Movies that Are Stunningly Beautiful to Watch

[JCMach1]

Just watched one that made my think of this topic.


The Painted Veil- absolutely stunning scenery of China
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0446755/

House of Flying Daggers- China and the absolute stunning Carpathians of the Ukraine
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0385004/




Old time favorites:

The Last Emperor- Awesome on LARGE screen, doesn't look so good on small
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0093389/

Lawrence of Arabia- One of the most beautiful movies (double plus cinematography) ever!
http://imdb.com/title/tt0056172/

Barry Lyndon- Obsessive Kubrick filming with real candlelight... what's not to love
http://addpro.imdb.com/title/tt0072684/


WHAT MAKES YOUR LIST?

[Heidi]

1. I agree about The Last Emperor.

Also, Kundun: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0119485/

[regnaD kciN]

16. The DVD transfer of TLE is awful...

Something that has been commented about over and over by home-theater enthusiasts. That's probably the one film that most people want to see remastered.

[alphafemale]

2. I saw The Painted Veil somewhat recently. And Cholera also was pretty damn horrifying.

Great pic. I'm surprised it wasn't a huge success, really.

[JCMach1]

7. I thought it was an excellent movie... just didn't catch on for some reason...

[alphafemale]

11. If you have Netflix or something similar, order Chronos.

It is jaw dropping. I have a plain old 19 in TV and was blown away.

For those of you with great video audio systems this shouldn't be missed.

It was originally an IMAX film btw, if that gives an idea.

[JCMach1]

12. OMG didn't realize it was IMAX... saw a version

on my 42" projection and it was enough to blow you away... IMAX would have been insanely beautiful.

[jpgray]

3. Metropolis, Au Hasard Balthasar

[sakabatou]

74. Animated or live action version?

[jpgray]

104. Live action. Though both had some great imaginative set pieces

[begin_within]

82. I love 'Au Hasard Balthazar'

but I think 'Soy Cuba' tops it as far as visual beauty.

[jpgray]

102. The shots of faces and hands in it are icredible. Japon is another beautiful film

[begin_within]

107. Yep...

He was a master at minimalist composition and efficent editing. He studied painting before becoming a filmmaker. So many Hollywood directors could learn from Bresson's work. He could get the the same point across in a 5-second shot that a Hollywood director would take 5 minutes to get across.

[MiniMandaRuth]

4. Some of mine:

Memoirs of a Geisha
and
Pans Labyrinth
and
Marie Antionette (The new one)


were always pretty to me because of A) Scenery B) Costumes C) Mood

[bridgit]

5. just dvr'd one the other day over the top gorgeous: Curse Of The Golden Flower

http://www.sonyclassics.com/curseofthegoldenflower

[VenusRising]

55. That was a stunning movie!

Good choice.

[bridgit]

73. stunning indeed, amazingly lush cinematography...

[NewJeffCT]

95. Good choice - it caused controversy in China because of all the cleavage, too

though, it was supposedly realistic to the style of dress at the time.

[jgraz]

6. Here's a few

Diva
http://imdb.com/title/tt0082269/

Kwai'dan
http://imdb.com/title/tt0058279/

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
http://imdb.com/title/tt0190332/

Himalaya - l'enfance d'un chef
http://imdb.com/title/tt0210727/

Sunrise
http://imdb.com/title/tt0018455/

Shadows of Our Forgotten Ancestors
http://imdb.com/title/tt0058642/

M
http://imdb.com/title/tt0022100/

Kestrel's Eye
http://imdb.com/title/tt0183065/

The Seventh Seal
http://imdb.com/title/tt0050976/

Lord of the Rings: Return of the King
http://imdb.com/title/tt0167260/

Dr. Zhivago
http://imdb.com/title/tt0059113/

[JCMach1]

8. I think LOTR, Fellowship of the Ring is the best of the 3 movies

and the most beautiful...

[jgraz]

10. It's a close call, but the battle for Minas Tirith did it for me

Of course, you can't beat the lighting of the signal fires either. Damn, I need to watch those movies again.

[JCMach1]

14. For me, the technology in the battle scene didn't

quite reach the full-potential... it was VERY VERY good CGI, but for me it didn't quite work... :(

[XemaSab]

108. CGI

looks like CGI. :P

[NewJeffCT]

97. I thought the scene with Theoden leading the charge of the Riders of Rohan

was terrific. One of the best and most spectacular movie charges.

