Excellent piece Simon and I wholeheartedly agree! I can’t count how many times I’ve had to slog through AI “restorations” and muddy “colourisations” of silent films on YouTube to find a copy that hasn’t been smoothened within an inch of its life. I think it’s extremely sad that people cannot seem to accept what these films look like and appreciate what they are. It also feels like they’re saying that the artistry and details in these films aren’t worthwhile because of visual “imperfections” like grain, but degraining really robs them of their soul.