The benefits of using the low-key lighting technique in this theme allows for a foreboding mood as Neo is about to find the answer he has been looking for: What is The Matrix? Goodykoontz & Jacobs note “Low-key lighting is often used for intense dramatic scenes, horror films, mystery thrillers, and the like” (2014, Lighting). This creates deep shadows and primarily highlights the two sitting in the otherwise dark room. Morpheus & Neo meet.Īs in the still photo above, we also see a single light illuminating Morpheus and Neo during the scene.

In this famous scene, Neo must choose between taking a pill, blue or red, which will either allow him to stay within the matrix computer reality he is accustomed to, or unplug from the matrix and enter the real world-to which Neo does not yet fully understand. The “Blue Pill or Red Pill” scene provided, demonstrates a low-key lighting technique, allowing us to visualize the ominous nature of the strange new reality Neo is about to embark upon. Jacobs (2014) describe low-key lighting as “extreme use of deep shadows, with very high contrast between the brightest parts of the scene and the darkest parts, which are obscured in shadows” (6.4, Lighting). One prominent technique was the use of low-key lighting, and noteworthy during the scene where the protagonist, Neo, meets with the mysterious resistance leader, Morpheus, for the first time.īill Goodykoontz and Christopher P. The Matrix (1999) uses traditional three-point, high-key, and low-key lighting techniques for various daytime, nighttime, indoor, and outdoor themes. Blue Pill or Red Pill – The Matrix (1999) HD

Red pill blue pill matrix scene