is plenty of movement in the shots and room for imperfections. Hoevever, when the Volturi show up in the film, there is a noticeable change of shooting style. Every frame is aesthetic, the movement is precise and measured. The shots are mostly on a tripod or a smooth dolly in/around. This matches the style of the Volturi, who are professional and promp - formality is everything to them. This creates a sense of unease as it feels like they are in control: they are often shot from a low angle, conveying a sense of power. The Volturi are also sat in high chairs and reside in an Ancient Roman-style building. Everything about them is steadfastly symmetrical and it feels psychopathic.
Those are my quick five points on the film, I hope you can look at it in a new light now. This film was a lot more polished than the first one but there is a lot of story stuffed into less than two hours. Nonethless, it looks subtly stunning.
Thanks for reading and if you’ve any comments, let me know down below.
Good luck out there.
-D.C.