In Reply to: Anybody familiar with the old V sci fi mini series? posted by NuWave on April 25, 2005 at 14:38:50:
I don't recall whether "V" was cropped & resized for WS televisions because I watched this on someone else's academy formated (4:3) screen set a year or so back at an SF club meeting, but I do recall being dismally disappointed in the campy, dated 70's look (i.e., reliance on bright primary colors, nerdy dark glasses and uniforms a'la DEVO), the lack of fluid camera movement combined with the overuse of mid-range shots, the sincere, wooden acting of the leads and the cheap looking FX.Perhaps I've just become too jaded to more realistic looking SF fare or maybe it's that most of the stuff shot back in the 1970's doesn't float my boat, but "V" sure didn't hold up to my recollections. Of course, YMMV, and everyone's recollection and nostalgia for programs shot decades ago is going to be different.
Regarding altered perceptions and the suspension of disbelief, I've noticed a curious fact about television production from the 60's and 70's: color often negatively impacts dramas (i.e., including mini-series, such as "V") in ways it may or may not affect feature films from the same era. This may be the result of the color photography drawing attention to cheaper production values and sparsely furnished fabricated sets or it may just be the claustrophobic set-up shots, lighting, style, etc., but in either case it often stands out like a sore thumb when these programs are viewed retrospectively.
AuPh
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Follow Ups
- I watched part of this again (after 20 years) with some friends last year, and it seems VERY dated. - Audiophilander 10:21:15 04/26/05 (3)
- Dated schmated - NuWave 11:31:20 04/26/05 (2)
- Michael Ironside is great; Marc Singer, less so, but that wasn't my point. - Audiophilander 13:29:30 04/26/05 (1)
- Re: Michael Ironside is great; Marc Singer, less so, but that wasn't my point. - NuWave 14:23:44 04/26/05 (0)