[mrdazzo7]

Soooo there's a first time for everything I guess.

A lot of friends recommended Succession and I came across S1E1 the other day and figured I'd check it out. It was somewhere in the middle of the episode. I only got through 10 minutes because I couldn't handle the god awful way this thing is filmed.

I absolutely get the "hand held camera" design for this show- they're going for a "just like you're there!' feel...and it's good. But what I can't wrap my head around is the inability to hold a shot for more than a second before we zoom in and out 100 times. What is that?

I realize this is on purpose and probably speaks to some sort of "artistic commentary mirroring the frenetic underpinnings of a family at war", or something.... but it makes it unwatchable for me. If they went 50% with the "wacked out camera movement" idea, I personally would love it... but they went the full hundy, and all it does is completely take me out of the storytelling. I love the hand-held, go-anywhere aspect (much more freeing to the actors than a full set up)... but the zooming in and out does it in for me.

Am I on my own here? Anyone else unable to stick with it? Or am I being too low-brow by dismissing the show over something so trivial (although I don't think it's trivial).

 

[DevdogAZ]

I've seen every episode and never noticed what you're talking about. Not saying it's not there, but just that it apparently doesn't bother me. I wonder if that was a style they used in the pilot and then backed off of it in subsequent episodes.

 

[gossamer88]

FWIW, I also did not notice. Great show. So possibly you'll be so enthralled that you too would no longer see it.

 

[Tony_T]

I have never noticed that either. This is the HBO show, right? Maybe they changed it in later episodes?

 

[GoPackGo]

If I remember correctly, the handheld filming goes away very early on. Stick with it, great, darkly funny show.

 

[mrdazzo7]

Awesome thanks. I hate myself but once I notice something I can't UNNOTICE it lol. I'll see if I can power through it.

 

[mattyro7878]

I've never noticed. It is a fine show. Plus , seeing how the other half lives is great.

 

[Hank]

I watched S1E1, and definitely see what you're talking about, and it is somewhat annoying. Would I have seen it had I not read this thread? I'm not sure, but I think I would have noticed it, but not cared so much about it. Once you see it, it is kind of jarring, but it's not every shot/every scene. Of course once you start looking for it, it might feel like every shot/scene, but it's not that frequent. I would put this in the "annoying, but not devistating" category. I'll likely watch more episodes to see how it develops.

Oh, and I have enough of "how the other side lives" from BILLIONS. Now THAT pisses me off (because I'm not one of them).

 

[gweempose]

My wife and I are halfway through the first season and we noticed it right away. It's not just the handheld camera. They incorporate this sort of jump cut/quick zoom thing that is very obvious and very different from how most shows are filmed. It doesn't bother us, but I can see how some might find it annoying. What I don't understand is how someone can say they don't even notice it. We found it to be immediately obvious, and they continue to use the technique throughout the season.

 

[gossamer88]

Are you guys sure you're not the ones shaking

 

[andrewjonthomson]

Soooo there's a first time for everything I guess.

A lot of friends recommended Succession and I came across S1E1 the other day and figured I'd check it out. It was somewhere in the middle of the episode. I only got through 10 minutes because I couldn't handle the god awful way this thing is filmed.

I absolutely get the "hand held camera" design for this show- they're going for a "just like you're there!' feel...and it's good. But what I can't wrap my head around is the inability to hold a shot for more than a second before we zoom in and out 100 times. What is that?

I realize this is on purpose and probably speaks to some sort of "artistic commentary mirroring the frenetic underpinnings of a family at war", or something.... but it makes it unwatchable for me. If they went 50% with the "wacked out camera movement" idea, I personally would love it... but they went the full hundy, and all it does is completely take me out of the storytelling. I love the hand-held, go-anywhere aspect (much more freeing to the actors than a full set up)... but the zooming in and out does it in for me.

Am I on my own here? Anyone else unable to stick with it? Or am I being too low-brow by dismissing the show over something so trivial (although I don't think it's trivial).

You’re definitely not on your own as I and many other people have vestibular disabilities (think motion sickness but 24 seven requiring prescription medication just to function day to day) I also had to stop watching watching after 10 minutes or less or I would literally get vomiting fits that might last all night. There’s been many shows that started off with very shaky camera and then stabilized soon afterwards so if this is the case with succession I wish someone would tell me when the shaky camera stops and I will start watching with that episode and go on forward. It’s a legitimate aesthetic choice but here as in many places it’s taken way way way too far.