Just because someone extols the virtues of tonality does not mean that the subject is not paramount in their eyes.
What do you mean "at the time they were made?" B&W films are still made. You are mistaken about B&W movies. Citizen Kane, for example, was made in what, 1941 or so? Watch that movie and see the amazing depth the cinematographer got from his gear and the lighting he used. Move to 1951 and watch Asphalt Jungle, and be blown away by the detail and beautiful use of light and shadow. Look at the B&W work of Roger Deakins, notably The Man Who Wasn't There, and see the stunning B&W work he did (1991). A most notable scene is when the lawyer, Freddy Riedenschneider, is making his speech in the prison visiting room, bathed in glorious sunlight balanced with the magnificent shadows (interesting trivia: Sam Jaffe played a charachter named Riedenschneider in Asphalt Jungle). The B&W scenes in Quentin Tarantino's latest, Kill Bill, are marvelous, and in my opinion, far more compelling than had they been shot in color. Michael Chapman's brilliant (literally and figuratively) B&W work in Raging Bull is considered classic, especially the fight scenes. I can go on. B&W fims are certainly every bit the equal of color work, and, in some instances, superior, both in beuty and being able to best tell the story. Shel > [Original Message] > From: John Francis > There was a certain amount of tongue-in-cheek there. But it's > by no means uncommon to hear people going on about the rich tones > in the print, etc., etc., and ignoring the actual subject. > > With B&W movies, though, there are often other factors at work. > Movies shot in B&W used equipment without the focal length ranges > of modern cinecameras, the audio quality was often not of the best, > and the ravages of time have introduced their own problems. > > At the time they were made, people were still marvelling at the > ability to capture anything. But by now cinephotography has well > and truly crossed the threshold, and instead of being admired > for what it is in isolation it gets measured against reality. > Sadly, many B&W movies don't stand up under that scrutiny.
