In today’s society, films are losing the original taste of the early century. Before, in the early 2000s, films were unapologetically purposeful and in-your-face. Now, producers have lost the color and imagination in films. One example would be the Devil Wears Prada 2, which depicts a sterile blue-toned lighting compared to the first movie.
At the beginning of the century, the film production industry was fueled by dramatics and focus using color grading and cinematography. But because of the development of CGI, the sound stage used in movies lost its connection to real locations. When films were produced without VFX, they had depth and dimension, rich contrast, and an authentic, cinematic look. However, originality has been replaced by familiarity.
The shift between unique and realistic cinematography began after 2010, more than 15 years ago. According to The Observer, because of the age of financial greed and yearning for nostalgia, the art of originality has been diminished without protest. With rising prices in the 21st century, there is greater financial influence on entertainment productions; movies like the live-action Lilo and Stitch and Zootopia 2 made around 1 billion. Because of the desire to return to childhood, society has been supporting remakes and movie adaptations of popular books. One example of this is the new Harry Potter Reboot.
While Harry Potter is a nostalgia high point for Gen Z, the redo is unneeded due to the already complete full movie series by Warner Bros. With controversial opinions of Potter fans, some claim it is good for the scenes that were not included, while others say it is completely unnecessary and won’t have the same magic. While fans may not be happy, but the brief teaser that was released revealed dull colors and grey-toned cinematography. When comparing the reboot to the original movie adaptation the first one depicted warm lighting and magical schools whereas the second, although it cannot be fully judged, used cooler tones in the beginning. As explained on Panther Now the reboot trailer depicts how viewers “see the project as an unnecessary remake, criticizing its apparent lack of visual distinction and originality” (Long).These effects reflected the realistic ideals of film today.
Today in films, while real sets are still applied, producers have been developing significant applications of CGI to release realistic movies and tv shows. Instead creating creative films and risking rejection the wide range of the movie industry instead uses CGI to replace financial downfall from an unsuccessful movie. A movie today which was also redone was the Superman movie in 2025. The idea of a fun and new Superman to influence nostalgic feelings was produced with odd angles which did not reveal anything specific, the cinematography did not point towards any clue or idea with shadows or lighting. The type of cinematic effects reflected a cartoon outlook while also depicting a blue-toned filming, while the movie wasn’t bad, it didn’t contain the art that original movies produced consistently. The director explained in an interview with FilmFreeway, his take on the realistic effect saying, “ This may be a fantasy movie, but it still needs to be based in some reality that the audience can connect to” (Adlaka) Movies today mainly focused in Hollywood have developed a basic view on film, the blue-toned coloring and realistic cinematography may be successful financially, but it has lost its depth and beauty of the movies. As a society the remakes and colorless productions were deemed predictable and dull, but have been successful because of the nostalgia. With high reaching prices, and low rating movies, the depth of the movie industry has lost its imagination. Not that the writers and producers are less talented than in the earlier century, but that they diminish art in movies merely because of money. As universal movie watchers, the society of today should acknowledge the difference between the beginning of the century and now. The ideals for films have changed and so has the art.
