Can we discuss the new Curb Your Enthusiasm season?

[Yash Lucid]

Better lighting, better colour grading, better cameras, better quality, 2 shot dialogue style cutting, ... and somehow that takes away from everything it used to be.

 

Is it just me?

[Max Field]

I've never been a fan of Curb in the first place. I appreciate Larry David a lot more when he's premeditated as opposed to improvising.

 

Maybe part of the less detailed cinematography cooperated with the spontaneous feel of the earlier seasons.

[Michael LaVoie]

 

Maybe part of the less detailed cinematography cooperated with the spontaneous feel of the earlier seasons.

I doubt they'd willingly return to the old 60i 4:3 look. The early season look feels authentic because it seems like BTS or news footage. There's more depth of field and it's got a traditional video aesthetic so it doesn't feel "scripted"

 

It wouldn't make sense now. It has to evolve to the standards of most current shows like Louie or Portlandia. I think the new look is great and we just have to get used to it. At least they didn't over do it and frame it in a 2:35 aspect ratio like Master of None.

[Ravi Kiran]

The switch to 24fps in season 7 was a pretty big departure from the SD seasons, but the overall style aside from that didn't change much. The opening of this latest season, however, departed from the handheld look, with the drone shots, and some locked off shots. If they shot it in 30p or 60i and with a smaller sensor camera it would retain a similar look to the SD seasons, but in HD.

 

The SD seasons were shot in 60i and had a weird film look filter applied to them, which gave the show a unique look. IIRC that filter was removed for the PAL conversion. Perhaps that film look filter effect could be replicated in HD, but it's probably more trouble than it's worth.

Edited October 8, 2017 by Ravi Kiran