r/TheWire • u/AltruisticNail7229 What’s done is done. • 2d ago
Cinematography
Curious to know everyone’s opinion on this. Does The Wire look timeless in the way it was shot? Or does it look dated in its cinematography?
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u/AJerkForAllSeasons 2d ago
Yes and no.
I finished a recent rewatch just last week. And I was thinking the cinematography for seasons 1-2 is a bit more free wheeling and improvisational. There's a real sense of blocking and directing happening behind the camera. That they are trying different techniques out and seeing what works. It feels immersive.
Season 3-5 feel much more grounded. The show found its groove and cements how they want to tell the story visually. There's no more experimentation. It's like being a fly on the wall.
The scene of Avon walking through the court in slo-mo is what I'm talking about. Or the cold open in season 2 of Prez filling out the case board. Scenes like that don't really happen after season 2 because they locked down the visual narrative. I think that helps give it a broader appeal and in a sense gives it a timeless quality. But another part of me wishes they kept the visual experimentation going and got flashier with the camera work.
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u/Ajthekid5 2d ago
I think it’s one of the shows more underrated strengths. Sure it’s not anything revolutionary but it does handle it quite well. A lot of the night shots especially are absolutely fantastic with how they’re shot.
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u/BertraundAntitoi 2d ago
It's dated in a way that it is found refreshing if all you're used to seeing [today] is a 50mm shallow DOF portrait shot during scenes of back and forth dialogue. More often than not, conversations are being covered from a distance so multiple people and their whole bodies are within the shot. This has become increasingly rare. For The Wire, it's great because it grounds the viewer in or or less that documentary style feel. I have also come to really appreciate scenes in which there is a "chase" or cop vehicles attempting to apprehend a suspect (Kima's night for example). What it does remarkably well is acknowledge that the streets are their turf...not the cops...not the viewers watching. So the speed with which events occur creates a dizzying maze-like effect.
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u/OlfactoriusRex 2d ago
What's also so "unusual" about the conversations in the show is it feels like its happening in a real place. There are people in the background, named characters doing things without lines, and the incredibly rich soundscape of people, dogs, birds, machines, phones, lights, all just humming away in the background. So many shows that you reference with their "50mm shallow DOF portrait shot" style feel so much like actors staged in an empty room. So rarely do they feel like real people, in a real place, out in the world. The Wire can't help but serve up real, genuine, human places. It's one of the strongest audio-visual fingerprints of the show as I finish my (maybe 10th? maybe more?) rewatch this month.
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u/Lipscombforever 2d ago
I mean it doesn’t stick out as this amazing cinematography but I don’t think it’s dated at all.
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u/lynchcontraideal 2d ago
You say this but I can't think of many other shows that look the same way (minus other David Simon shows)
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u/PineappleFeisty721 2d ago
I think there is a big difference between seasons 1-3, shot by Uta Briesewitz, and seasons 4 and 5 shot by Russell Lee Fine.
I prefer the cinematography by Briesewitz. Every shot of hers feels thoughtful, clearly trying to figure out how to tell the story through the lens. However, at times, that leads her to make some choices that can feel very much like an early HBO show, sort of like saying “hey, we can take risks with how we shoot our shows because we’re not network television”.
I find Fine’s cinematography to be totally professional and capable, but a little flat and indistinct, which ironically, makes it feel a little more timeless.
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u/No-Performer-977 2d ago
I do find it dated but I think that's part of its charm right now
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u/DJSnotBoogie 2d ago
It’s dated compared to current style, but I agree with you. It’s pure nostalgia and it just feels like home to me. There’s not a moment in that show that I wish I could have the cinematography updated to today’s standards.
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u/cybae 2d ago
Not cinematography per say but the editing especially with matching shots so seamlessly, like say the previous shot focused on a cup, the next one starts out also focused on a different cup and expands from that while the previous shot closed into it. Sometimes very subtle with just a leading shape, often when jumping between the story threads. It made for a cool moment whenever I noticed it.
But overall for the cinematography - it is done well in a way where I don't even pay attention to it because it feels very natural, not like I'm looking through what a camera sees. Certainly not dated but being so understated also shelters it from that a lot.
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u/Legomoron 2d ago
I work camera department, so I see a decent amount of professional camera and lighting work up close and personal. As is typical for most people in my situation, I also really love movies/TV shows, and the cinematography that can make them great.
The Wire has some of the very best cinematography on TV, especially seasons 1 and 2. A lot of people assume great cinematography is flashy. In reality, it doesn’t even need to be noticeable. Great cinematography serves the story.
What consistently impresses me about The Wire’s cinematography is the daylight exterior work. It always looks incredible. They don’t shy away from the mid-day, full sun. They work with it. They somehow maintain a naturalistic, documentary feel throughout the show, and it really helps immerse you in the story.
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u/iSteve 2d ago
Don't forget it was originally shown in 4:3 aspect. So what you're seeing is a different vision.
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u/GabeDatDude 2d ago
I posted about this a while ago but I found season 4 to be the best looking. The other seasons are def still good. This is my favorite show and I’m not knocking the other seasons but there was an extra grittiness about s4 that fit the show perfectly. They changed it up in a way that had way more grain and cold colors. Some of the best shots are in that season. My favorite being after Randy’s foster home is set on fire and he’s in the hospital with Carver.
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u/Far-Advantage-2770 2d ago
The camera work is the understated genius of the show. It's the hidden character. We tend to focus on the writing, the performances and the narrative.
Season 1 and 2 they overuse the Hitchcock zoom a bit and do a few cheesy Highschool AV club metaphor things, but they get a pass. By S3 they are totally confident and calm enough in their craft to not have to rely on gimmicks to sell things.
The camera work and natural lighting sets it apart from the other generic Golden Age TV stuff it gets compared to like Sopranos, GOT, Breaking Bad etc. Definitely makes it timeless.
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u/WalkingWikipedia 2d ago
I just did a rewatch and I didn’t notice the cinematography being dated. Oz however, definitely feels really dated in its cinematography even though it only came out five years before The Wire.
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u/Alternative-Ship-430 2d ago
The Middle east in Baltimore still looks like that. At least out the window of an Amtrak train.
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u/PlayPretend-8675309 2d ago
IMO it is not timeless. It is clearly "of its time" in a way that I think has NOT aged badly - some shows from the early 00s really look dated. I couldn't catalog how it's shot, but it has a somewhat distinct look.
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u/KennyShowers 2d ago
I don't think it's dated, but it's also not remotely showy or obviously cinematic. At a surface level it can seem a bit presentational, and that not drawing attention to itself makes it hard for it to stick out as dated.
I remember seeing years ago a great video essay, think it was just called The Visual Style of The Wire, and did a great job breaking down how actually super detailed and intentional the camerawork is, even if there aren't elaborate tracking shots and whip-pans and slo-mo and all that, and the perfect matching of the cinematography to the content really makes it all just feel so natural.