Wings of Desire: Part II

Wings of Desire: Part II

One film technique that reinforces the theme of rejecting coincidences is the lack of color. Although the primary purpose is to distinguish the limits of the angelic perspective from the fullness of the human experience, I think it also serves to illustrate the concept “striving of existence.” For instance, when Cassiel first takes human form, his response to color is that of a child. He runs up and down the streets pointing out the different shades he can see with great appreciation and pride like a child who has just learned how to read. Cassiel visually represents the line “everything was full of life” as he bounds through the city with the sheer thrill of being alive. He delights in feeling the full spectrum of human emotion, both pain and pleasure, as seen in his reaction to the striking crimson of blood from his head. He laughs and shouts with glee that his form is one pulsing with the lifeforce of blood. He acts as the child that “walked with its arms swinging” because he does not take a moment for granted. The humans in distress whom he had served for decades were too consumed with the mundane to celebrate the joy of a world in color. And yet, Cassiel’s childlike nature reinforces the theme that it is never too late to return to the love of play and myth of youth.

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