I've been thinking a lot lately about how much some of modern movie’s and television’s antiheroes owe to the paranoid thrillers of the ‘70s (and even into the early ‘80s.)

Like Gordon Willis’s legendary use of voyeuristic darkness in Klute (1971) or Owen Roizman’s documentary-style work in The French Connection (1971). The camera wasn't just sitting there recording — it was actively reflecting the isolation, fear, and inner turmoil of those characters. It’s that mix of deep shadows, colorful ambient lighting, and street-level realism.

We can see that exact 1970s composition in some present-day cinema and TV. I actually just hosted cinematographer Hillary Fyfe Spera on our show and we ended up having a deep dive into her love for New Hollywood aesthetics and how those films directly influenced her own artistic choices on shows like Dexter: New Blood and DAREDEVIL: Born Again. Hearing a currently active DP talk about how Mann's and Thorin’s sleek touches on Thief (1981) or how Willis's underexposure techniques in Klute formed their ways into modern digital photography has changed my view on some of these newer films and shows.

I'm curious to hear what you all think: which 1970s film do you feel laid down the definitive model for the look of modern neo-noir TV and movies ? (For example, on our show Spera cites Drive \[2011\] as being directly inspired by Thief.) Is there a specific scene where the lighting perfectly captures a character’s personal demons or emotional confusion? Go ahead, this is a safe space; I’m listening.

New Hollywood Era Cinematography Found In Modern Cinema