Sound and Vision

~ beetleypete

Last night, I settled down to watch a film on the TV. It was ‘Prisoners'(2013), starring Hugh Jackman, Jake Gyllenhall, Melissa Leo, and the underrated Paul Dano. I had heard good things about this abduction thriller, and was pleased to see it arrive on TV so soon after release. As it was premiered on the usually excellent Film 4 channel, I concluded that there would be no cuts, and the full film would be shown. Allowing for the breaks for ads, the film got its full running time, so I prepared to immerse myself in the great cast, bleak story-line, and compelling visuals. So far, so good.

I have (moaned) written before about the shortcomings of modern televisions. The four year old, 40-inch Flatscreen LED TV that we own seems incapable of rendering true black. As a result, night scenes, or gloomy locations, are hard to watch, at the best of times. Extraneous light has to be avoided, lamps that reflect in the screen must be turned off, and even with all these preparations, vision of my standard will struggle to see through the murk. I put up with it. What else can I do? The old CRT televisions are no longer available, and short of spending every penny I own on the very latest ‘True Black’ technology, I am stuck with it, for the time being at least.

Of course, the film and TV programme makers don’t help. In their quest for more realism, they avoid the use of additional lighting. A Victorian street scene is rendered as it might have looked before 1900, and we see the world as the characters see it. This sounds perfect in theory, but the price we pay is eyestrain, and problems following any action, or the plot. If a film scene is set in a dark cellar, or poorly-lit back yard, the viewer can forget being able to actually understand what happens next. Transfer the action to a dark woodland, or pitch-black desert, and I might as well be listening to a radio play.

That brings me to sound. Our modern TV has a basic speaker system built in, equipped with stereo, and a sound options menu. I don’t want surround-sound speakers all over the room, wireless or not, and I am reluctant to fork out cash for a modern ‘soundbar’, when the technology is changing daily. For most ordinary TV shows, and the majority of films, the set-up works fine, and the middle setting on the volume control is perfectly adequate.

Of course, TV ads are always louder, everyone knows that, even though few of us understand how it is achieved. But recent trends in the presentation of some dramas and many films have left us with ‘Natural Sound.’ Like ‘Natural Lighting’, this might seem to be satisfyingly realistic. Whispers are barely audible, snatched conversations impossible to follow, but sudden car chases or explosions are deafeningly loud, just as it is in real life.

But this isn’t real life, it’s a film, or a TV show. And that leaves me, frustratedly trying to watch a long film or drama series on TV. Straining to follow most of the action in darkened rooms, constantly adjusting the volume control up during scenes involving conversations, then rushing to lower it, as soon as something loud happens.

‘Prisoners’ was a classic example of this type of broadcasting. Hushed conversations and whispers were essential to the plot, but I couldn’t hear most of them. A breaking window, or gunshot however, had me scrabbling to reduce the volume, from the almost deafening level it was being broadcast at. I manfully endured the full running time. I got to the ending, and enjoyed some of the performances. But as a viewing experience, it was more of an ordeal, than the pleasure it should have been. And I think my remote is going to need new batteries…

Whilst I am on this rant, I will include something else, to save you the drudgery of another moany post from me. Since when was it acceptable for film and TV companies to make plot reveals and crucial events happen by cast members receiving text messages, or scribbled notes, both of which are impossible to read on a TV screen, unless you are 18 years old, and have perfect vision? (That’s it for that one.)

36 thoughts on “Sound and Vision”

  4. Perhaps this is why I have almost stopped watching films. The most I watch is a good series and I stream them so don’t have the adverts. Last time I watched TV, over 3 years ago, I too kept the remote in my hand! I also have trouble watching those very dark scenes and often I cannot hear. It’s really very annoying. My father was a film maker (documentary) and was a huge film critic. I can only imagine what he would say to modern film making.

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    1. The TV companies here get thousands of complaints every year. Most are about ‘black screens’, and many about the fact that advertisements are broadcast at 50% more volume than the actual TV programmes.
      Best wishes, Pete.

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      1. You’d think that the creators of these programmes would be more sensitive to how people are experiencing them. There are some that I have just stopped watching because trying to hard to see what was going on just wasn’t worth the aggravation.

