I know 100% that people will argue with me over this, but I miss when movies were professionally lit, when actors were intentionally blocked, and when more than teal, orange and beige were allowed to be on the screen.
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@Gargron I watched All About Eve (1950) yesterday and I would take that style of movie-making over whatever it is we have now any day.
There’s great contemporary stuff as well, though not in the mainstream.
@thomasfuchs @Gargron been on a major side-quest of 1930s movies for the fashion and that’s exactly what you notice, the lighting, the staging. the time of when the environment were the silent, yet most important character in the story.
watching the show Endeavour made me realize that’s why UK productions suck me in. theater isn't for the elites, it’s still very much part of the culture. you get The World As Theater in their tv, along with all the philosophical musings that come with it
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I know 100% that people will argue with me over this, but I miss when movies were professionally lit, when actors were intentionally blocked, and when more than teal, orange and beige were allowed to be on the screen. The medium has something to do with it--film made a lot of these things fundamentally necessary--but I think it's more complex than just that. The last few years' movies are just not pleasant to look at, with very few exceptions, and the change occurred sometime around 2015.
@Gargron La La Land was the last great movie. There, I said it.
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I know 100% that people will argue with me over this, but I miss when movies were professionally lit, when actors were intentionally blocked, and when more than teal, orange and beige were allowed to be on the screen. The medium has something to do with it--film made a lot of these things fundamentally necessary--but I think it's more complex than just that. The last few years' movies are just not pleasant to look at, with very few exceptions, and the change occurred sometime around 2015.
@Gargron No, no, you’re right.
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I know 100% that people will argue with me over this, but I miss when movies were professionally lit, when actors were intentionally blocked, and when more than teal, orange and beige were allowed to be on the screen. The medium has something to do with it--film made a lot of these things fundamentally necessary--but I think it's more complex than just that. The last few years' movies are just not pleasant to look at, with very few exceptions, and the change occurred sometime around 2015.
@Gargron saw a video on youtube that theorized with evidence that Netflix contributed to a lot of the shitty new filming formats. There was a great joy in theatrical style of filming. As in if it was a live theater performance. The original Star Trek series was a great example of this! Maybe not what u were going for but it reminded me of all this
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I know 100% that people will argue with me over this, but I miss when movies were professionally lit, when actors were intentionally blocked, and when more than teal, orange and beige were allowed to be on the screen. The medium has something to do with it--film made a lot of these things fundamentally necessary--but I think it's more complex than just that. The last few years' movies are just not pleasant to look at, with very few exceptions, and the change occurred sometime around 2015.
@Gargron It seems to me like there are about as many well-lit, well-graded movies as there have always been, but that there are more movies overall than there ever have been in the past. A lot of movies—even from big studios—are basically shovelware, yes. A lot of really good production and post techs have gone to prestige TV rather than movies, yes. Still, there have been tons of expertly-produced movies in the last decade.
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I know 100% that people will argue with me over this, but I miss when movies were professionally lit, when actors were intentionally blocked, and when more than teal, orange and beige were allowed to be on the screen. The medium has something to do with it--film made a lot of these things fundamentally necessary--but I think it's more complex than just that. The last few years' movies are just not pleasant to look at, with very few exceptions, and the change occurred sometime around 2015.
@Gargron actually the change occurred after 2000 when Harvey Weinstein took over Hollywood. Movies were original, incredible, stimulating and then Harvey wanted to push out terrible remakes to increase sales and fill movie seats.
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I know 100% that people will argue with me over this, but I miss when movies were professionally lit, when actors were intentionally blocked, and when more than teal, orange and beige were allowed to be on the screen. The medium has something to do with it--film made a lot of these things fundamentally necessary--but I think it's more complex than just that. The last few years' movies are just not pleasant to look at, with very few exceptions, and the change occurred sometime around 2015.
@Gargron The thing that bothers me the most is the sound quality. Older things took pains to be audible. Modern stuff, half the time I can't understand what they're saying. But it's not my ears. I go back and listen to older stuff, and it's still clear.
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I know 100% that people will argue with me over this, but I miss when movies were professionally lit, when actors were intentionally blocked, and when more than teal, orange and beige were allowed to be on the screen. The medium has something to do with it--film made a lot of these things fundamentally necessary--but I think it's more complex than just that. The last few years' movies are just not pleasant to look at, with very few exceptions, and the change occurred sometime around 2015.
@Gargron I agree entirely, I stop watching when I can’t see the details of the scene and sometimes even give up entirely 🤭
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I know 100% that people will argue with me over this, but I miss when movies were professionally lit, when actors were intentionally blocked, and when more than teal, orange and beige were allowed to be on the screen. The medium has something to do with it--film made a lot of these things fundamentally necessary--but I think it's more complex than just that. The last few years' movies are just not pleasant to look at, with very few exceptions, and the change occurred sometime around 2015.
@Gargron on the topic of movies that look good: The Ballad of Narayama (1958) 🤌
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I know 100% that people will argue with me over this, but I miss when movies were professionally lit, when actors were intentionally blocked, and when more than teal, orange and beige were allowed to be on the screen. The medium has something to do with it--film made a lot of these things fundamentally necessary--but I think it's more complex than just that. The last few years' movies are just not pleasant to look at, with very few exceptions, and the change occurred sometime around 2015.
@Gargron nothing to argue here. The movie industry right now is a noob photographer who thinks "great, with that dynamic range I don't even have to expose correctly anymore". And that's what they are literally doing.
