{{Short description|1993 French psychological drama films}} {{Redirect|Trois couleurs|the French arts journal|Trois couleurs (magazine)|drawings executed in shades of black, white, and red|Trois crayons|the series of Indian films| The Colors Trilogy}}{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2021}} {{Infobox film | name = Three Colours | image = Three Colors trilogy poster.png | alt = | caption = | native_name = {{Infobox name module|fr|Trois Couleurs}} | director = Krzysztof Kieślowski | producer = Marin Karmitz | writer = {{Plainlist| * Krzysztof Kieślowski * Krzysztof Piesiewicz }} | starring = {{Plainlist| * Juliette Binoche * Benoît Régent<br/>(''Blue'') * Zbigniew Zamachowski * Julie Delpy<br />(''White'') * Irène Jacob * Jean-Louis Trintignant<br />(''Red'') }} | music = Zbigniew Preisner | cinematography = {{Plainlist| * Slawomir Idziak (''Blue'') * Edward Kłosiński (''White'') * Piotr Sobociński (''Red'') }} | editing = Jacques Witta | production_companies = {{ubl | mk2 Productions SA | France 3 Cinema | CAB Productions | TOR Production | Canal+ }} | distributor = {{ubl | mk2 Diffusion (France) | Rialto Film (Switzerland) }} | released = {{Film date|df=y|1993|09|08|''Blue''|1994|01|26|''White''|1994|09|14|''Red''}} | runtime = {{ubl | 288 minutes | 94 minutes {{small|(''Blue'')}} | 88 minutes {{small|(''White'')}} | 99 minutes {{small|(''Red'')}} }} | country = {{ubl | France | Poland | Switzerland }} | language = {{ubl | French | Polish (''White'') }} | budget = | gross = $6.1 million | italic_title = no }} The '''''Three Colours'' trilogy''' ({{langx|fr|Trois couleurs}}, {{langx|pl|Trzy kolory}}) is the collective title of three psychological drama films directed by Krzysztof Kieślowski, co-written by Kieślowski and Krzysztof Piesiewicz (with story consultants Agnieszka Holland and Sławomir Idziak), produced by Marin Karmitz and composed by Zbigniew Preisner. The trilogy consists of ''Three Colours: Blue'' (1993), ''Three Colours: White'' (1994), and ''Three Colours: Red'' (1994). The trilogy, while not sharing a specific storyline, thematically examines the French Revolutionary ideals, and is interconnected, particularly in ''Red'', with cameo appearances of characters from ''Blue'' and ''White''.
Represented by the Flag of France, the trilogy is an international co-production between France, Poland, and Switzerland in the French language, with the exception of ''White'' in Polish and French. All three films garnered widespread acclaim from reviews, with ''Red'' receiving nominations for Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, and Best Cinematography at the 67th Academy Awards.
==Themes== Blue, white, and red are the colours of the French flag in hoist-to-fly order, and the story of each film is loosely based on one of the three political ideals in the motto of the French Republic: liberty, equality, fraternity. As with the treatment of the Ten Commandments in ''Dekalog'', the illustration of these principles is often ambiguous and ironic. As Kieślowski noted in an interview with an Oxford University student newspaper: "The words [''liberté, egalité, fraternité''] are French because the money [to fund the films] is French. If the money had been of a different nationality, we would have titled the films differently, or they might have had a different cultural connotation. But the films would probably have been the same".<ref>{{cite news|last=Abrahamson|first=Patrick|date=1995-06-02|title=Kieslowski's Many Colours|url=http://www.musicolog.com/kieslowski_manycolours.asp|work=Oxford University Student newspaper|access-date=2020-12-07|archive-date=19 February 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200219141755/http://www.musicolog.com/kieslowski_manycolours.asp|url-status=live}}</ref>
The trilogy has also been interpreted by film critic Roger Ebert as, respectively, an anti-tragedy, an anti-comedy, and an anti-romance.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/great-movie-three-colors-trilogy-blue-white-red|title=Three Colors Trilogy: Blue, White, Red|first=Roger|last=Ebert|date=9 March 2003|website=RogerEbert.com|access-date=17 January 2017|archive-date=13 April 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130413074921/http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/great-movie-three-colors-trilogy-blue-white-red|url-status=live}}</ref>
==Connections and patterns== A symbol common to the three films is that of an underlying link or thing that keeps the protagonist linked to their past. In the case of ''Blue'', it is the lamp of blue beads, and a symbol seen throughout the film in the TV of people falling (doing either sky diving or bungee jumping); the director is careful to show falls with no cords at the beginning of the film, but as the story develops the image of cords becomes more and more apparent as a symbol of a link to the past. In the case of ''White'' the item that links Karol to his past is a 2 Fr. coin and a plaster bust of Marianne<ref>{{cite journal | doi = 10.1386/seec.2.1.75_1 | volume=2 | title=Clandestine human and cinematic passages in the United Europe: The Polish Plumber and Kieślowski's hairdresser | year=2011 | journal=Studies in Eastern European Cinema | pages=75–90 | last1 = Skrodzka-Bates | first1 = Aga | s2cid=145608963}}</ref> that he steals from an antique store in Paris. In the case of ''Red'', the judge never closes or locks his doors and his fountain pen, which stops working at a crucial point in the story.<ref>{{cite web|last=Leong|first=Anthony|title=Demystifying Three Colors: Blue|url=http://www.mediacircus.net/blue.html|publisher=Media Circus|access-date=30 October 2011|archive-date=26 October 2002|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20021026132712/http://www.mediacircus.net/blue.html|url-status=dead}}</ref>
Another recurring image related to the spirit of the film is that of elderly people recycling bottles: In ''Blue'', an old woman in Paris is recycling bottles and Julie does not notice her (in the spirit of freedom); in ''White'', an old man also in Paris is trying to recycle a bottle but cannot reach the container and Karol looks at him with a sinister grin on his face (in the spirit of equality); and in ''Red'', an old woman cannot reach the hole of the container and Valentine helps her (in the spirit of fraternity).
