Watching an original Outer Limits at the moment. (And a pair of original Twilight Zone episodes before that) While the new episodes of both are fine, as far as they go, they can't hold a candle to the original, and it's not because of any quality issues. The new ones have superb casts, darned good writing, and appropriate effects. But... there's something lacking.
They're just not creepy. Sure, they're startling, and sometimes they make you think, but they just lack that creep factor.
It's more than just creepy, though. There's a certain art there too, and I think it's because of the black and white medium. I mean, take some photographers--Ansel Adams, or Robert Mapplethorpe. I've been to some of the places as Adams, and seen some of the same people as Mapplethorpe. It's not the same, though. There's a certain starkness, and cleanliness of form, that black and white brings. It's nice, and a shame that almost nobody does black and white movies or television.
Posted by Dan at June 14, 2002 01:53 AM