[mcscajun]

48. Agreed. My first thought (and that of many others) was...

I'd like to live in that Middle Earth. I'd go there like a shot if I could.

Second thought: WOW! I have GOT to get to New Zealand (where all the films were done, and where the most spectacular exteriors are.)

[JCMach1]

9. Absolutely agree on Zhivago... I didn't add it to mine because

I was sure someone would mention it!

[tigereye]

62. excellent list!

Curse of the Golden Flower was also visually gorgeous.

[IndianaJones]

13. The Mission, Last of the Mohicans. nt.

[AllegroRondo]

30. The Mission had incredible music, too

[LynneSin]

33. The Mission is my favorite soundtrack

I probably listen to it at least once a month and that's been going on now for about 10 years

[malta blue]

40. That was the first CD I uploaded to my new MP3 player

that I got for xmas - one of my favorite albums of all time....

[CBHagman]

114. The Mission and Brokeback Mountain are...

...two films that really deserve to be seen on the big screen.

[leeroysphitz]

15. Solyaris. 1971

CHRIST is this a BORING dull abortion of a film but it is a joy to see and a beautiful, gorgeous thing to look upon.

[bridgit]

19. Lem's book is a tripper, and gets more into *what* Solaris is, but I do like the film...

The soundtrack is very spacey/cool :thumbsup:

[Frank Cannon]

24. I, for one, loved BOTH movies & the book, all in different ways

It's just a great, fascinating story with about the most intriguing premise of all: How do we have the hope of understanding--let alone communicating with--an alien lifeform when we don't have the first clue about our own selves?

And both movies had some amazing images in them. I actually thought the planet in the Soderbergh movie was more like the one I had envisioned while reading the book.

[bridgit]

45. True, Solaris as envisioned; but the film didn't get into the 'sentient, colloidal nature'...

of Solaris, the ways in which Solaris itself would mimic us back to ourselves...I found that trippy, but Lem is a trippy writer

[tigereye]

63. we love to read Lem stories to my son

some of em are hilarious

[CGowen]

47. The fake rain in the beginning?

I only watched half of it, have to finish it sometime.

[Der Blaue Engel]

66. Have you seen Andrei Rublyov?

Also by Tarkovsky, and also stunning. I still have images from that one stuck in my head.

[regnaD kciN]

17. Days of Heaven...

Possibly the best-looking classic American film ever. Now out on a new Criterion remaster. (Haven't seen it yet -- I have the initial Paramount DVD, which is O.K., but not a world-beater. Too much of an orange cast.)

[elaineb]

26. And by the same director, "Badlands" n/t

[Mz Pip]

42. That would be my choice as well.

I thought it made Texas look spectacular. Then I read somewhere that it was filmed in Canada. If that's the case, It made Canada look even more spectacular.

Mz Pip
:dem:

[nytemare]

18. Amelie

Frida
Blade Runner


Love the use of color in Amelie.

[JCMach1]

20. Love that film as well... but not so much the

cinematography... though I agree it was good.

I just loved the acting and the story.

[nytemare]

64. I forgot "Orlando" and "Thin Red Line"

Gorgeous films.

[RainDog]

68. City of Lost Children

I love amelie too, but COL is visually spectacular (and by the same people.)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fndnq5UD3O0

[DS1]

21. Wolf Creek - except for the violent parts of course

The landscape cinematography is wonderful.


I know there's more I can think of, but not tonight.

[FloridaJudy]

22. Out of Africa

Dumb movie, but the cinematography is breathtaking.

And "Hero". Just about anything by Zhang Yimou, come to think of it.

[JCMach1]

23. Only movie that ever put me to sleep

the beautiful images but flaccid story left me napping...

[applegrove]

61. Yes. The scenery in Out of Africa was out of this world.

[Frank Cannon]

25. Fantastic Planet (1973)

Actually, it begs to be seen on a large screen as late at night as possible. Recreational pharmaceuticals are optional. I actually saw it stone, cold sober and I found it so trippy that I continued to think about it for months.

It's a science-fiction film with a literal "little guy rises up against the giants" plot.

[EstimatedProphet]

51. HELL YES!

I've tried showing this to other people and they don't get it - probably too trippy. This is a stunning movie!

