Bladerunner (and 2049) has a special place in my heart. There are so many classics that stretched film photography. Lawrence of Arabia. Alien. The Cell. Night of the Hunter. Dunkirk. 2001: A Space Odyssey. Just to name a few. What movies are your favorites that aren’t as known?

  • robolemmy@lemmy.world
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    1 year ago

    I’m not a sophisticated cinephile, so maybe this isn’t what you’re talking about, but Ben Stiller’s “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty” (2013) just blows me away visually. The writing and plot aren’t anything to shout about, but the movie is just so beautiful and even the opening credits are creative, unusual, and visually engaging. The scoring is phenomenal too.

    • Gimly@lemmy.world
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      1 year ago

      You just made me realise that the only movies where Ben Stiller is acting which I really enjoyed were ones which he also directed. He’s a solid director, Walter Mitty, Cable Guy, Tropic Thunder, and to a lesser extend Zoolander have quite good cinematography. He seems to also lessen the excessiveness in his acting which I don’t like.

  • Navarian@lemm.ee
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    1 year ago

    Sicario and, to a (Much) lesser extent, Sicario: Day of the Soldado.

    Directed by Denis Villeneuve, who also Directed Arrival, Bladerunner 2049 & Dune.

    If you haven’t watcher either of the Sicario’s or those listed above, I would absolutely suggest you give them a watch.

    • Tenthrow@lemmy.worldOPM
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      1 year ago

      Those have been on my list forever but just haven’t done it. I’ll take this as motivation.

      • OopsOverbombing@lemmy.world
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        1 year ago

        Sicario is just great filmmaking all around. The plot and visuals are fantastic. Honestly though the sequel is pretty mid. I wasn’t impressed; it just felt like a cash grab more than a fully fleshed out sequel.

    • Tenthrow@lemmy.worldOPM
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      1 year ago

      Excellent choices! I had forgotten about There Will Be Blood, but that movie left a mark on my mind. I need to go back there again.

  • László Panaflex@lemmy.world
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    1 year ago

    Night of the Hunter and Barry Lyndon come to mind. I’m willing to say most any Kubrick film has at least a few indelible shots. Oh and Kwaidan left quite an impression when I first saw it.

    • niktemadur@lemmy.world
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      1 year ago

      When you say Night Of The Hunter, my mind immediately jumps to The Sweet Smell Of Success, which came out a year or two later, with Charlton Heston Burt Lancaster and Tony Curtis. One film is in the country, the other in Manhattan, but the visual style is similar and just as striking.

      • László Panaflex@lemmy.world
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        1 year ago

        That was a fantastic movie! That’s a James Wong Howe film. But do you mean Burt Lancaster? I don’t recall Heston in that.

          • László Panaflex@lemmy.world
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            1 year ago

            Have you seen Seconds? That one stars Rock Hudson and was also shot by Howe, so you might at least find the look of it appealing.

            • niktemadur@lemmy.world
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              1 year ago

              Sure did, in fact I owned it on DVD.
              First and foremost, that film’s a Frankenheimer. I loved Manchurian Candidate, enjoyed French Connection 2 (that breathtaking final shot of the film elevated it for me), and read that Seconds was his unsung masterpiece at the time it came out.

              I really liked Seconds, but it’s such a dark story, I never watched it again. Like with Requiem For A Dream, some films are masterpieces but also not really rewatchable.
              Then I believe Seconds was the first big Hollywood release that showed full frontal nudity, in black and white, in 1966! The tone of that scene is fascinating, Frankenheimer was truly in uncharted post-Hayes Code waters there.

    • Tenthrow@lemmy.worldOPM
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      1 year ago

      Not sure why, but that makes me think of Holy Mountain. They don’t make many like that one.

      • László Panaflex@lemmy.world
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        1 year ago

        I haven’t seen that but I’ve been meaning to make an effort to watch Jodorowsky’s work.

        I just remembered the film The Fall. I believe that was also Tarsem (like the Cell). I remember it being visually striking but not much else.

        • Tenthrow@lemmy.worldOPM
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          1 year ago

          Yeah Tarsem will delight the eye, but that’s about it. It is enough though when you want to see the sights.

  • tabris@lemmy.world
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    1 year ago

    The Fall is an absolute treat for the eyes. So many beautiful locations, and the fade between the creepy priest’s face and a landscape shot that has the same features is incredible.

    • CitizenKong@lemmy.world
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      1 year ago

      I agree, it was also shot in 24(!) different countries, was self-financed by director Tarsem Singh and doesn’t use any CGI.

  • rab@lemmy.world
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    1 year ago

    The Revenant has gotta be my favorite of all time. Shot with natural light in one of my favorite locations in the world. The meteor scene is probably the best scene cinematography wise. But you can pause the movie at any point and it’s going to be a beautiful frame.

  • livus@kbin.social
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    1 year ago

    Some of these will be “as known” but here’s some random examples of beautiful cinematography that I really love:

    Journal d’ un cure de compagne

    The Red Shoes

    Bringing Out The Dead

    The Seventh Seal

    Mirrors (Tarkovsky)

    Beau Travail

    Red Sorghum

    In The Mood For Love

    • Tenthrow@lemmy.worldOPM
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      1 year ago

      I don’t think I have ever seen anyone mention Bringing Out The Dead. I love that film. Awesome choice! You’ve got a really solid list here.

      • livus@kbin.social
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        1 year ago

        Thanks! Yeah I love everything about Bringing Out The Dead but the cinematography really stands out. If I remember right, Scorsese had seen Robert Richardson’s work on Snow Falling On Cedars and asked him to bring that same luminous quality. Which is an achievement because very different subject/setting, but it works.

  • Granixo@feddit.cl
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    1 year ago
    • The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus (2009)

    My favorite movie of all time, simple, yet severly underrated.

    • Adult World (2013)

    One of the best movies to watch when inviting (girl) friends to a sleepover, also severly underrated.

    I would recommend other movies, but they target specific demographics/topics, so i don’t feel they would be worth mentioning here.

  • Isthisreddit@lemmy.world
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    1 year ago

    Conan the Barbarian - it was a perfect fusion of imagery and music (not much dialogue in that movie for obvious reasons). Any of you people who want to laugh at this, I dare you to watch the first few minutes of the movie as we watch Conan’s childhood into his enslavement.