In ''Blue'', while Julie is searching for her husband's mistress in the central courthouse, she accidentally steps into an active court trial and is immediately turned around by security. While Julie is peeking into the courtroom, Karol from ''White'' can be heard pleading to the judge in a scene that begins his chapter of the trilogy.
Each film's ending shot is of a character crying. In ''Blue'', Julie de Courcy cries looking into space. In ''White'', Karol cries as he looks at his wife. In ''Red'', the judge Kern cries as he looks through his broken window out at the camera.
Many main characters from ''Blue'' and ''White'', including Julie and Karol, appear at the ending of ''Red'' as survivors of a ferry accident.
==Principal cast== ;''Three Colours: Blue'' * Juliette Binoche - Julie * Benoît Régent - Olivier * Florence Pernel - Sandrine ;''Three Colours: White'' * Zbigniew Zamachowski - Karol * Julie Delpy - Dominique * Janusz Gajos - Mikolaj ;''Three Colours: Red'' * Irène Jacob - Valentine * Jean-Louis Trintignant - Joseph * Jean-Pierre Lorit - Auguste
==Soundtrack== {{Infobox album | italic_title = no | name = Three Colors (soundtracks) | type = Soundtrack | artist = Zbigniew Preisner | cover = | alt = | released = 1993 - 1994 | recorded = | venue = | studio = | genre = Soundtrack, Classical | length = 40:35<br>35:46<br>41:57 | label = Virgin<br>Capitol Records | producer = | prev_title = | prev_year = | next_title = | next_year = }} {{Main|Three Colors: Blue (soundtrack)|Three Colors: White (soundtrack)|Three Colors: Red (soundtrack)}} Music for all three parts of the trilogy was composed by Zbigniew Preisner and performed by Silesian Philharmonic choir along with Sinfonia Varsovia.
==Reception== {| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;" |- ! Film ! Rotten Tomatoes ! Metacritic |- | ''Blue'' | 96% (57 reviews)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/three_colors_blue/|title=Three Colours: Blue|website=Rotten Tomatoes|access-date=14 December 2025|archive-date=29 August 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230829202145/https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/three_colors_blue|url-status=live}}</ref> | 87 (11 reviews)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.metacritic.com/movie/three-colors-blue|title=Three Colours: Blue (1993): Reviews|website=Metacritic|access-date=December 2, 2009|archive-date=22 April 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230422010513/https://www.metacritic.com/movie/three-colors-blue|url-status=live}}</ref> |- | ''White'' | 91% (56 reviews)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/three_colors_white/|title=Three Colours: White (1994)|website=Rotten Tomatoes|access-date=14 December 2025|archive-date=25 June 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230625112713/https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/three_colors_white|url-status=live}}</ref> | 91 (11 reviews)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.metacritic.com/movie/three-colors-white|title=Three Colours: White (1994): Reviews|website=Metacritic|access-date=8 July 2023|archive-date=28 May 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230528200008/https://www.metacritic.com/movie/three-colors-white|url-status=live}}</ref> |- | ''Red'' | 100% (62 reviews)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/three_colors_red/|title=Three Colours: Red (1994)|website=Rotten Tomatoes|access-date=14 December 2025|archive-date=30 April 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230430225328/https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/three_colors_red|url-status=live}}</ref> | 100 (11 reviews)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.metacritic.com/movie/three-colors-red|title=Three Colours: Red (1994): Reviews|website=Metacritic|access-date=8 July 2023|archive-date=19 November 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221119030913/https://www.metacritic.com/movie/three-colors-red|url-status=live}}</ref> |}
