Thursday Movie Picks: Best Cinematography & Best Special or Visual Effects (Oscar Winners Edition)
Wandering through the Shelves hosts a weekly movie challenge in which you choose 3-5 movies based on that Thursday’s theme and explain why you chose those movies.
Today’s theme is Best Cinematography & Best Special Effects (Oscar Winners Edition) so here are my choices!
Gone With the Wind (1939)
While Gone With the Wind has been rightly criticized for its whitewashing of slavery, the movie itself remains a classic in cinema. A winner of 8 Academy Awards, it remains the highest-grossing movie of all time (in inflation-adjusted terms). One of those wins was for cinematography (Ernest Haller and Ray Rennahan). I always found Gone With the Wind to be a gorgeous movie from start to finish, and I do believe its Oscar win was just.
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)
While I think every movie in the LOTR trilogy could have won this Oscar, Fellowship of the Ring is the only one to take the trophy home. It truly is a beautiful film, from the lush greens of the Shire to the mystical, dreamy Rivendell. I was so impressed with the look of this movie, and sometimes I find it my favorite one to watch simply because of its cinematography. Andrew Lesnie did an incredible job, given the scope of the trilogy itself.
Road to Perdition (2002)
I’ll say it right now. Road to Perdition is an underrated masterpiece. To me, everything about this movie is near perfection. The story, the directing, and the acting, especially from Tom Hanks. The score is beautiful, too. I honestly believe the rain shootout (as seen above) could be listed on almost any list of top ten moments in cinematography. I get chills every time I see it. This movie deserves a heck of a lot more love.
Inception (2010)
One reason I chose Inception for Best Special Effects was the rotating hotel fight scene. Director Christopher Nolan didn’t use any computer-generated effects for this scene, which is pretty dang impressive. The actors and camera operators had to practice filming it several times to get it right, and it’s by far one of the most impressive scenes in the movie. The rest of the special effects in this movie are pretty damn great too!
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)
Another LOTR choice! I would honestly just choose this movie for nearly every TMP if I could (and it fit, of course). Jim Rygiel, Joe Letteri, Randall William Cook, and Alex Funke really helped bring Middle-earth to life, and while a lot of the battles included some CGI, you could never tell. This movie is 18 years old, and it holds up so dang well.
Titanic (1997)
I’ve used Titanic before, and I’ll say the same thing today that I said back then. Regardless of how you feel about this movie, you have to admit it’s pretty impressive what James Cameron managed to pull off. The sinking of the Titanic alone was worthy of an Oscar. And just like ROTK above, Titanic truly holds up well in terms of its special effects.
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I’ll say right off the top I detested all the LOTR films but visually they are impressive.
Now with that out of the way I LOVE GWTW with any and all its warts and issues. Vivien Leigh is sublime and she leads an awesome cast. Visually the film is breathtaking , even more so if you’ve ever seen it in the theatre. There many scenes feel like paintings. A very worthy win.
I don’t think I’ve seen Road to Perdition since that first time in the theatre but it is beautifully shot as well as being a very good film.
This is the second time I’ve seen Inception mentioned today and it was a very deserving winner. The cast, especially Tom Hardy, do a lot to making the film what it is but the visual effects are the main feature.
This version of Titanic has its problems, chief among them the romance that never would have happened in 1912, but they have nothing to do with the look of the film which even before the ship hits the berg is an incredible feast for the eyes.
I stay with cinematography this time so its just three for me but all are gorgeous to look at.
The Black Swan (1942)-Florid swashbuckler with Tyrone Power as reformed privateer Jamie Waring. Commissioned by the newly pardoned master pirate Henry Morgan (Laird Cregar) now governor of Jamaica to offer amnesty to the other bandits of the sea he sets off on the task along with his trusty sidekick Tommy Blue (Thomas Mitchell) but runs afoul of renegade picaroon Billy Leech (George Sanders-buried under a red wig and beard) and his henchman Wogan (Anthony Quinn) who refuse to give up their thieving ways. Much swordplay ensues. All the while Waring romances the fiery beauty Lady Margaret Denby (Maureen O’Hara). This all unfurls in lush sumptuously rich Technicolor provided by Leon Shamroy who won the Best Color Cinematography Oscar, at the time the category was divided between color and black and white.
