Favourite individual shots

[Sam]

The Thin Red Line - The Polynesian children plunge into the crystalline ocean as Faure's In Paradisum swells on the 'In Jerusalem' chord.

The Enigma of Kaspar Hauser - The wheat swaying in the breeze.

Solaris - the camera pans around the Bruegel

Road to Perditon - Michael Jnr walks across to the farmhouse (final shot)

Hero - the fighters on the water shot from distance with a tree framing the foreground.

Badlands - letting off the red balloon

Under the Skin - the alien's ashes blowing up into the Sky

Brazil - the frantic reverse dolly of the power station

[Gulftastic]

The opening of 'A Clockwork Orange', pulling back from Alex and his Droogs.

[mothman]

That last scene of The Big Combo.

[newbridge]

The shot from Night of the Hunter when Robert Mitchum ride by on his horse across the backlit horizon.

[Lord Mandrake]

Gordon Gekko on the beach at sunrise.

[Steven]

The head shot in JFK.

[Cerys]

The first vista of the labyrinth in Labyrinth.  For years I longed for an easy, inexpensive way of transferring it to paper so I could have it as a poster.  Then the Internet happened, and there was great rejoicing.

[Noodle Lizard]

This one from The Man Who Wasn't There is pretty high up:

[DukeDeMondo]

A bit obvious, maybe, but this from Manhattan. Just such an incredibly evocative image, utterly alive with nostalgia and yearning and aching. I first saw it when I was about 17, lying on the sofa hungover, this scene appearing just as dawn was breaking in the Reals. Jesus I done some shaking.



Also, the central shot in the possession sequence in Amityville II when the camera comes careering down from the ceiling into our man's stomach, then away up out again, his ribs contorting and face collapsing all the while. Incredible sequence in an incredible film.

I couldn't begin to count my favourite shots from Babe: Pig in the City, but this is one of them:

[zomgmouse]

Once Upon a Time in the West - seeing the town for the first time when the camera pulls up over the station and the music swells, gives me goosebumps every time

L'Atalante - Jean Vigo in the water with the vision of Dita Parlo

Suspiria - Jessica Harper in the office with lightning

M - this:

[MoonDust]

Jerry Lundegaard walking to his car in Fargo.

[The Masked Unit]

[NoSleep]

Pretty much any shot in Once Upon A Time In The West. Amazing photography throughout.

[Wet Blanket]

[Cerys]

[holyzombiejesus]

The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner, where he bows down and throws the race. Not especially dazzlingly photographed but an ace moment.

Oh, and this...

[NoSleep]

There are loads in Tarkovsky's films, where he uncannily seems to capture something completely unplanned at that precise moment, but this one is outstanding (sorry, a still can't do it justice):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nV9CEmAMd0k

And sorry, again; the lo-res doesn't do the scene justice, either.

[Obel]

That bit in Antichrist with the penis going into the vagina

[Gulftastic]

The shot of Donald O'Connor running round on his elbow in 'Singin' In The Rain'.

[Cuntbeaks]

The first bike chase in Akira when Tetsuo comes off the bike and skids towards the camera.

The jumbo jet taxiing sequence in Koyaanisqatsi

[Brundle-Fly]

Obviously, from Psycho (1960) but tonight, I never realised quite how influential that image, that smiling unhinged gaze has become in rock, comics, movies... etc since.



.

[Steven]

Obviously, from Psycho (1960) but tonight, I never realised quite how influential that image, that smiling unhinged gaze has become in rock, comics, movies... etc since.

Ah, it's the same face as Alex in A Clockwork Orange isn't it? Never noticed as I've never actually seen Psycho, need to get round to it. As I recall McDowell said he asked Lyndsey Anderson's advice on how to play Alex and he pointed to the demeanour he has in If.. when he's going in to be caned, a sort of unhinged inward supercilious grin.

[Brundle-Fly]

Ah, it's the same face as Alex in A Clockwork Orange isn't it? Never noticed as I've never actually seen Psycho, need to get round to it. As I recall McDowell said he asked Lyndsey Anderson's advice on how to play Alex and he pointed to the demeanour he has in If.. when he's going in to be caned, a sort of unhinged inward supercilious grin.

I went to see Oh Lucky Man at the BFI about twelve(?) years ago and McDowell did a Q&A after the screening. He claimed much of his maniacal performance in A Clockwork Orange was directly inspired by Eric Morecambe. 

I have never been able to put this notion out my mind since because it is really apparent.

[popcorn]

From a Hana and Alice.

[Hollow]

The sweeping shot over the gate in 'Once upon a time in America'...totally stolen by Darabont in Shawshank.

[Hollow]

The sweeping shot over the gate in 'Once upon a time in America'...totally stolen by Darabont in Shawshank.

And yes I meant 'in the west'...there's some good stuff in 'America' too. oops.

I see it's had a few mentions already, not surprised...classic film.

[Mr Banlon]

The dolly-zoom in Jaws

[Hollow]

That is quite an epic shot...on the big screen it's quite nausea inducing.

[Noodle Lizard]

There really isn't a bad frame in Once Upon A Time In America, I reckon.  Even moreso than West, though I'm probably in a minority in thinking so.

Invoking Kubrick in a thread like this seems almost like cheating, but the maze shot in The Shining is really clever:

[zomgmouse]

Moira Shearer slipping into her shoes which then lace themselves up in The Red Shoes.