Some people are just overreacting or are just not that into Frasers work. Or both.
Don't forget that color grading in trailers is almost never exactly the same in the finished product. Sure it probably won't be hugely different, as was the case with Tenets first full trailer and the last one they released lol, but still.
I think it looks beautiful and while I also really love Deakins work in general and his high contrasts in 2049, I think Fraser is doing a really good job to make this look and feel different than just another big budget sci fi. It's also different than what Villeneuve has had before. In that podcast with the Deakins he said Deakins was still a huge influence on him while working on ⊃∪∩⪽ albeit he also said he and Fraser did some things very different than Deakins would've done.
and if you take colors from Incendies and this you'll see that it's pretty damn similar, even Sicario, even if it has a more distinctive and sharp high contrast Deakins is so well known for.
Incendies and Sicario are higher contrast and have more color saturation than most of the dune trailer. the closest comparison is Arrival, which is similarly underlit/underexposed/undersaturated with corpse-like skin tones, and imo suits a slow burn cerebral sci-fi about grieving more than sci-fi/epic fantasy.
and yes, there are choice images and sequences that look amazing, but on a shot to shot level the movie is intentionally flat (low contrast and foreground/background have no depth), with a palette of exclusively browns, grays, blacks, beige, and some yellow.
Maybe if it had a limited palette but with more saturation and less fuzzy diffuse lighting or vice versa it would work better for me, but not both.
To me it's not about the colors. It's about how he captures them and also how he lights his scenes.
Some people like it and some people dislike Fraser's style (myself included). But you absolutely cannot deny that he intentionally underexposes a lot of his shots and goes for a flat, low-contrast that just sucks the life out of the beautiful scenery. I remember seeing Rogue One (in IMAX 3D unfortunately) and it was exceptionally dark compared to other films.
The highlights and shadows are closer to grey than white and black.
Ended up watching the trailer on muted to really get a better idea at this whole debate lol. Lots of de-saturated low-con shots. I mean just look some Wadi Rum photos and compare it to what's in the trailer.
Gotta say though, there are some beautifully framed shots. Also, it's interesting that some shots have so much texture (grain like noise).
Underexposure and desaturatation are a problem in companion with sterile set designs. Some of the costumes look ok, some are pretty bland, but it's the interior shots that seem to have very little life to them. As I mentioned before, it worked with Arrival because of the melancholical nature of the film and the effect of an alien design that is foreign to us. But Dune should be more stylized, showcasing the cultures of the families.
they're selling it as a spectacle what else are they ognna do
yeah but like
what spectacle keith lol
it's all muted tones and dark and grays
and the closest thing to spectacle you get is a couple seconds of cool wide shots and the, also very dark, worm. At least this is pushing a more bankable cast.
-Vader
all the shots of armies and explosions and such, the 'there's a storm coming' line, i'm not saying this will reflect the film but how else would this play in china?
anyways i think a black & gold pallette is just nifty and puts me in a pure otherworldly space, to say nothing of greig's deft lighting. i'm stoked and simply don't share the rest of the forums' sentiments