[RainDog]

69. me too

did you know it's on google vid? with someone else's soundtrack, IIFC.

video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-3064984200803032304

I know some people who love this film. You just have to ease them into it. tell them it moves slowly at first. light(en) up. --if I had ever done that sort of thing--

[Frank Cannon]

118. I just ordered it from Amazon

I had a few dollars left on a gift card, so I figured what the hell.

I can hardly wait to introduce my wife to this film. She's probably going to think I'm out of my mind.

BTW, someone's put it up on YouTube, too--in 8 parts, with the original super-cool eurorock soundtrack.

(First Part) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ys8AkwMRvgo

I forgot how awesome the music was in this movie, too.

[RainDog]

122. do they have a us compatible version now?

last time I looked they only had it in european format and I don't have a player that will do those.

[Frank Cannon]

123. Here's the link on Amazon

http://www.amazon.com/Fantastic-Planet-Lubomir-Rejthar/dp/B000TZN7KQ/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=dvd&qid=1199232693&sr=8-1

It's Region 1 (US and Canada), and it even comes with a few extras. For 20 bucks you can't beat it.

[RainDog]

127. great to know

they re-issued it in U.S. format in late Oct. 2007. I'll have to put it on my gift hints list. :)

[Eurobabe]

27. The English Patient, fabulous desert scenery

I LOVE the desert.

[edbermac]

28. The Duellists and Blade Runner by Ridley Scott

[Ryano42]

29. Empire of the Sun

Back in the ET Spielberg era...made war look almost pretty. I was from the viewpoint of a boy, so it seemed appropriate.

[dropkickpa]

41. One of my favorite movies

Want a hershey bar, kid?

[stanwyck]

126. Not only visually exciting, this movie

also shows American soldiers in a positive light. The young English boy sneaks off to be with the American soldier POWs because they remain optimistic -- joking and playing cards despite the horrible circumstances. The English civilians he's imprisoned with have become increasingly dispirited and hopeless as time goes by without any glimmer of freedom. The book was based on the author's life. One of my favorite scenes is when the boy watches as the young Kamikaze pilots prepare for their doomed flights. Glad you mentioned this one.

[YankeyMCC]

31. Into the Wild

LoTR (I'm trying to limit my list to films that make use of natural background rather than beautiful special effects, LoTR uses both very well though so I'm including it)

Hero

I feel like I'm forgetting one big one but these are all that come to mind right now.

[LynneSin]

32. Seven Years in Tibet

I'm not sure what was more stunning - the Himalayas in all their glory or just checking out Brad Pitt's ass in that movie

[texas1928]

34. Probably get flamed for this...

But I liked Dances with Wolves, the scenery was amazing.

[XemaSab]

110. I was going to say that

The movie, in retrospect, was schlocky, but it did win an Oscar for best cinamatography. :)

[texas1928]

35. Another, was The Man From Snowy River.

I love the scenery and music in it.

[Bullwinkle925]

36. "Dreams" - Akira Kurosawa . . .

absolutely stunning! i would highly recommend this one.

[RadiationTherapy]

43. and 'Kagemusha' also by Kurosawa

his long (as in duration) shots really let you soak in the visual moment. I love Kurosawa.

[bif]

37. "Girl with a Pearl Earing" & "A River Runs Through It"

[Mendocino]

57. "A River Runs Through It " was my first thought.

Stunningly beautiful, and a nuanced story too. Like a poem, brought to the screen.

[GenDem]

67. Two of my favorites for brilliant cinematography!

[GCP]

72. "Girl With A Pearl Earring" was my first thought

Gorgeous movie- like watching a Vermeer moving!

[demnan]

38. Deliverance

and Brokeback Mountain

[AngryAmish]

39. I think you are forgetting "Disorderlies"

[RadiationTherapy]

44. Fando y Lis - Alexandro Jodorowsky

Gorgeous and weird - like 'Freaks', but sexier and less clear.

[rug]

46. Panic in Needle Park

[bikebloke]

49. Barry Lyndon

I saw it in the theater when it first came out and thought it was so beautiful. About 8 years ago, I picked it up on VHS - big mistake. The image was grainy and full screen chopped. It was ruining my memory of its beauty. So I stopped watching. Now I'm waiting for the restored DVD version.

[bridgit]

75. also a good one!

