Can someone explain to me what the 'cinematic' look is? And why it is better than 30fps? Surely that is like saying printing a massive print is better with 12mp than it is with 60 because that is how it was 'traditionally'.
It goes like this: a video clip is a sequence of still shots, a lot like shooting a burst of photographs. If you’re doing things right, the amount of frames per second at which you record will determine your shutter angle (I.e. shutter speed), which should be 180º for most things (I.e. twice the number of FPS: 1/48 for 24, 1/60 for 30, 1/240 for 120, and so on).
I’m sure that, as a photographer, you realize that your shutter speed is critical to convey motion: you shoot faster to freeze motion, and slower to emphasize it at the cost of sharpness. Exactly the same applies to video - recording at 24p leads to blurry motion, which is often regarded as organic or smooth, whereas high frame rates like 120p lead to realistic motion... but it often looks choppy, too.
It’s basically a matter of personal preference. In this case, Canon are being stupid by removing the option to record 24p. It’d be as if they decided that their consumer cameras would only bracket 7 shots. Not 5, not 3, only 7, despite the hardware being there to do it. “That’s the way pros do it, it’s better!” they might say, but I think you’d agree that it’d be aggravating for lots of users, not to mention patronizing. Just give people the choice, damnit!