[Chad Varnadore]

Trends always come in spurts and don't have to be limited to one particular DP. They usually aren't. Look at how SPR changed the way war films look from different directors and different photographers. For SPR, it was flattery to imitate the look. In these cases it may be nothing more than DPs wanting to get experience experimenting with something new or who have been sold on the process.

It's possible it was something done for cinema projection, that just doesn't translate as well to the brighter, more dynamic displays we can have at home. I didn't see any of these films theatrically. But, I feel that when you can't back it up or qualify an argument, you have to give the studio the benefit of the doubt as a reviewer. Believe me, your post isn't the first time it occured to me it could be something unique to Sony's labs, MPEG2, etc. But, after weighing everything, I just don't feel there's probable cause to go that direction yet.

From what I've seen this is less consistent with one studios production processes than films that have been tweaked during post. You could be right. It could be something Sony is doing on their own. After all, their labs could have been responsible for The Sentinel too. Finding Neverland is another that might fit the mold, but nowhere near as severe. But, I just haven't seen probable cause yet to think it's Sony. Every title of theirs that I was familiar with has had the dynamic range I expected. Only a few that I wasn't looked any different. And of those, it wasn't uniform to the special features. Talladega Nights' deleted scenes looked much better than the film. You could tell that they were cut prior to the added manipulation. It's not a given that whatever caused TN to look that way would have also effected the special features. But, it's logical to think that it would have as well.

It's a curious prospect though. And one worth pursuing, just in case. Which is one reason I point it out in the reviews, so there is something wrong, the studios and authoring houses will get wind of it. Maybe paidgeek can shed some light. But, until more evidence is in, I think the more obvious culprit is something they are doing in post, making it deliberate or at least an innate side effect. It makes sense. Just as color filters have always cut into dynamics, even resolution, digital correction could be eating into dynamic range as well if the manipulation is being painted to the entire frame and not just isolated spots, which seems more likely.

Another thing to keep in mind is that this isn't DVD. The same rules don't apply. This isn't a compromised format that has to go thru filtering etc. to meet the limitations of the media. Maybe if they were trying to cram in a bunch of extras in too tight a space. But, being a BD50, I'm sure the disc could handle it, leaving Sony no reason to alter the intended look.