The Use of Cinematography in Moonlight

The film Moonlight compares considerably to the movie The Bad Batch as both lead characters find themselves in unwelcoming situations and are constantly forced to fight for their position in the film. Moonlight chronicles the journey of Chiron, a young black man who struggles to find himself, in an environment dominated by violence and a rejection of his sexuality. On the other hand, The Bad Batch follows the journey of Arlen, a young woman, who finds herself abandoned in a wasteland in Texas and thus is forced to navigate the grisly landscape and even fight cannibals to make it out of the Wasteland alive. Both the films Moonlight and The Bad Batch effectively employ the use of cinematography to express the inner world and emotions of the protagonists while bringing the viewers closer to adversities experienced by the characters (Thompson & David 10).  In Moonlight, the cinematography is effectively used to capture and express Chiron’s conflicted inner world whereas, in The Bad Batch, the cinematography is effectively used to emphasize Arlen’s fragility in the gruesome vast landscape while positioning the viewers closer to the moments of violence and intimacy.

Moonlight does not only follow a great storyline with impeccable use of look and sound, but also the camera angles do an excellent job of relaying the story. One of the great uses of cinematography is brought out in the swimming scene which demonstrates a swimming lesson in the ocean between Little and Juan (Keenan 3). The scene is monumental as it serves as the initiation of Little into his new conflicted self that struggles to find an identity. To emphasize on how crucial the scene is, the film uses a low and immersive camera angle coupled with a real fluid motion which gives the viewers the impression that they are immersed in the deep waters in the same way as Little thus experiencing the baptism with him (Keenan 3).The camera choices in the scene make the swimming and baptism sequence very powerful as the characters feel immersed into Little’s character as he moves in and out of the water. Additionally, the camera shows the sky progressively becoming cloudy and gray which shows the exact emotions would follow Little as he progressed from childhood to adulthood. However, although Little’s environment is the environment and constantly forces him to hide his sexuality and his vulnerability, the beautiful surroundings signify a new-found hope. The ocean, the breeze as well as the moonlight itself are environmental features that symbolize the hope and freedom that Chiron acquires at the end of the film (Keenan 3).

Moonlight also uses cinematography to illustrate the violence and heartache that Chiron faces every day. The film employs the use of slow-motion camera movements to effectively capture violence in the film as well as the struggles that Chiron faces every day (Keenan 3). In one of the scenes, Chiron is seen washing his bloodied face, and the camera slowly brings him into close focus as if illustrating that he is washing away the old Chiron and welcoming a new chapter in his life when he comes to terms with his race (Keenan 3). Additionally, the bathroom walls have a pigmented blue light illustrating Chiron’s hardened feelings thus far. The blue light, therefore, seeks to solidify on Chiron’s cold feelings at the exact moment in his life. Also, the scene contrasts with the earlier scenes, where Little’s room is dominated by a pink light thus revealing a different side of Chiron’s life (Keenan 3).

Lastly, the other dominant use of cinematography in Moonlight is to bring out Chiron’s character. The opening scene of the film uses a slick swirling camera work often associated with blockbusters to bring out Juan as a character who is a calm, relaxed and with status as evidenced the label ‘big man’ as well as his drug-dealing business (Keenan 3). However, the next scene that follows brings out a completely different feeling of discomfort as evidenced by the use of shaky hand-held camera (Keenan 3). The use of the shaky hand-held camera illustrates that Little is unsafe, insecure and his life is painful chaos as he is contently picked on by bullies putting him in a trapped and terrified position. Additionally, in the dinner scene between Juan, his girlfriend and Little, the camera pans smoothly between Juan and his girlfriend showing the strong connection between the two and the comfort that Little gets from them (Keenan 3). The film dominantly uses shots from behind when focusing on Chiron illustrate Chiron’s struggle to connect with his inner self and thus his heightened inner conflicts. Also, the use of circular shots signifies feelings of in-group associated with the boys playing football, from which Chiron does not feel a part of until he meets with his friend, Kev. Therefore, camera angles are manipulated throughout the film, to help in the bringing out of Chiron’s character as well as his interaction with the other characters (Keenan 3).

On the other hand, the film, The Bad Batch effectively employs the use of cinematography to capture the dusty desert landscape. For the first fifteen to twenty minutes in the film, no dialogue or voiceovers are used, and the use of sound and visuals only does storytelling. The use of minimal dialogue and narration in the film is used to draw the attention of the audience to the effective use of editing and cinematography (Zaman 70). The use of many different wide shots and weeping desert photography helps to create a beautiful depiction of the desert wasteland and to focus on the detailed thrift-store set of dressing which serves as the only ornament in a somewhat sparse narrative landscape (Zaman 70). The scenery is also highlighted in another scene where Arlen takes drugs and goes out into the desert and starts staring at the sky as it changes colors creating a very vast and beautiful scenery, therefore, illustrating the fantastic cinematography employed in the film (Zaman 70). The first twenty minutes of the film is thus undoubtedly the strongest scenes in the movie as they set the tone for unflinching violence that subsequently follows in the movie since as soon as the characters start talking everything else goes sideways (Zaman 70).

Additionally, the film’s effective use of cinematography is also done in a manner that positions the audience closer to the moments of intimacy and violence that occur throughout the film. The use of cinematography greatly captures Arlen’s fragility in the vast desert landscape. The scene illustrates Arlen’s fear as well as the vast space between the landscape and civilization as she finds herself in the hands of cannibals (Zaman 70). In the subsequent scenes where Arlen is in the company of the men who are after her, the air between them illustrates their complicated chemistry which is dominated by a mix of desire, fear, regret, and disgust. When in the cannibalistic world, Arlen gets kidnapped, and her leg and arm are cut off and eaten (Zaman 70). During this scene, the camera gradually pans smoothly from Arlen’s leg and arm into her face, as if to avoid the audience from witnessing from witnessing the grisly details of the act. The camera moves from Arlen’s face then gradually takes a close-up of another woman eating her body parts. The camera shots are effectively done to deliver the message of the cannibalism people while protecting the audience from the grisly details of Arlen losing her leg and arm (Zaman 70).

In conclusion, as seen above, both the films Moonlight and The Bad Batch

effectively employ the use of cinematography to express the inner world and emotions of the protagonists while bringing the viewers closer to adversities experienced by the characters. In Moonlight, the cinematography is effectively used to capture and express Chiron’s conflicted inner world whereas, in The Bad Batch, the cinematography is effectively used to emphasize Arlen’s fragility in the gruesome vast landscape while positioning the viewers closer to the moments of violence and intimacy. Overall, the scenes that stand out in both films is the baptism scene in Moonlight, which shows the beautiful scenery while immersing the audience into the film illustrating the transition from a little boy into a conflicted adult and in The Bad Batch

it is the desert landscape, which shows the distance between civilization and the landscape and foreshadows for the gruesome scenes that subsequently follow.

Works Cited

Keenan, Emma. “Aspects of Moonlight.” Cinesthesia 8.1 (2018): 3.

Thompson, Kristin, and David Bordwell. Film history: An introduction. Vol. 205. Boston: McGraw-Hill, 2003.

Zaman, Farihah. ”The Bad Batch.” Film Comment 53.3 (2017): 70.

Appendix

Figure 1The Baptism/Swimming Scene in The Moonligt

Figure 2 Violent Scene in The Moonlight

Figure 3The Desert Scene in the Bad Batch

Figure 4 The Kidnapping Scene when Arlen is taken by the Cannibals