[Felix Mala]

50. Blood Diamond has some awesome scenery.

[EstimatedProphet]

52. Dr. Zhivago

Lean's cinematographic eye is amazing

[mcscajun]

53. Stunning scenes in these...

Medicine Man - the Amazonian rainforest, seen at treetop and at forest floor.
Before Sunrise - Vienna at sunset, in night lighting, at dawn. 'Nuff said. (This is a low key visual, not a grand scale, but so typically European in tone.)
LOTR: FOTR - stunning New Zealand Vistas, beautiful homely Hobbiton
Master & Commander: The Far Side of the World - the first feature film ever to get permission to film ON the Galapagos Islands.

[WorseBeforeBetter]

111. I'll add one more...

the scene in The Motorcycle Diaries where they ascend Machu Picchu. Breathtaking.

[Orrex]

54. Fanny and Alexander (nt)

[AlCzervik]

56. Far from Heaven and Pan's Labyrinth.

[DS1]

58. Collateral. Michael Mann really knows how to pretty up Los Angeles

[Mendocino]

59. Never Cry Wolf

[GoddessOfGuinness]

105. Good pick!

It has a beautiful soundtrack as well. :thumbsup:

[elehhhhna]

60. Indochine

[Fire Walk With Me]

78. .

:thumbsup:

[aint_no_life_nowhere]

65. Heaven's Gate

I'm a big fan of that movie and consider it a masterpiece.

I also think the filmic version of the opera Carmen, done on location in a little Spanish town with period costumes is breakthtaking. I'm talking about the version by director Francesco Rosi with Placido Domingo and Julia Migenes in the central roles. Great acting, breakthtaking cinematography of the Spanish landscape, and some of the most beautiful music ever written.

[UndertheOcean]

70. Death in Venice

Visconti

[WinkyDink]

88. My vote, also! Every scene is a visual masterpiece!

[UndertheOcean]

91. Especially the final scene

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FTP7XFVGnxQ

[Lydia Leftcoast]

71. Gabbeh, Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors, Kwaidan, Frida, and Tous les Matins du Monde

Gabbeh: Magical-realistic Iranian film about nomads who weave colorful carpets, telling the story behind one of the designs.

Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors: When I'm wealthy (ha!), I'm going to finance the digital restoration of this haunting retelling of a Ukrainian legend and its folk music soundtrack.

Kwaidan: A series of stunningly photographed Japanese ghost stories

Frida: The life of Mexican artist Frida Kahlo, featuring scenes as colorful as her art

Tous les Matins du Monde: The true story of two musicians in late 17th-century France, this film, like Barry Lyndon is filmed using only the light that would have been available in real life in that era: daylight, candles, or torches.

[sakabatou]

76. OK

Spirited Away
Metropolis (Animated)
Akira
Escaflowne: the Girl from Gaia

[bridgit]

77. Spirited Away is cool, I'll toss in Cat Soup...

[begin_within]

79. Most stunningly beautiful film made so far:

I Am Cuba (1964)
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0058604/
http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/i_am_cuba/
http://www.netflix.com/Movie/I_Am_Cuba/24092535?strkid=1588092584_0_0

[YellowRubberDuckie]

80. What Dreams May Come

Pan's Labyrinth
Lord of the Rings Trilogy

[Fox Mulder]

83. "What Dreams May Come" was the first one on my mind

when I saw this thread.

I love that movie.

[Blue_In_AK]

100. Me too

[NC_Nurse]

81. Baraka

[XemaSab]

112. Koyaaniisquastsi (sp)

:P

[GirlinContempt]

84. The Mistress of Spices

the movie itself was kind of... so so... but visually it was an orgasm.

[ThoughtCriminal]

85. The Grey Fox

http://www.us.imdb.com/title/tt0085622/

[Genevieve]

86. Winged Migration - nt

[XemaSab]

113. March of the Penguins

:)

[ThoughtCriminal]

87. I should also add - Laputa: Castle in the Sky

Wonderful images, story and soundtrack!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w71QCBwoabI

[madrchsod]

89. Kama Sutra: A Tale of Love

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0116743/
Kama Sutra: A Tale of Love (1996)

[madrchsod]

90. Shi mian mai fu -house of flying daggers

IMDb Video: Trailer for Shi mian mai fu http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0116743/trailers-screenplay-E11736-310

[SaveElmer]

92. Last of the Mohicans....

Some of the scenery was stunning...

