I don't remember how much I have already posted on this topic, and where else this has already been discussed, but I couldn't agree more.
Larian said in interviews that they chose to go full-cinematic for everything, for every single dialogue (however inconsequential it is), in order to bring the party front and centre. Which is kind of funny-and-sad. Because all that these cinematic dialogues and cutscenes are doing is putting the spotlight on how much the game currently fails to place the party at the front and centre.
Here's a quick recap of some of the ways this fail happens.
- The companions don't stand in appropriate places and don't look at the action or person we're talking to, as pointed in the original post.
- The companions don't help the Speaker when they are in difficulty. (The wrestling with Astarion was mentioned. I'll add the scenes with the Dying Mind Flayer and with Brother Edowin's tadpole.)
- The companions are prevented from using their own senses or knowledge during cutscenes. (Think of entering the Sunlit Wetlands. Or recognising Abdirak's religious symbols.)
- We cannot switch who is Speaker during a cutscene, and let the more appropriate companion attempts Ability Checks.
- In Multi-Player games, players controlling non-Speaker party members must actively click the Ear icon to see/hear what's happening. And they cannot see what dialogue options the Speaker choose.
- The writing of some scenes ignores the presence everyone but the Speaker. (I'm thinking of the interactions with Nettie of Priestess Gut. Granted, this would be striking even without the cinematic spotlight.)
