I'm talking about this one and the Godfather, but there's also something about Taxi Driver, a film, like the Last Detail, shot by Michael Chapman. Does anybody else see what I mean? Especially when you watch an old video of these films, before it gets remastered. The shadows, etc. Is it the film stock they used, or the cameras? I just love the look of them, which is another reason why the 70's was such a great decade for movies.
shareAbsolutely. I'm a boomer so I know whereof you speak. I was in my early 20s in early 70s; we were hooked on our movies of that era and I will say unequivocally: 70s were the best for movies.
Mind you, I must also say: 60s, 70s and bit of the 80s were best for music too (today it's all "3-chords" and good-looks in the music biz, no artistry, but that's another topic).
Anyway, here's the thing: hand held cameras (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hand-held_camera). With gyro stabilizers (http://www.aerialimage.com/page5.htm). And live sets.
Yep, that's a big part of it. Limited lighting adjustments too, but had to be very careful with shadows. Can't just let it look like a USC film school thesis. 3rd item: sound. On that they were pretty strict. Stuck with 50s and 60s sound recording techniques. See "Todd-AO" on web.
Notice how colors seem more pastel in the 70s movies? Compared to 50s and 60s? The chromes of the 50s were a bit artificial, too much brilliance in the color wheel, so directors in the 70s toned it down and found a whole new vector of creativity when people were less focused on the lighting contrasts and color extremes. This even heightened the intense dialogue (example: the vulgarity, as you note in "Last Detail").
I know what you mean about 70's movies. It makes me so proud to be born in 1970.
sharefilm stock is all grainy, and cool and *beep* totally man. thats what its all about. the 60s, the 70s. thats why they're f.uckin classics and we're stuck watching garbage from people who don't know what the *beep* it means to make a real movie anymore man.
shareLiking one particular type of storytelling doesn't mean you have to hate something that's different. I love this movie and others like it, but that hasn't stopped me loving science fiction and fantasy too. It's all equally valid.
Early 80's cinematography is textured and interesting too. Look at Blade Runner - gorgeous! Since the mid-nineties film has started to look rather flat and dull, I agree. But David Fincher shoots digitally, and Zodiac and Benjamin Button - based on what I've seen of the trailer - look stunning. I think what it is, is this obsession with sharpness and clarity that has made recent films look a bit 'thin,' as Fincher puts it. I like to see grain, personally.
All the posts in this topic are the most inspiring stuff I've heard on IMDB. I am a filmaker and I agree the 70s was the best decade for film ever. We are just about to make our first feature and it is a grim 70s type thriller and we have to shoot on digital as the budget is cheap but we will be trying to add grain in post and try and give it that 70s look. Great to hear there is alot of intelligent moviegoes still out there.
shareThose made-for-tv movies from the '70's, now they were even better than the well known ones, anyone remember Bad Ronald, Duel, Killdozer, Terror on the Beach, Honkers?
My favorites were Bo Hopkins movies like Kansas City Massacre, A Small Town in Texas, The Last Ride of the Dalton Gang, Invasion of Johnson County.....I've never seen a more laid-back actor than Hopkins, brings a tear to my eye to think those days are gone for good
Fans of '70s movies would like a book by Peter Biskind entitled "Easy Riders, Raging Bulls: How the Sex-Drugs-and-Rock 'n' Roll Generation Saved Hollywood". Check it out!
shareBorn in 1961 myself. Grew up watching Made For TV movies like Don't be Afraid of the Dark, Bad Ronald, Crowhaven Farm, Go Ask Alice etc. The 70's is my favorite decade for movies. I look at my DVD collection and the majority are from the 1970's: Panic In Needle Park, Harry and Tonto, Little Murders, Minnie and Moskowitz, Cinderella Liberty, Blue Sunshine, Five Easy Pieces, Nashville, Electra Glide In Blue, Annie Hall, God Told Me To, The Last Waltz etc.
The decade had so much variety in comedy, drama and the "films" just look good -- back to the original poster re. film stock.
[deleted]
If you want grain in recent films, look at Aronofsky's "Pi" or "Ruby in Paradise." Spielberg's "Schindler's List," "Blair Witch Project," "Man Bites Dog" are good examples but a lot of grain does not make a film better. I love the look of some 70's films but I am not sure it was well-suited for everything. The documentary-look worked in many films but it worked considerably well in a 1985 film released in 1990, "Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer."
http://www.youtube.com/Faust6688
Films are not reality. Reality is not film. Film is only an approximation of reality.
[deleted]
Quick answer : equipment & film .
