https://tesscetin.wordpress.com/2014/01/19/the-use-of-color-in-amelie-2001/
I found this article that speaks on the colors found in Amelie and I find most of it is very intriguing. The editor used a common video motif called “Digital Internediate” which allows the editor to manipulate colors and emphasize certain aspects of the film through color filters. This really emphasizes how important color was to the director. Color in itself is it’s own character just like the heat was in “Do The Right Thing.” It really tells us a lot about this movie and the characters in the film. The article goes on to talk about the meaning of each color. Green was one major color, which symbolizes hope and nature in some cultures. This can directly relate to Amelie’s character. Yellow would stand for warmth, happiness and comfort but also something surreal, which explains Amelie’s imaginative ways. Red is definitely a color that stood out. In this case, according to the article, red represents warmth, energy, passion, and love, which could represent Amelie’s life and mood. The article states, “Red cherries, raspberries and her red fish all symbolize her passion and vital young mind. Thus, this motif is continued throughout the film as she is always wearing something red to in a way, represent her childhood which is a key time of the development of the character.” This quote brings up a really great point about how much color impacts our knowledge on the character and plot in a movie. The director set these specific colors to tell the viewers something and to send us these messages, which I believe he did quiet effectively.
I completely agree. I think that what stood out to me most in the opening scene of Amelie was the range of colors. I thought it was also interesting to note the differences between the specific color schemes associated with each of the characters. For instance, like you mentioned, red represents “warmth, energy, passion, and love”. This color strongly relates to Amelie because her intrinsic desire to feel love from her family, her father in particular. The warmth and love Amelie holds for her mother and father demonstrates the striking difference between her and her family. Her parents, who were shown wearing much plainer colors, such as brown and green, did not show the same, or any, affection and love for their daughter or each other.