# Black and White films **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 14, 2004, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-and-white-films/224399 "2004-01-14T16:49:05Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Walloon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/fbc32d/32.png) [@Walloon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Walloon)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2004, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-and-white-films/224399/21 "2004-01-16T16:02:53Z")
> [@Kalhoun](#): > > I also like the sense of innocence that comes through in old b&w movies. The world was certainly different back then. Ah yes, the sense of innocence in _Fury_, _I Was a Fugitive From a Chain Gang_, _The Lost Weekend_, _They Were Expendable_, _The Grapes of Wrath_, _Black Legion_, _Gun Crazy_, _Ace in the Hole_, _Johnny Belinda_, _Home of the Brave_, _Pinky_, _The Ox-Bow Incident_, and _No Way Out_. ---
**Author:** ![TJdude825](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/dec6dc/32.png) [@TJdude825](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TJdude825)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2004, 6:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-and-white-films/224399/22 "2004-01-17T06:19:17Z")
**Memento** uses B&W for some shots. This is to distinguish between the two time frames that happen in the movie. The b&w scenes move forward toward the death of John G. and the color scenes move backward toward the same scene, from the death of Teddy. I probably got that wrong. But the point is, there was a specific reason for using monochrome. ---
**Author:** ![vivalostwages](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/d07c76/32.png) [@vivalostwages](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vivalostwages)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2004, 6:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-and-white-films/224399/23 "2004-01-17T06:39:56Z")
I love b/w films, but my students seem stunned when I show them, or pieces of them, in college classes. I loathe colorized movies because the colors, having been laid on top of black and white, look artificial and sometimes they “bleed.” Some favorites: **Pi, To Kill a mockingbird, The Elephant Man, Ed Wood.** Without the b/w, they wouldn’t have the same kind of atmosphere, nor would certain things show up as well: steam, smoke, fog, shadows. ---
**Author:** ![DMark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@DMark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DMark)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2004, 8:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-and-white-films/224399/24 "2004-01-17T08:36:54Z")
I used to teach, and I can’t begin to tell you how many of my students hated black and white films. Luckily, a lot grew out of it later. Personally, I have to thank Ted Turner for one thing…the “one reel wonders” that are shown on his stations. They are veritable time capsules of history. Some of those have B/W footage of musical groups never seen before or since, the same with the actors. I wish they would have an entire day of nothing but the “one reel wonders”…that would be a day I would call in sick, watch them all and tape them at the same time! ---
**Author:** ![Eve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Eve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eve)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2004, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-and-white-films/224399/25 "2004-01-17T18:13:15Z")
Another advantage of the older B&W films is that they were shot on nitrate and silver stock, giving them a smooth glow and patina that no modern film stock–color or b&w–can match. Look at the beautifully-lighted close-ups of Jean Harlow, Greta Garbo, Claudette Colbert–you just can’t _get_ that effect today. It’s like trying to recreate a Rembrandt or a Franz Hals with modern canvas and paint. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-and-white-films/224399.md?page=1)