I start with David Lean, Lawrence of Arabia. Mostly because he takes his time and makes you watch a sunrise. It’s an interest in nature’s timeless beauty at a point where you’re literally hung on a dramatic cliffhanger.
I assume “Bay” above refers to Michael Bay, right?
There just isn’t any contest.
I have no idea what is going on here but I cannot stop watching it.
Two immediately come to mind from a glory day of gorgeous filmmaking in the early 1990s - The Color Purple and The Last Emperor. Gorgeous, sweeping cinematography and beautiful colors, sets, and wonderful acting.
Not sure how one could choose a singularly “beautiful” movie, when there are thousands that are so wonderful.
I will throw in The Cook, The Thief, His Wife and Her Lover as an honorable mention. Such wonderful luxurious beautiful sets and color paired with awful and revolting behavior.
Hellraiser.
No contest for me. This jam transports me synapses every time.The film itself is also an argument for appreciation of beauty in that so many magical moving images were created crisply, expressively and painstakingly by hand and brush that wouldn’t be attempted in a million years without CG by any other outfit…
I haven’t seen their #1 on the list, Samsara, but it reminds me of this article in the Times, Why Do We Experience Awe?
The takeaway is that we, as humans, are becoming deprived of the feeling of awe, and we need to experience more of it.
I would watch it just for that reason.
You got it right on the first try. Lawrence is a mind blowingly beautiful film.
I’ve been on a Malick kick recently, so that’s what sprung to mind, but The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford also leaps out.
And it should be seen on a theater screen that does 70mm as even the large screen LCD beasts of today are not enough to make it really work.
as far as beautiful movies go, I don’t think you can top The Fall
edit: why must every trailer to this movie be full of spoilers?
Dopes left out animation? Hmph.
The answer on that point, btw, is The Man Who Planted Trees by Frederick Back.
I can’t answer this question. But the photography nerd in me was deeply impressed by “Army of Shadows.” I’ve never seen such natural looking low-light scenes on the screen. Barry Lyndon eat yer heart out.
Serious answer: both Lawrence and The Fall are great answers. “It’s food; you eat it.”
The first time I watched it was on my 14 ft projector. It was, in the original meaning of the word, awesome.
Years ago now when Cinerama reopened the one movie I wanted to catch was Lawrence of Arabia. My wife was like but you have seen this, I said “Not on the big screen”. It is totally a different experience in a theater like that. I was sad I couldn’t sneak out of work for Playtime a few years ago.
I was very happy to see the gorgeous Samsara as their #1 film, though personally I think its predecessor, Baraka, is the superior experience. Absolute magic.