The trilogy as a whole topped ''The San Diego Union-Tribune''{{'}}s list of the best films of 1994,<ref>{{cite news|last=Elliott|first=David|date=25 December 1994|title=On the big screen, color it a satisfying time|newspaper=The San Diego Union-Tribune|edition=1, 2|page=E=8}}</ref> ranked third on ''San Jose Mercury News'' writer Glenn Lovell's year-end list,<ref>{{cite news|last=Lovell|first=Glenn|date=25 December 1994 |title=The Past Picture Show the Good, the Bad and the Ugly -- a Year Worth's of Movie Memories|newspaper=San Jose Mercury News|page=3|edition=Morning Final}}</ref> ten on a list by Michael Mills of ''The Palm Beach Post'',<ref>{{cite news|last=Mills|first=Michael|date=30 December 1994|title=It's a Fact: 'Pulp Fiction' Year's Best|newspaper=The Palm Beach Post|page=7|edition=Final}}</ref> and was also on unranked top-tens list by ''Tulsa World''{{'}}s Dennis King<ref>{{cite news|last=King|first=Dennis|date=25 December 1994|title=SCREEN SAVERS in a Year of Faulty Epics, The Oddest Little Movies Made The Biggest Impact|newspaper=Tulsa World|page=E1|edition=Final Home}}</ref> and ''The Atlanta Journal-Constitution'' critics Eleanor Ringel and Steve Murray.<ref name = "AtlantaYE">{{cite news|title=The Year's Best|newspaper=The Atlanta Journal-Constitution|date=25 December 1994 |page=K/1}}</ref> Roger Ebert ranked the trilogy as a whole at No. 5 on his list of the "Best films of 1990s" and included it in his "Great Movies" list.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20041215/COMMENTARY/41215001/1023 |work=Chicago Sun-Times |title=Ebert's 10 Best Lists: 1967–present |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060908200137/http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=%2F20041215%2FCOMMENTARY%2F41215001%2F1023 |archive-date=September 8, 2006 |df=mdy-all}}</ref><ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/great-movie-three-colors-trilogy-blue-white-red | work=Chicago Sun-Times | title=Three Colors Trilogy: Blue, White, Red (1993-1994) | access-date=11 May 2022 | archive-date=18 December 2018 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181218124123/https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/great-movie-three-colors-trilogy-blue-white-red | url-status=live }}</ref> ''Empire'' magazine ranked it #11 and #14 on their "The 33 Greatest Movie Trilogies" and "The 100 Best Films of World Cinema" lists respectively.<ref>{{cite web | title =The 33 Greatest Movie Trilogies | url =https://www.empireonline.com/movies/features/trilogy/ | work =Empire | date =5 August 2023 | access-date =24 July 2021 | archive-date =20 December 2022 | archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20221220042918/https://www.empireonline.com/movies/features/trilogy/ | url-status =live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2019 |title=The 100 Best Films Of World Cinema |url=https://www.empireonline.com/movies/features/100-greatest-world-cinema-films/ |access-date=2023-06-28 |website=Empire |archive-date=23 November 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151123004145/http://www.empireonline.com/movies/features/100-greatest-world-cinema-films/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
==References== {{reflist}}
==External links== {{wikiquote}} * {{IMDb title|qid=Q932814|id=tt0108394|title=Three Colours: Blue}} * {{IMDb title|qid=Q933437|id=tt0111507|title=Three Colours: White}} * {{IMDb title|qid=Q952142|id=tt0111495|title=Three Colours: Red}} * [http://artsandfaith.com/t100/threecolors.html Voted #15 on The Arts and Faith Top 100 Films (2010)] * [http://www.criterion.com/current/posts/2067-three-colours-a-hymn-to-european-cinema Criterion Collection Essay] by Colin MacCabe
{{Krzysztof Kieślowski}} {{DISPLAYTITLE:''Three Colours'' trilogy}}
Category:1993 drama films Category:1993 films Category:1994 films Category:French film series Category:Films directed by Krzysztof Kieślowski Category:Films with screenplays by Krzysztof Kieślowski Category:Films produced by Marin Karmitz Category:French drama films Category:1990s French-language films Category:Polish drama films Category:Swiss drama films Category:1994 drama films Category:French-language Swiss films Category:1993 French films Category:Drama film series Category:Film series introduced in 1993 Category:Films with screenplays by Krzysztof Piesiewicz Category:Films scored by Zbigniew Preisner