Why are films becoming so badly-lit and difficult to see?

[Snarf Zagyg]

I gave up on the Green Knight long before any dark scenes, if I remember rightly. It was unwatchable for other reasons.

But I'll add another peeve: why is dialogue so hard to understand nowadays? It always seems to be drowned out by music or explosions. (To be fair, since I got a soundbar specially designed for clearer dialogue it's been less of a problem.)

And don't tell me that it's my middle-aged ears that are going deaf. The couple who live next door are half my age, and their ears - and the ears of their very young children - are ruined by their loud, thumping music.

The issue of sound mixing is ... complicated.

Here's an interesting article on Nolan.

And here's an article explaining the issue overall.


TLDR; there's a lot of different issues going on, but one of the primary ones is that sound isn't being respected during the shooting process. Because people are so used to "fixing" everything in post, they aren't doing the things that they need to do to ensure that sound quality issues are preserved when shooting.

 

[Ryujin]

I've got a new smart QLED TV that has remarkably good dynamic range, well down into black, but even in a dark room I frequently find it difficult to see what is going on in some content. It's just stupid. Come on, cinematographers, give us some work that is light enough we can tell if you're any good at your job. HINT: If we can't see it, then you aren't.

 

[Ryujin]

The issue of sound mixing is ... complicated.

Here's an interesting article on Nolan.

And here's an article explaining the issue overall.


TLDR; there's a lot of different issues going on, but one of the primary ones is that sound isn't being respected during the shooting process. Because people are so used to "fixing" everything in post, they aren't doing the things that they need to do to ensure that sound quality issues are preserved when shooting.

Sound can be even more important than image, in order to convey what is happening. When music or effects walk all over the primary audio, it can make that audio completely worthless. Just screwing with the various levels from the actors, themselves, can make something unwatchable.

Several of my friends were bit players in a film called "The Anniversary", also known as "Run, Hide, Die." Typical slasher type horror and I watched it because they were in it. After watching it I had to ask one of them what in hell the end of the movie was all about. I completely missed the reveal, though I watched the climax three times. I could not hear the bloody dialogue, for all of the screaming. Just... bad.

 

[Tonguez]

Its not a new phenomena, badly lit scenes have been a bugbear for years and years, though even moreso now as my vision has deteriorated through age and strain.

 

[Bedrockgames]

The issue of sound mixing is ... complicated.

Here's an interesting article on Nolan.

And here's an article explaining the issue overall.


TLDR; there's a lot of different issues going on, but one of the primary ones is that sound isn't being respected during the shooting process. Because people are so used to "fixing" everything in post, they aren't doing the things that they need to do to ensure that sound quality issues are preserved when shooting.

That second article is pretty interesting. I have always been much more responsive to the sound and music of films, that is why I like Kubrick or Boorman or Milieus or Argento, etc. It is also why so many of the Hong Kong action and wuxia films appeal to me (they do an excellent job of marrying image sound and music). But I am a little unclear if the article is pointing to a more modern issue (because I don't think I had difficulty hearing the dialogue in older movies, but newer ones i do). Not a big nolan fan but I loved interstellar mostly because of how it used image and sound to create a moving effect. I have been having progressive hearing loss now for eight years and it is a little hard for me to know how much of my inability to hear dialogue is what the article points to versus my ears not picking up the contours of words as well (at home I have to crank up the volume and use the captions to understand what is being said).

 

[payn]

The murkiness of GoT offerings has been a real pet peeve for my wife. As far as she's concerned, what's the point of visual artistry that you can't see? Might as well be listening to a radio play or a book on tape.

Honestly, the darkness in digital age hasnt bothered me except for that GoT episode.

 

[Daraniya]

everyone wants "Dark Mode", until they don't...

 

[aco175]

I though I was just getting old, but I see everyone else is as well.

Is it better than the old movies where they just filmed in the day and added filter to the camera. I do see this new day-to-night digital technique which may help explain something (in the bottom picture).