Roma: Strong Nominee for Best Cinematography

Alfonso Cuaron’s Roma (2018) has 10 nominations for the upcoming 91st Academy Awards next week. So one wonders, what is so exceptional or bounding about this film? Of course there are more than 10 things we can list down here but we chose one. Filmdiction will take you step by step on the film’s journey through it’s astonishing cinematography.

Warning for spoilers.

One might ask: why black and white? Even this feature of the film highlights the beauty of the cinematography to such an extent that you stop asking as you watch.

With the political events in the background during the 70’s in New Mexico, we dive deep into the lives of a family and their servant Cleo. The story is more about their relationships than them. Cleo’s relationship with the family members warms the heart more than anything while she is living her own misery deep within.

Her calmness hints something will eventually happen but there is no action to be expected really. The real action lies in the movement of the feelings. The vibrant happiness of family and life is something soon be deconstructed.

The thin line between life and death can be felt at every inch and corner of the movie.

However, the central theme lies around the loneliness of our female characters. Their disappointments and search for hope can be clearly seen in their eyes and actions. At the end of the day, they both know that like the tinted painting below on the left picture, nothing will be straightened out or fixed. With hopeless eyes, they watch their partners leave.

The similar fate of the two women bind them together. Below is another crooked object, this time the lamp. Nevertheless, the bond between the child and Cleo is so strong, it hints to a dim hope that even if they are alone, they have each other.

After Cleo expects to have her own child, the striking juxtapositions in the cinematography foreshadow the fate of the baby. During her visit to the hospital, she witnesses the fragile life of a baby during an earthquake which damages the cubicles at the hospital. The next scene abruptly takes us to a graveyard.

6 months later, Cleo goes through similar feelings with her own baby. One of the most moving scenes in the film could be this one. How fragile and thin is the line between life and death? The cinematography portrays it all.

While the family hits rock bottom after the children find out their father has left them and Cleo is in depression, they all witness the happy wedding ceremony of a couple. But can life end that easily when one still continues to live?

We receive an answer after Cleo saves two kids from drowning. She admits at that moment that she didn’t want her own baby to be born. We already knew that and never blamed her for it, but it was time she accepted the reality and forgave herself. This event knits the bond between the family and Cleo tighter than ever.

With all said and shown, if Roma was to win one Academy Award and one only, it would be cinematography. So let’s keep our fingers crossed and see what happens next week!

(1)All photos have been retrieved from Netflix as screenshots and can only be used for educational purposes.