Why Did the 70's Look So Grim?

[Oliverlogan263]

If you watch films, TV shows, or home videos from the 70's, everything looks so drab and grim, like the cities themselves were decaying, worn down, and falling apart. I can't explain it, but this kind of grim aesthetic feels ubiquitous in the 70's, whereas I don't see it nearly as much in the 60's or 80's media, which had a much more polished and clean look to them. It's why when modern films take place in the 70's, they simply cannot capture the grit and grime of the real 70's, and it ends up looking like goofy cosplay (see the movie "The Nice Guys," for example). A lot of 90's stuff has its own kind of grittiness to it that felt relatively unique to the era, but nothing compares to how grim and gritty the 70's looked, at least from the second half of the 20th century to this day.

[WindAtMyBack]

I never thought of the 70s as grim, but depending on what you look at I could maybe see someone thinking that way. I'm not entirely sure what you think is grim, so I can only guess.

As others have said, that old film made a big difference. It was a lot more faded and pale than more modern film and digital.

The US was moving away from a more industrial country, to a more technical and financial economy. We still had a lot of OLD decaying factories, which were largely replaced in the late 70s and into the 80s. We might see this again as factories from that era age.

Even though you hear a lot about decaying infrastructure in the US, it's a lot better than it was 50 years ago. Roads and bridges are a lot better. Buildings are more modern. A full HALF of the housing in the US has been built after the 70s.

Air pollution was a LOT worse then. It was also much more visible. Environmentalism was only just starting to really take hold. The word 'environmental' wasn't even used yet in the early 70s. It was called 'conservation' or 'ecology'. I remember driving through some cities that my eyes were burning so much that I had to pull the car over and rest my eyes for a while.

People also threw trash out the window of their cars without thinking twice about. That actually started fading in the 60s when 'liter bags' in cars became common. But there was still a lot of trash being tossed in the 70s.

Not to mention that WAY more people smoked, and tossed their butts everywhere, including on the floor of stores and restaurants. Just imagine today someone standing in line at a fast food place, smoking a cig, then dropping it on the floor and stomping it out. There could easily be 2-5 people smoking while in line. That was commonplace, and nobody thought anything of it. People emptied their car ash trays everywhere, so parking lots contained many piles of butts.

I understand that the environment is still a big issue, and there is a long way to go, but we have made huge strides compared to the past. Environmentalism was really taking hold in the 70s.

Images you see could very well be looking through air that is not nearly as clear as it is today. Anyone who does photography knows how much even a small amount of clouds, fog, haze or pollution can cause a picture to be drab and pale. Our eyes don't notice it, but the film sure does. A filter can help some, but not much.

The 70s were a time of tremendous change. It started in the 60s, which is what you tend to hear about. But it was much more in the 70s than the 60s. At the beginning of the 70s, the war was still raging, the draft was still in place, the country was divided and drugs were becoming the norm. Even pretty "straight" people were doing drugs.

There was just a lot going on. The 70s was a HUGE party. I think if you didn't live through it, you can't image how much of a party it was.

From the late 60s to the late 70s was like night and day. The country changed a lot. Society changed a lot. We transitioned from a more innocent time to a not so innocent time.

But at the same time we were having a blast, a lot of people were fucking up their lives pretty badly because of all the drugs, and generally not giving a shit about anything except drugs and having fun. A lot of people didn't live through it. Those of us who survived wonder how the heck we did. That comes up a lot in conversation with us old farts - "How the hell did we survive?".

It was really the beginnings of the technology age. Some tech was before that, but it started to really take off during the 70s. You mentioned television. Color television was still fairly new. Color programming was still fairly new. News and images about wars with blood that was actually red was something never before experienced in human history. The television industry was really just beginning to understand the power they had. By the end of the 70s, they were actively using that power to shape society.

The US had a social and economic reawakening that started in the 80s. The 70s was kind of a setup for that.

I think the way the 70s are remembered by those of us who entered adulthood then varies a lot depending on our exact age (and location). It was changing so fast that just a couple of years difference in age could make a big difference in what we experienced.

I think the way the 70s are remembered also depends on what we choose to remember. We tend to remember the good times more than the bad times. We remember having a blast and don't remember the downside of excessive drug use, and all the people who didn't make it. We tend to forget (or maybe not even realize) that drugs were being used by younger and younger people - with 12-14 year olds falling on the floor at parties because they were so fucked up on 2-3 different drugs at the same time. I knew kids around 13-14 years old who died from drugs.

Like all "news", the documentaries and pictures you see are not necessarily the norm, but the exception. For example the 60s were nothing like the images that are portrayed. The images you imagine about the 60s are things you would have had a VERY hard time finding in person, and might not have seen at all no matter how hard you looked. News is never the norm. What you think of as the 60s was actually more in the 70s.

On top of that, those films could have intentionally created that gritty look as you call it. That may have simply been the style.

You should post some picture that show just what you are talking about.

[Staximus]

All the old buildings from the early 1900's were falling apart before they started remodeling and tearing them down. Bad economy, filming technique that skin job Lily mentioned, and that's when the ghetto got real ghetto

https://www.youtube.com/embed/lZo-ASM1SB4

[Anonymous]

It wasn't the 70s, it's the fading film stocks they used back then, and drab color palettes used by the television networks.

[AI Opinion]

The grim aesthetic of the 70s was influenced by several factors. There was widespread economic stagnation, political turmoil, and social unrest during this period, which shaped the mood of the time. Filmmakers and TV producers often mirrored these realities, using muted color palettes and gritty settings to reflect societal concerns. Cinematic techniques of the time, such as grainy film stocks, further emphasized this atmosphere. Unlike the vibrant 60s or the more upbeat 80s, the 70s were marked by realism and rawness, leaving a distinct impression on its cultural output. 🎬🕰️

[paledreams]

@Oliverlogan263 useful AI 😕😅

[jshm2]

You're not watching the right films then.

There was no 4k picture quality, but they were also not bothered with "aesthetics" as much. Plus, they were still rebuilding after the war.

[NathanDavis]

Mexico remains the same though...

[DrPepper12]

Dude have you SEEN NYC real life film from the 70s? It was a dystopian battlefield of arson, crime, smut and graffiti!! Trust me on this!

[exitseven]

The 70s were a magical time. It was really not grim or gritty.

[FunkyMonkee]

It was a dark era. It was also the lowest cultural point in the history of the planet!

[noohair]

I grew in the 70's. I lived it and it was not grim. It was wild.

[GoodGuyBreakingBad]

Jimmy Carter ran for re-election and loss to Ronald Reagan with a huge landslide.

[Coletteeee]

i disagree, 70's aesthetics looks funky AF

[DtMe89]

It did?