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  6. I share your pain, Pete. I am in a transitional phase: I am lucky enough to still be using my late mother’s Sony Trinitron TV, which is truly massive, and dominates one corner of my not huge living room, but the picture quality is excellent, so I will continue using it as long as it functions. I bought a dvd player/5.1 sound system from a friend for a snip, and it comes into its own for music programmes and the radio [through the Sky box], but I struggle with speech, especially the bass tones, in modern tv & film productions, so I sometimes have to resort to onscreen captions. I could use headphones, but I would need an extension cable [meh] and I prefer not to fiddle with the headphone socket because the unit has an intermittent fault where the speakers cut out in favour of the headphone socket [but the sound doesn’t come through!], so I think I’ll leave well alone! :p Cheers, Jon.

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    1. I had a 29-inch Sony CRT television before we moved from London. But the tech is so outdated in those now, I dumped it rather than bring it to Norfolk. Now I often wish I still had it. But like yours, it took up a full corner in the small London flat.
      Best wishes, Pete.

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    1. Thanks very much, Lucinda. When I complained directly to some TV companies, they suggested I buy a ‘more modern’ TV, and a soundbar. Old men like me are obviously of little concern to their ‘demographic’.
      Best wishes, Pete.

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      1. Goodness, whatever made you think you were important enough for them to take notice? Like me, old and wrinkly, I’m simply an oxygen thief, who shouldn’t have a pension because I’m not working! The BBC informed me they would never be interested n my drama scripts unless I was a minority, disabled or under 25. I just don’t qualify! 🙂

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  8. I’m with you on this Pete. I turn many a film/programme off because it’s simply too dark. Film/programme makers take note – its an absolute turn off !

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    1. Thanks, Angela. I used to think it was my age, until I read online that thousands of people of all ages are regularly complaining about the same thing.
      There are televisions on the market that can stop a lot of this, but they are too expensive for my wallet.
      Best wishes, Pete.

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  9. Reblogged this on beetleypete and commented:

    Reblogging this old rant from 2016.
    Six years later, and nothing has changed!
    If anything, it has got worse, as I now have to have my finger on the ‘mute’ button during any advertisement break.

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        1. I think that is sometimes the very cause of the problem mate. Cinemas are set up completely differently to home systems and TV speakers, obviously. When showing it as it as it was projected in a cinema, the domestic sound cannot hope to compete with the Dolby surround found in most modern multiplexes. My argument to C4/Film 4 was if they can alter the sound for the adverts,, why not make the film easier for viewers to hear?
          Cheers, Pete.

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  12. I’m definitely with you on the black background issue. My flatmate and I watched Gone Baby Gone and we couldn’t see what was going on half the time.

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  13. Great post Pete!
    We started to watch War and Peace last night, the opening scene had me hitting pause as I went to get my glasses to read the historical intro. I was grateful for this as it improved my viewing pleasure for the rest of the episode. The remote sits in my hand for most things watched nowadays, not only for varying sound levels but to drown out a snoring Malina!

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    1. Cheers, Eddy, as I said to Sue, it is far from being an age issue. When the BBC ran the series ‘Jamaica Inn’, they got over 1,000 complaints about ‘impenetrable darkness’ in all the night scenes.
      When they have the ‘what happened’ text at the end of films or documentaries, I have to have the reading glasses to hand too.
      (Loved that adaptation of ‘War and Peace.’ I know they mangled the story, but they staged it wonderfully.)
      Love to all in Poland, even a snoring Malina! Pete.

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  14. Well, I’m with you on most of this rant, Pete….but there is another factor at play here as well (and before you accuse me of being …ist, it applies to me too) AGE (and I’m not talking about the telly) 😳

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    1. I know that vision (very much so in my case) is affected by age, Sue. But this isn’t just an age issue, as I know many younger people who make the same complaints. I even wrote to some companies about it, and C4 admitted that adverts are broadcast louder, and that they show films in original ‘Natural’ sound, for the benefit of those who appreciate cinema (like me) and want to see/hear it as it would have been shown. (Unlike me.)
      There’s no solution, it’s just an excuse for a mild rant!
      Best wishes, Pete.

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    1. Thanks, Sarah, glad you agree. The CRT (cathode ray tube) sets did take up a lot more space, but picture quality was generally excellent, and the sound didn’t keep fluctuating. I am never sure if it is the new TV technology, or the way shows and films are broadcast from source. Maybe someone will tell me on here?
      Best wishes, Pete. x

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