AmericanCinematographer201201

◗ Lord of War
After forging a truce with Tullus and turning the tide against Rome (top), Marcius resists
pleas of mercy from his wife (Jessica Chastain, middle) and mother (bottom).
as having traveled some distance. If you
describe the kind of place that’s ideal for
filming, it’s at the edge of a stage, in this
netherworld between the light and the
dark.”
If there is a netherworld in
Coriolanus, it might be the palatial
Georgian estate where Marcius rests his
head yet finds little comfort in the
company of his mother and wife.
Fiennes recalls the scene in which
Coriolanus’ wife, Virgilia (Jessica
Chastain), comes into their bedroom
and lies down next to him: “That was
one shot I knew that I wanted, a sort of
effigy-like figure of Coriolanus in the
foreground and Virgilia entering from
the shadows.” Ackroyd took the idea a
step further, using Fiennes’ profile to
bisect Chastain’s look to camera at the
end of the shot.
Chastain’s approach to the bed
was lit with paper China balls hidden
on the floor behind the bed and one
hanging at camera left. “We then felt it
would be a good idea — and I remember
Ralph sort of raising his eyebrows at
this — to boom a Dedo over the bed
and put a hot spot on the pillow just
behind his head. You didn’t see what it
was doing until Jessica laid down next to
him. It just brought a beautiful glow to
her face.”
Meanwhile, in a network of catacombs
beneath Antium, Aufidius plots
his next move against Rome. “I told
Barry, ‘It has to be Caravaggio,’”
Fiennes says of the setting.
The catacomb scenes were filmed
beneath the citadel in Belgrade’s
Kalemegdan Park. Production designer
Ricky Eyres lined the catacomb arches
with low-output Photofloods hidden
behind metal shades, providing pools of
light for the actors to walk through.
Firelight from off-camera braziers and
Ackroyd’s fluorescent Tubos provided
most of the rest of the lighting.
After Coriolanus is expelled from
Rome and joins Aufidius’ army, the
Volscians become emboldened and
move aboveground. The filmmakers
staged these day and night exteriors on
the grounds of an old factory on the
70 January 2012 American Cinematographer