Agree on Barry Lyndon!

[IntravenousDemilo]

93. What Dreams May Come.

...also Black Narcissus. Both are exercises in super colour saturation.

[pink-o]

94. Most anything directed by Franco Zefferelli

Especially the 1968 version of Romeo and Juliet. Just his use of light is so poignant and so Italian...

(Of course, I love absolutely every bit of art, food and culture from Italy, my idea of perfect happiness is walking thru Rome trying to figure out which flavour of Gelatto to get next!)

[WorseBeforeBetter]

109. I just flashed back...

to an 8th grade field trip. That film made quite an impression! :-)

[baby_mouse]

96. Mirrormask... NT

[Bennyboy]

98. The New World....

Might have been the most beautifully filmed movie I have ever seen.

[qwertyMike]

99. Lawrence of Arabia

with a young Peter O'Toole and Omar Sharif. (Is he still alive)

[mitchum]

101. Rabbit's Moon

in addition to many others already mentioned on this thread

[jpgray]

103. Microcosmos and the cave episode of Planet Earth are great as well

[mentalsolstice]

106. Last of the Mohicans, Legends of the Fall, Out of Africa

And not a movie, but "Band of Brothers" had stunning cinematography in many parts.

[DarkTirade]

115. The movie Serenity has an amazing contrast between beauty and ugliness.

[hyphenate]

116. Depending on what you're looking for

if it's just cinematography, movies with great vistas might satisfy the eye, but they don't always satisfy the soul. OTOH, look at a film such as Citizen Kane, which was a masterpiece in camera work--Welles tried things that had never been done before and have been considered daring even today.

I think of a film such as Wim Wenders "Wings of Desire" or the original short film, "La Jetee" which inspired the much more pedantic "12 Monkeys" or other such innovative films which gripped me and held me because you never were able to look at the screen and just say, "wow, what camerawork!" Instead the visual images to me were so much a part of the story that the cinematography became essentially invisible.

Another one I can think of simply on the basis of working the images into the story is a children's film, "A Little Princess," which Alfonso Cuaron directed. Part of the story takes place in India and while a cynic would instantly write off the scenes as nice Second Unit work, they are an intimate part of the plot later in the film as part of the child's eye and her imagination, and we can see these parts as reflecting that.

Films that are filmed at night time are surprisingly complex to film as well, and thus can be a lot more astonishing because of it. One of my favorites is the 1979 version of "Nosferatu" with Kalus Kinski because it was done in black and white, and has a very compelling impact as a result. Another film similar, though not filmed at night, is "Das Boot," which definitely gives a claustropobic feeling.

To me, often the most elegant part of a film is less the cinematography but the art direction and set design. If a film is creating an entirely new world, these elements are key to making you forget the real world around you and embracing a new world as completely real. Recently, I saw some of that in "The Golden Compass" but I think one that stands up to scrutiny is the "Harry Potter" world at Hogwarts--it never fails to make me suspend disbelief when I see a Potter movie, because part of me hopes desperately that it really is another world out there--somewhere. :)


On edit: I love images of space, so the Trek movies and the Star Wars movies always filled me with wonder. One more recent example of that was the not-so fantastical "Apollo 13." I felt as though I were stuck in that tiny little spaceship with the astronauts.

[Lex]

117. Out of Africa.

Breath-taking. I saw it on the big-screen. TV doesn't do it justice.

[elehhhhna]

119. the book's even better

[lost-in-nj]

120. The Secret of Roan Inish

and the Secret Garden (1993)

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0108071/




lost

on edit: I forgot one

The Quiet Man

[YDogg]

121. Once Upon a Time in the West

[HEyHEY]

124. I actually saw LOA on the big screen last year

It was AMAZING

[Duer 157099]

125. Excaliber and The Emerald Forest

Both being John Boorman films. Coincidence? I think not.

[stanwyck]

128. I love the look of Tim Burton movies

The beginning of "Edward Scissorhands". All of the Rembrandt looking scenes of the town's elders in "Sleepy Hollow". Plus his amazing "Batman".

[Xipe Totec]

129. Close Encounters of the Third Kind

Forrest Gump

Shakespeare in Love

Donny Darko

Dark City

American Beauty

All of these films I consider visually stunning.