Deep Red. The Masque of the Red Death. Red Dawn. Are there actually titles in literature and film in which red is not somehow associated with death, danger, evil? Of course the connection is obvious, blood-red speckles promise maximum excess, especially in exploitation films this paid off. Red colour in image design, Technicolor, Kodachrome, „scarlet“ red, dominated films by the British Hammer studios, Roger Corman (see here) and later Dario Argento’s work as a symbol of ominousness for almost three decades. The Giallo, the Italian psychological horror of Argento and many others, was actually more red than yellow, if you drilled deep below the covers, before Hollywood defined the genre with the blue tones that still prevail today (see the Teal and Orange hype, still a guaranteed seller on Instagram or 500px).
The blood red in films like The Last Jedi, Suspiria, Climax, on the other hand, is still predominant today, recalling the red curtains, walls and haemoglobin orgies of cinematic slaughters in the past. This cinematic imprint („cinematic“ in the sense of cineastic as well as pre-digital film stock) continues to draw my attention to red details to this day. Hammer, Corman, Argento, the Rialto Wallaces always stick in my veins, the contrast with green or blue elements arises almost compulsively. Yes, it’s so ingrained that I’m always looking for the most cinematic, blood-red, burgundy, sometimes gaudy tones. Sometimes it seems to work.
k-words 