Gotham: A Cross Between Blade Runner & Seven

Cinematographers discuss Gotham’s unique look

One of my favorite parts of Gotham is definitely it’s unique style. There is really no other show on TV that looks quite like it, not even other DC comic book shows, of which there are many. Of course this is all thanks to the talented cinematographers for Gotham, that really help develop and sell that unique look. The Hollywood Reporter talked to two of Gotham’s cinematographers, Chris Norr and Crescenzo Notarile  about where they draw inspiration from to achieve such a unique style that separates the show from anything else on TV.

They describe the look of Gotham as a cross between Ridley Scott’s dark futuristic sci-fi thriller Blade Runner and David Fincher’s seminal (and also incredibly dark) murder mystery thriller Seven. Which I didn’t really think about, but you can certainly see the inspiration in the show. Notarile had this to say about the aim of their photography on Gotham:

"[it’s a] very monochromatic, dark look. We deal with Gotham in cool colors with something warm to juxtapose it. We use a lot of wide-angle lenses to bring out the backgrounds in focus — you want to feel the textures of the sets and backgrounds. I try to exaggerate the composition by getting closer and wider, with a stronger contrast of colors so it’s more eye-popping."

Notarile also said the favorite character to shoot on Gotham is Robin Lord Taylor’s Penguin:

"He has such a wonderful, exaggerated face, with prosthetics on the nose. And because of the flamboyant story arc of the role, I try to be a little more dramatic with light — giving more contrast with the lighting of the face and getting a nice backlight to chisel the character out from the background with a hard edge."

Next: Gotham: Vicki Vale In Season 3

Again, one of Gotham’s biggest strengths is definitely it’s great unique look, which makes the city of Gotham a character all its own on the show, so it’s awesome to see that get some recognition. Gotham is on hiatus Summer hiatus right now, but you can check out season one on DVD and Blu-Ray now, with season two hitting August 16th.