Chiaroscuro is the use of extreme dark and light areas in shots. It is a striking look which has been used to great effect in film, television and art.
The first film is from The Blair Witch Project (1999) At least half of the film is shot in the night time as three teenagers wander through woods, fearing for their lives. Simple torch gives great contrast in the light and dark of the film and casts an eerie shadow over the actors faces. It is the only source of light in the entire film when they are in the woods, this gives a creepy unsettling mood to the film which is perfect for the storyline.
The second shot is the film Pitch Black (2000) This as the title suggests is full of dark and light shots. The colouring is also quite interesting in the film. The white is quite blinding in places and as a result the shadows are extremely dark. The film is roughly about being hunted by alien predators which are on the planet they have been marooned on. The use of Chiaroscuro not only add the to scary storyline of the film but also helps to tell the story.
The third film is Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2009) The scene where Dumbledore and Harry enter a cave to retrieve what they believe to be a horcrux is one of tension and fear.
The cave is in total darkness apart from the light that is emitted by the two wizards wands. A huge ball of light is sent up into the ceiling of the cave to reveal its vastness. The wands of the to actors are the only other source. They reach the centre of the cave via a boat. This is designed as a crystallised like mound and the use of limited light play well on the set. The way it has been lit casts amazing shadows around them and really adds to the feeling of not knowing what is beyond where they can see. The water around them is a thick black horizontal curtain around them and no matter what light is thrown over it is remains dark
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