In some cases, the colors actually do that quite well.

For example, look at The Fifth Element. You see that patch of white between the beginning and the middle? That's the scene where Leelo is brought back, I believe. It's the only scene in the movie that I can think of where there's a significant amount of white (although it's possibly Corbin's apartment...). It struck me how recognizable it was before I saw your post, actually.

Or for that matter I kind of want to hover over parts of the barcode to see a screenshot from that scene -- I wanna see what that one "red" part is really quickly.