Long Answer : I agree with most of the other replies about attention span , the style of the period , the pace . A different age - one that seems a bit grubby compared to our sterile expectations now - but apart from the Cold War & economic stagnation , life was a lot simpler back then . And easier . I often poke fun at my parents for 'having it easy growing up' which drives them nuts because it's exactly what THEIR parents told them too ! But its true . Enjoy a window into the golden era of everything (o.k. there was possibly more injustice - 8 years !!!)
P.S. I consider this second Golden Age of Hollywood to run into the 80's as well : Alien , Bladerunner , Platoon , etc etc . . . . . It was CGI & rabid capitalism that killed it .
That which does not Kill me makes me Stranger
[deleted]
I was just saying that IMO the second Golden Age of Hollywood went from the 70's into the 80's . Many of the best films ever made .
Anyway - the economic woes that began for the West in the 70's and were temporarily offset by financial trickery & fraud in the 80's and 90's - are nothing compared to when the chickens come home to roost in the next few years .
There can be no more bailouts ! The ship is sinking !
That which does not Kill me makes me Stranger
[deleted]
The Russians are net exporters of oil - so the 1973 OPEC oil crisis was of no significance to them . The 80's as a decade may have had a different feel or style but the films coming out of Hollywood were still classics . This ended in the 90's . I wish for another Golden age .
That which does not Kill me makes me Stranger
[deleted]
The Soviet Union broke up because of it's European satellites (notably E.Germany) & 'Perestroika'. It is generally held that 'Perestroika' was a direct result of the Chernobyl disaster of early 1986 . Because of some of the gruesome things that happened to the rescue workers being exposed to high levels of radiation - the Soviets realised that even a limited Nuclear War was insane . Soon after saw Premier Gorbachev introduce radical changes to the Soviet Communist Party . So it was the Europeans AND Nuclear energy - not oil - that changed history in Russia .
If you are from the U.S. please stop now because you don't know anything about World History or even Geography & I don't get paid to teach you lot every week .
No offence - it's not your fault - you just haven't been taught ANYTHING about these things - you are not meant to know - just trust your awful media lol .
That which does not Kill me makes me Stranger
[deleted]
" What DID, however, contribute to the eventual break-up, were the democratic, nationalist/separatist movements WITHIN Soviet Union " which is what i said : i also said please stop because you know nothing about Geography & yet you go on to prove it ! The only thing worse than an ignorant dumb yank is one that is also arrogant . 20 years ago i could understand - but now ? We all know you lot are stupid & yet somehow it has escaped you . Wow .
That which does not Kill me makes me Stranger
[deleted]
'And learning to spell properly wouldn´t hurt, either.' Ha ! You lose . Pointing out grammar is the final vestige of the pedantic ignoramus . I live in Europe - I live it . Where do you live oh partial book learner ?
That which does not Kill me makes me Stranger
You know nothing about people from the U.S. and what we know and don't know. Stereotypes are not a substitute for knowledge and understanding.
I respect your opinion about why the Soviet Union broke up, but in my view (and I do know about world history and geography) the reasons were more complex than that. The Soviet government was not swayed by the Chernobyl disaster to engage in Perestroika - that view runs counter to everything that had happened before, everything that was happening in the Soviet block at the time, and also to the mindsets of the people in power in the USSR. Perestroika was enabled because of economic and political realities in the "satellite" nations and in the USSR, and also because of the foresight of a few leaders like Gorbachev who knew that the old cold war mindset was counterproductive for the country.
My real name is Jeff
Wow past from the past - 8 years ago !
Looks like i predicted the Economic Crisis ! I deserve some credit for that lolz
That which does not Kill me makes me Stranger
The Godfather with its lush wedding parties and operatic style, looks about as luxurious as anything that came out of Hollywood in the 70´s.
"facts are stupid things" - Ronald Reagan
I agree with the OP. The films of the 1970's had a rich, gritty, unpolished look to them. Unlike today's bull$hit, where the common turd is shot in HD, and 3D, and costs as much as three gallons of gasoline to f@cking sit through.
If you have not seen it, watch Alexander Payne's film Sideways, which he purposely filmed to look as if it had been shot during the 1970's.
Hey, I love me some '70s films too---for all the reasons everyone here mentioned! (plus, I'm a '70s baby,so of course I'm more partial to films from that era.) One of the few recent movies I've seen that actually captures a genuine '70s flavor and feel is AMERICAN HUSTLE, down to the look of the movie itself (it even looks like it was shot during the '70s.)
shareI think that "The Godfather" was the last film shot in America in Technicolor, after production finished all the equipment was dismantled, and sold to China.
Productions used film stock with direct to color dye conversions, but were grainier, and higher contrast. They also used smaller cameras, such as 35mm or 16mm instead of a 70mm Technicolor rig,
The state of the art has improved in recent years, but generally most recent movies I have seen appear to be dipped in green paint, and anything like a fast pan shot turns into a rash of pixels.