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What are the best looking movies of all time?
Last week I mentioned that my favorite techie category at the Oscars was cinematography. That art has always fascinated me - so much so that I know several DPs by name. I love to blow people’s minds by telling them the same cameraman shot Dr. Strangelove, A Hard Day’s Night and Star Wars (one Gilbert Taylor). I can also tell you who shot nearly every one of Steven Spielberg’s or Martin Scorsese’s films without looking it up. It’s the geek in me,
However, to make this post a little more accessible, I’d like to ask a fairly simple question. What are the best-looking movies of all time? Regardless of the story, performances, visual effects or any other considerations, what films are simply beautiful to behold?
I’ll throw out two golden age choices and two contemporary choices - one black and white, one color for each.
Citizen Kane - People tell me quite a lot they don’t think the film is really that great, but they can’t be talking about Gregg Toland’s groundbreaking photography. Practically every shot is worth framing on a wall.
The Red Shoes: In what just might be the greatest technical oversight in Oscar history, Jack Cardiff’s astonishingly beautiful visuals didn’t get a cinematography nomination. Watch this footage and try to justify that.
Schindler’s List: For a film that depicits so much ugliness, so many of its images by Janusz Kaminski have a stark, terrible beauty.
Apocalypse Now: Ditto, but in mesmerizing color, by Vittorio Storaro.
Hardly all-encompassing, but that ought to get you started. So tell me what you think the best-looking movies of all time are.
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Comments
By SRCputt
January 20, 2009 7:30 PM | Link to this
…and I took too long to respond to this. I love some of the choices here, so let me add a few more I like. One of the most gorgeous color films, one of my al time favorites, is The Umbrellas of Cherbourg. The best outdoor photography is easily Lawrence of Arabia. As for some modern picks, I love the work Ernest Dickerson did for Spike Lee, especially for Do the Right Thing. One gorgeous smaller film was Map of the Human Heart. Director Zhang Yimou has made several stunning films in China, with my vote for the most beautiful being Hero.By irishguy
January 14, 2009 4:11 PM | Link to this
I always thought “Last of the Mohicians” was beautifully shot. It could have been the lush landscape, or even the haunting score that influenced me.By Cookie
January 14, 2009 2:03 PM | Link to this
Hard to find and very unsettling, “The Cook, the Thief, His Wife, and Her Lover” is a visual feast, using staggering color motifs and settings to represent societal classes. A wonderful partnership between photographer, designer, and director. I just watched “Fanny and Alexander” on HDMovieNet, and was astounded again at the luxurious visuals from the sets, costumes, staging, and framing, made all the better thanks to HD instead of the original VHS tape I saw so many years ago. And the entire “Lord of the Rings” trilogy was marked by the beautiful photography of the New Zealand landscape (with some digital enhancements ).By Allie D.
January 14, 2009 12:46 PM | Link to this
DARN IT! You stole Apocalypse Now from me! LOL Now see, I also love cinematography, but when I think of movie “looks,” I tend to think of the mise en scene. The art direction. Motifs. Sometimes the editing. All of those things come together to imprint the look of a film on my mind. One that stands out to me immediately is Strangers on a Train. Well really, I could insert almost ANY Hitchcock film here. But I am picking this one because I think it took particularly great advantage of the black and white cinematography with it’s light/dark motifs and the shadows that hid the stalker. And the final scene with the Merry-Go-Round was made all the more chilling because of it. The Godfather is another of my favorites, looks-wise. Score another one for Coppola. :) The Shining is probably the best horror film ever made on a technical shot-for-shot basis, if not one of the best overall. And finally, probably one of my favorite movies of all time on a technical scale: Dark City. And after watching all of the special features and commentary on the latest DVD release, I have to say that I appreciated what into making this movie all the more.By ME
January 14, 2009 12:44 PM | Link to this
The Third Man to me is one of the most beautifully shot black and white films of the past. It has that feeling that if you shot it in color it wouldn’t be the same movie! There are many others but this is the first one I always think about. Films today that are just beautiful to watch the latest Pride and Prejudice and Brokeback Mountain come to mind.