When has "I don't know if this scene will be in daylight or night time right now, let's shoot anyway and fix it in post" became a thing?
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I know 100% that people will argue with me over this, but I miss when movies were professionally lit, when actors were intentionally blocked, and when more than teal, orange and beige were allowed to be on the screen. The medium has something to do with it--film made a lot of these things fundamentally necessary--but I think it's more complex than just that. The last few years' movies are just not pleasant to look at, with very few exceptions, and the change occurred sometime around 2015.
@Gargron I know where you're coming from and partly share the sentiment myself, but I can assure you there are MANY great films being made today! One just have to look further than Hollywood's blockbusters or Netflix recommendations. Let's support the artists making that happen
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@Gargron I know where you're coming from and partly share the sentiment myself, but I can assure you there are MANY great films being made today! One just have to look further than Hollywood's blockbusters or Netflix recommendations. Let's support the artists making that happen
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I know 100% that people will argue with me over this, but I miss when movies were professionally lit, when actors were intentionally blocked, and when more than teal, orange and beige were allowed to be on the screen. The medium has something to do with it--film made a lot of these things fundamentally necessary--but I think it's more complex than just that. The last few years' movies are just not pleasant to look at, with very few exceptions, and the change occurred sometime around 2015.
@Gargron if we making 1000+ movies around the world in an year, only 50 movies are worth to watch
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I know 100% that people will argue with me over this, but I miss when movies were professionally lit, when actors were intentionally blocked, and when more than teal, orange and beige were allowed to be on the screen. The medium has something to do with it--film made a lot of these things fundamentally necessary--but I think it's more complex than just that. The last few years' movies are just not pleasant to look at, with very few exceptions, and the change occurred sometime around 2015.
@Gargron Die Film-Industrie ist aber auch immer ein Spiegel der Gesellschaft. Seit einigen Jahren gibt es kaum mehr Komödien.
Die Filme sind sehr häufig düster, dunkel, dystopisch und auch immer wieder so seicht, dass das Meditieren einer Schnittblume fast schon als spannend bezeichnet werden kann.
Ja, die Krisen, Kriege, Konflikte machen etwas mit den Menschen - dies sehen wir heute auf den Leinwänden. Leider!Als Gesellschaft müsste uns dies zu denken geben.
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I know 100% that people will argue with me over this, but I miss when movies were professionally lit, when actors were intentionally blocked, and when more than teal, orange and beige were allowed to be on the screen. The medium has something to do with it--film made a lot of these things fundamentally necessary--but I think it's more complex than just that. The last few years' movies are just not pleasant to look at, with very few exceptions, and the change occurred sometime around 2015.
@Gargron I agree with you that this trend exists and is swallowing up lots of movies, but there is some relief in the wide-ranging supply. I went looking just for a still from "Sinners", which I think is a fine example against that trend, but I found a dozen more to boot.
for your consideration:
The Best Film Cinematography of 2025
IndieWire picks the films with the best cinematography of the year, from 'Sinners' and 'One Battle After Another' to 'The Naked Gun.'
IndieWire (www.indiewire.com)
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I know 100% that people will argue with me over this, but I miss when movies were professionally lit, when actors were intentionally blocked, and when more than teal, orange and beige were allowed to be on the screen. The medium has something to do with it--film made a lot of these things fundamentally necessary--but I think it's more complex than just that. The last few years' movies are just not pleasant to look at, with very few exceptions, and the change occurred sometime around 2015.
@Gargron I totally agree. Nowadays, it feels like movies are afraid of real shadows and vibrant colors. Everything has turned into a gray, digital mush to accommodate streaming and CGI, but we lost the soul of cinematography in the process. Older films had a texture and depth that today's color grading algorithms simply cannot replicate.
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I know 100% that people will argue with me over this, but I miss when movies were professionally lit, when actors were intentionally blocked, and when more than teal, orange and beige were allowed to be on the screen. The medium has something to do with it--film made a lot of these things fundamentally necessary--but I think it's more complex than just that. The last few years' movies are just not pleasant to look at, with very few exceptions, and the change occurred sometime around 2015.
@Gargron I will agree with you 100% on this. There is so much about modern movies that I hate. The lighting is dreadful a lot of the time. It's like it's a lost art. Also, sound mixing is bloody terrible.
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I know 100% that people will argue with me over this, but I miss when movies were professionally lit, when actors were intentionally blocked, and when more than teal, orange and beige were allowed to be on the screen. The medium has something to do with it--film made a lot of these things fundamentally necessary--but I think it's more complex than just that. The last few years' movies are just not pleasant to look at, with very few exceptions, and the change occurred sometime around 2015.
@Gargron also, actors used to speak clearly. I watched Dune part 2 last night and have absolutely no clue what half the dialogue was.
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I know 100% that people will argue with me over this, but I miss when movies were professionally lit, when actors were intentionally blocked, and when more than teal, orange and beige were allowed to be on the screen. The medium has something to do with it--film made a lot of these things fundamentally necessary--but I think it's more complex than just that. The last few years' movies are just not pleasant to look at, with very few exceptions, and the change occurred sometime around 2015.
@Gargron watched the 1955 Austrian movie Sissi the other day, not a masterpiece by any means but good god it’s nice to have natural (though I suppose in reality it was anything but natural) lighting and colours.
That said, there are plenty of beautiful looking movies made today too, just not the norm.
