Thursday, November 15, 2012

Problems with Black & White Cinematography in the 1960s

So I was watching "10 Little Indians" from 1966 (with Fabian!) and I was struck by how lousy the cinematography is.  Compared to the same story in 1945 titled "And Then There Were None".
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1966's 10 Little Indians (Hugh O'Brian & Shirley Eaton)
I think the problem was that in the 40's, black and white were the norm.  So the great photographers and lighting designers worked in Black and White, creating the rich look and details.
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1945 Version.  Crisp, cleaning and full of depth.

But by the mid-60s, high value movies were filmed in COLOR.  So the second string was in charge of lighting and photography - so they are muddy and blah!
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I will not be saving 1966 version "10 Little Indians".