Favorite Film Compositions?

[Krankor]

Wonderful art direction. John Alcott, the cinematographer, also worked on two other Kubrick films, The Shining and A Clockwork Orange. An underrated art department entirely, I think.

think what they could have done in this age of unbeliveable production advances.

[ratso]

Lawrence of Arabia, The freaking desert came to life.

[Shep]

admin said:

I'm just wondering, if anyone likes a particular movie's film compositions - that it how the film was shot? Perhaps I'm the only nerd that watches for stuff like this, but my favorite goes without saying, Barry Lyndon:

Absolutely! I agree, Barry Lyndon is possibly the best.

Other good ones:

"Walkabout" (Nic Roeg's first go as a solo director)

"Days of Heaven" (considered by many to be Malick's masterpiece)

[In_Stereo]

Yes, Doc, I'll give it to Kubrick as well (I'm becoming a fan)...

What was scary about The Shining wasn't really what you saw, but how it was shown to you. Seeing the shot of the two little girls bloody and murdered wasn't particularly scary on its own, but intercut into the "play with us forever and ever and ever" scene-- that was creepy. I thought dividing the movie into days, and then hours (with a separate title card for each) also gave a creepy edge, like Jack's madness was becoming a day-to-day thing now (especially Thursday, where all that happened was Jack stared ahead in a trance for about thirty seconds!) I could go on forever making this point; the old lady rotting away in the tub, intercut shots of Danny screaming when Scatman Crothers gets killed, Danny's first vision of the elevator, etc.

Or how about that jump cut in 2001; we go from a bone flying through the air to a spaceship shaped like a bone falling back down (spaceships shaped like bones? that's stupid! haha... wait...). Also, the shots of HAL looking back and forth between Dave and Frank's moving lips (parodied in Mitchell!) was a great moment of "oh poopie..."

Can I just point out that Dr. Strangelove was distressingly normal for a Kubrick film? Even though it was supposed to be a comedy, the only remotely Kubrick-ian moment was the ambassador looking at his watch in alarm at the end.

In In Stereo Stereo

BTW, Forrest, if I can drag you off-topic for just one reply... so far I've seen 2001, Dr. Strangelove, the Shining, and Clockwork Orange. What Kubrick do you recommend I see next, and is there any film of his I should avoid?

"It's a sin! It's a sin! Using Ludwig van like that!"

[GodoHell]

One word: Mishima.







This movie was directed by Paul Schrader, & is about the life & writings of Japanese author Yukio Mishima. The scenes of his actual life are in B&W. The scenes from his books are in vibrant color. It's an amazing movie about an amazing man. If you're uncomfortable with homoerotic themes, stay the hell away from this one. But if you can think you can handle it, it's one of those movies that uses cinematography & music (soundtrack by Phillip Glass) to add several more layers to the cinematic experience.

Another fave: Amélie.



I know enough of you have either seen this film or heard of it, so I don't have to include more pics. Suffice it to say Jeunet's hyperreality makes for a great movie-going experience, IMO. Some don't like it. That's fine. I do.

[Mr. Atari]

Forrest, have you seen The Third Man?

Whenever I think of great composition of shots, I think of The Third Man.

Of more modern movies, I always thought Shawshank Redemption had some great shots.

And, not to throw Kurosawa back at you, but Ikiru has some of his best framing.