Why Have Hollywood Blockbusters Become So Gray?
A recent trend in high-budget cinema has seen a shift towards desaturated, grayish color palettes, particularly in historical and epic films. This aesthetic, exemplified by Christopher Nolan's 'The Odyssey' and Michael Sarnoski's 'The Death of Robin Hood', contrasts sharply with the vibrant Technicolor of classic Hollywood. The article traces this phenomenon back to films like 'Saving Private Ryan' (1998) and 'The Pianist' (2002), and notes its prevalence in recent releases such as 'Macbeth', 'The Northman', and 'Hamnet'. The author discusses David Batchelor's concept of 'chromophobia' from his 2000 book, which suggests that color is often marginalized as superficial or foreign. The trend is also linked to a contemporary pessimistic mood and a reaction to the excessive color on social media. The article highlights that ancient Greek art was actually vividly colored, contradicting the monochrome aesthetic often used in period films. It also mentions directors like Pedro Almodóvar, Todd Haynes, and Luca Guadagnino who continue to embrace color, while Wes Anderson's colorful style is often criticized. The trend is expected to continue with upcoming releases like 'Sense and Sensibility' and 'Victorian Psycho'.
Key facts
- Christopher Nolan's 'The Odyssey' and Michael Sarnoski's 'The Death of Robin Hood' exemplify a trend of washed-out colors in high-budget cinema.
- The trend contrasts with classic Hollywood films like 'Ivanhoe' (1952) and 'Gone with the Wind' (1939) which used vibrant Technicolor.
- Films like 'Macbeth' (2015), 'Lady Macbeth' (2016), 'The King' (2019), 'The Wonder' (2022), 'The Northman' (2022), 'Firebrand' (2023), and 'Wuthering Heights' (2026) also use this desaturated aesthetic.
- David Batchelor's book 'Chromophobia' (2000) discusses the expulsion of color in Western culture, attributing it to associations with the foreign, feminine, or superficial.
- The trend accelerated after 'Saving Private Ryan' (1998) won the aesthetic war over 'Shakespeare in Love' (1999).
- Directors like Ridley Scott, once known for rich colors, now use greige filters in period films.
- Ancient Greek art was actually vividly colored, contradicting the monochrome aesthetic often used in films set in antiquity.
- Upcoming films like 'Sense and Sensibility', 'Victorian Psycho', 'Werwulf', and 'The Uprising' continue the trend.
- Directors like Pedro Almodóvar, Todd Haynes, and Luca Guadagnino still use color, while Wes Anderson's colorful style is often criticized.
- Richard Misek's book 'Chromatic Cinema' recalls Antonioni painting a forest gray for 'Red Desert' (1964), a practice now done digitally.
Entities
Artists
- Elizabeth Taylor
- Christopher Nolan
- Michael Sarnoski
- Errol Flynn
- Mario Camerini
- Silvana Mangano
- Justin Kurzel
- William Oldroyd
- David Michôd
- Sebastián Lelio
- Robert Eggers
- Karim Aïnouz
- Emerald Fennel
- Chloé Zhao
- David Batchelor
- Michael Powell
- Emeric Pressburger
- Vincente Minnelli
- John Ford
- Alfred Hitchcock
- David Lean
- Vittorio Storaro
- Steven Spielberg
- Roman Polanski
- Peter Jackson
- Ridley Scott
- James Cameron
- Zhong Shu
- Johan Joachim Winckelmann
- Jean-Luc Godard
- Fritz Lang
- Luchino Visconti
- Federico Fellini
- Akira Kurosawa
- Sergei Parajanov
- Stanley Kubrick
- Zhang Yimou
- Manoel de Oliveira
- Eric Rohmer
- Ingmar Bergman
- Peter Greenaway
- Greta Gerwig
- Pedro Almodóvar
- Todd Haynes
- Luca Guadagnino
- Wes Anderson
- Patrice Chéreau
- Andrej Wajda
- Jane Austen
- Javier Calvo
- Javier Ambrossi
- Richard Misek
- Michelangelo Antonioni
Institutions
- EL PAÍS USA Edition
- Academy Awards
- Espinof
Locations
- United States
- France
- Spain
- Greece
- Yugoslavia