A River Runs Through It (1992)-Mediative drama of two Montana brothers Norman and Paul Maclean (Paul Sheffer and Brad Pitt) and the divergent paths their lives take with their shared love of fly-fishing serving as a metaphor for the vagaries of life. While the story is solid and the acting by the entire cast superior it’s the breathtaking vistas as well as the more intimate scenes shot by Oscar winner Phillipe Rousselot that truly dazzle the eye.
Legends of the Fall (1994)-Brothers Tristan, Alfred and Samuel Ludlow (Brad Pitt, Aidan Quinn and Henry Thomas) all love the same woman, Susannah Fincannon (Julia Ormond) in the wide-open spaces of their father William’s (Anthony Hopkins) sprawling ranch leading to sorrow for all. Sweeping family melodrama once again set in Montana but a quite different one than A River Runs Through It. This is the Montana of vast spaces and operatic happenings and emotions. Venturing farther afield to other continents and the majesty of the ocean cinematographer John Toll earned his award by using his keen eye to lend a strong chiaroscuro element to the picture.
A River Runs Through It and Legends of the Fall are fantastic choices. I was obsessed with LOTF when I was a teenager. Might have been Brad Pitt, but I definitely appreciate the beauty of the movie as well. I also agree that Vivien Leigh is fantastic in GWTW. Fabulous performance.
We match on Inception! I love that your chose the LOTR films. Those are amazing.
It’s so hard not to choose LOTR for a lot of these categories! 🙂 they’re some of my favorite movies.
First of all, I absolutely love the design!
I haven’t seen Road to Perdition, but I agree that the others are visually great.
thank you!!
Road to Perdition is such a great movie! Definitely give it a watch someday 🙂
Great picks! The cinematography in Gone with the Wind is stunning. I definitely need to re-watch Road to Perdition. All three of your visual effects picks are perfect. They each make the movie so special and memorable. Graphics are beautiful too!
thank you! RTP is on my list to rewatch soon. It’s such a beautiful film and Tom Hanks gives an incredible performance.
I just love, love, love your choices even if a couple of films are not my favs. I simply love LOTR trilogy and your picks for cinematography and special effects warrant it. I am so glad you chose GWTW which deserves the accolades despite the issues of race which is in the book as well. Hell, Mitchell was from the South so this is how she thought, it’s sad but true. It is still the top one to beat money wise too and I am glad you pointed that out. Road to Perdition is a classic and so sad. It is one of my hubby’s favourite films and he loves the soundtrack so I got the Cd for him. Inception is just a visual amazement and I love that the director didn’t use CGI for that scene. CGI can do great things but it’s used too much and can be seen in so many films that make it looks fake.i am not a fan of Titanic at all. The plot and writing makes me cringe especially not taking what really happened to many people on this ship that would have enhanced the stupid love story between Jack and Rose. They would have died of hyperthermia before leaving the ship considering how many times the6 were in that cold water. Despite my hate for this flick, the special effects are amazing. I do love how he took actual photos of the ship and restored it to how it looked originally. That was excellent.
I agree with you about GWTW! I think it’s so easy to go back to films from the 30s and 40s and criticize them for their content but I think people still have to take into consideration what life was like back then. It doesn’t make it right but it’s an accurate depiction of how these people viewed life. I think Titanic’s weak link IS the writing. The screenplay is not great. But the visuals were very impressive and Kate and Leo had amazing chemistry. I think it’s the love story that drew people in even if it wasn’t realistic for that time period. Road to Perdition is a movie I absolutely love but I need to be in the right state of mind to watch it due to the nature of it. Tom Hanks is just so good in it.
I love Road to Perdition and picked it myself. It is not so underrated seeing that it did win Best Cinematography and got nominated in a bunch of other categories. It’s just a little forgotten in recent years.
True! I know it was nominated for a bunch of awards but I think I mean more audience wise. I don’t see as much love for TRTP as I do other films and I think it’s deserving of more discussion.