DARKER IS BETTER.

A thought —

In terms of aesthetics, story, drama, and happenings … darker is better.

This is what I mean:

Why I am such a huge fan of Zack Snyder

While watching the (re-edited) version of Justice League, I am very impressed — when Zack Snyder was able to do the final edits. When I first watched Justice League (the original edit) on a plane, I was massively disappointed. Why? It didn’t have the dark and sinister feel of most of Zack Snyder’s films, specifically one of my favorites of his– the movie 300.

Darker aesthetics

When it comes to photography, it seems aesthetically speaking (at least for black and white photos, and often color photos)– the biggest problem is having ‘blown out’ (over-exposed) photos. To shoot at -1 or -2 exposure-compensation often fixes this problem — to reveal more dark shadows and blacks.

Why is darker more interesting?

Even with the Greeks– Greek tragedy was the apex of literature and culture. Even The Iliad (which I consider the greatest work of all-time in terms of literature and epic poetry) is a dark and tragic tale.

In modern times, we all love the Batman series with Christian Bale (Christopher Nolan) in which we have the dark Bruce Wayne. A humorous Bruce Wayne is almost a non-concept. And why did we love the dark tragedy or the dark mood? Because in some ways, the darker you go, the higher you can feel joy. Furthermore, maybe there is some ‘schadenfreude‘ (the joy in the suffering of someone else) when we witness someone else suffering, and we feel safe. I think this also explains the logic of horror movies:

After watching the horror movie, there is a huge endorphin rush of relief … because thank God, we are not the people in the film (being mercilessly killed). And as a consequence, our quotidian everyday lives seem extremely safe and secure as comparison.

Maybe the same goes with watching war movies: after watching these war movies of people living in danger and extreme poverty, we feel more gratitude for our everyday lives. Also explains our love for camping and backpacking (to deprive yourself of creature comforts for a few days will give you much more appreciation to have a modern home with running water, hot water, and heat).

Darker aesthetics reveal more details

Also in photography, a darker aesthetic is more mysterious (chiaroscuro, to have obscure and clear parts of a photo) is more interesting visually.

Conclusion

When it comes to stories, life, living, art, aesthetics etc … opt for darker.

ERIC

ERIC KIM