The film I will be assessing the lighting of is, The Godfather (1972) starring Marlon Brando and Al Pacino and directed by Francis Ford Coppola. The lighting style used throughout the film is low-key lighting.
Benefits: The main benefit to utilizing low-key lighting is that it provides an overall dark feeling to a film which helps add intensity to dramatic scenes. Low-key lighting is executed by “extreme use of deep shadows, with very high contrast between the brightest parts of the scene and the darkest parts, which are obscured in shadows” (Goodykoontz & Jacobs, 2014, pg. 138) and is a popular choice for the genres of: horror, film noir, mystery, crime drama, suspenseful thriller and intense drama.
How low-key lighting contributes to the theme: The utilization of low-key lighting contributes to The Godfather as it is a dark and intense crime drama that relies heavily on lighting in order to give it that overall dark feeling required to get the message across to the viewers. The use of low-key lighting throughout the film also provides the viewer’s real insight into the severity of the situations the characters get themselves into while intensifying each dramatic scene and enhancing anxiety.
How low-key lighting suits the genre of the film: As stated above, low-key lighting is the popular choice for intensifying horror genres, film noir genres, mystery genres, crime drama genres and thriller genres so inherently it is the best choice for The Godfather as it is a crime drama. It is necessary for crime dramas to have a very dark and dramatic feel so the use of low-key lighting throughout the film was the absolute best choice and one of the many reasons why the film was such a success.
How the scene would play if different lighting choices had been made: Had the film not been shot with low-key lighting, it would have given the film a much different feel. For example, had it been shot utilizing a high-key lighting technique, which “has very bright light over everything, with few shadows and relatively low contrast between the lightest and darkest parts of the scene” (Goodykoontz & Jacobs, 2014, pg. 138) it would have given the film a much lighter feel which would have heightened the mood and would have changed the film completely (or at the very least confused the audience).
References:
Goodykoontz, B., & Jacobs, C. P. (2014). Film: From watching to seeing (2nd ed.). San Diego, CA: Bridgepoint Education, Inc.
The Internet Movie Database (IMDB). The Godfather (1972). Retrieved Sep. 16 2014, from: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0068646/
Lancaster Dodd. (Sep 18, 2011). The Godfather Trailer (HD). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sY1S34973zA
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