Movies filmed in color but shown in black in white? (1 Viewer)

[StevenA]

I'm pretty sure Manhattan falls under this category (horrifying to think, isn't it?).

I find that very hard to believe.

 

[StevenA]

Manhattan was filmed in black and white.

That's what I thought!

 

[Rob Gardiner]

THE WOMAN CHASER (1999) starring Patrick Warburton was shown theatrically in B&W but according to the director, it was filmed in color for the "home video release". As of now, it has yet to be relased in any home video video format, but we can only hope the B&W version ends up on the DVD.

Move over, Tarantino, this film is TRUE "pulp fiction".

 

[rutger_s]

The Man Who Wasn't There

Some international DVD releases even offer both versions of the film.

 

[Alvin.G.]

No one's mentioned Schindler's List yet? Well, throw it in the mix.


acg

 

[Robert Saccone]

I believe that the Son of Frankenstein was filmed (or at least started to be filmed) in color. However they did not like the way the Monster's makeup looked in color. I have seen color footage taken of Karloff in full makeup that was taken on the set.

 

[Steve Phillips]

I don't think there is any evidence they shot one bit of color footage, except for the tests. It is recorded that color was considered prior to production though.

There are also some behind the scenes color home movies that were shot on the set that have popped up on TV before/

 

[Hendrik]

...John Huston's Reflections In A Golden Eye was filmed in color (and is usually shown that way), but the director's intention was to print it as b&w, with color 'seeping in' in certain scenes...

...I am pretty certain that both Woody Allen's Manhattan and Steven Spielberg's Schindler's List were actually filmed on b&w stock...

...parts of Powell & Pressburger's Technicolored A Matter Of Life And Death (American title: Stairway To Heaven) were printed in monochrome b&w...

. . . . . .

 

[Chad R]

No, the studio nervous about it being black and white wanted it shot on color stock, but Spielberg was adamant about the look of the film and didn't want it showing up later in color so her protected it by shooting B&W. The Red coat sequence might have been shot color, but that's all.

 

[Steven Wesley]

The Dave Crockett television series was filmed in color, then broadcast on Disneyland in black and white. Of course, it's nice to have the DVD's in color

 

[Thomas T]

A minor correction but Reflections In A Golden Eye was never intended to be seen in B&W but a golden sepia hue with red the only color that "seeped" through. I saw it in its 1967 theatrical opening and it looked gorgeous. It's just not the same film in color.

 

[Jack Theakston]

I believe that the Son of Frankenstein was filmed (or at least started to be filmed) in color. However they did not like the way the Monster's makeup looked in color. I have seen color footage taken of Karloff in full makeup that was taken on the set.

The footage that you saw was home movies taken by the Karloffs.

There WERE Techinicolor tests run for the film, adding up to about a reel's worth, but they were lost in the later 40s. The reel was rediscovered in the late 80s, and then swiped right off of a Universal employee's desk, probably lost forever.

 

[Will_B]

The restaurant fight in Kill Bill of course (in black and white to get past American censors, but shown in color in Japan).

 

[Dan Rudolph]

I'm pretty sure the reason many of these movies (including Schindler's List) were shot in color wasn't insurance, but the simple fact there's been very little R&D on B&W film stocks for 30+ years. Color film processed as black and white just looks better.

 

[TonyD]

isn't it less expensive to film in color now then process it to b + w?

cheaper then using actual b+w film.

 

[Jack Theakston]

I don't know about that. It seems that in buying film for myself, color has always been more expensive than black and white, even when buying short ends.

 

[Josh Steinberg]

As far as I know, right now Kodak only makes two black and white 35mm film stocks: Plus-X (64T) and Double-X (200T). For color stocks, there are far more choices. If you're going to make a feature length film, at the least, the wider range of speeds can make it easier to shoot your production in color. Right now, Kodak's 500 speed films are very popular, and its 800 speed film is still often used. That alone seems a very good reason for choosing to shoot a black and white film in color if it can be shown in black and white later on.

 

[Stephen_J_H]

A minor correction but Reflections In A Golden Eye was never intended to be seen in B&W but a golden sepia hue with red the only color that "seeped" through. I saw it in its 1967 theatrical opening and it looked gorgeous. It's just not the same film in color.

Agreed. This was one of 3 experiments John Huston did with a process he referred to as 'desaturation.' The film was printed with both black and white and colour negatives, thus draining most of the colour out of the film and presenting an effect resembling early colour lithographs. The other two films he made this way were Moby Dick and Moulin Rouge (1952).

 

[obscurelabel]

For many years "Jolson Sings Again" was available in B&W only, or else color prints were very rare. The couple of times that I saw bits and pieces of it on TV were in B&W (yes it was a color TV!).

IIRC, Walt Disney insisted that from the beginning, "The Wonderful World of Disney" be shot in color, even though color TV technology was in its infancy and disputes about the standard were still going on. The shows were originally broadcast in B&W but were available to be shown as re-runs in color when (as Walt foresaw) color TV would be more prevalent or the norm. These may have been some of the first shows broadcast in color (don't remember for sure).