# Great Visual Movies **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 2, 2007, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-visual-movies/390601 "2007-02-02T20:34:21Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Zeldar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2007, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-visual-movies/390601/61 "2007-02-05T22:35:02Z")
[QUOTE=TV time] By far the most visually stunning film ever in my opinion is _Barry Lyndon_. It will take your breath away with its photography, scene selection and scenery. [/QUOTE] I’m glad this got mentioned. I was thinking of it, but couldn’t remember for sure about it. There’s at least one other film that I’m seeing in my mind’s eye where the air is almost translucent. The lighting and cinematography are big parts of the effect, but there’s even more involved. Unfortunately, I can’t come up with its name. I’m thinking period piece, but can’t narrow it down to which period. And it’s not the Vermeer thing, although that’s a lot like it. Every scene looks like it was set up and lighted to resemble a famous painting. Even down to the chiaroscuro effect in some Italian Renaissance works. Rembrandt looking, too. Sorry to be such a tease here. ---
**Author:** ![mbh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a6a055/32.png) [@mbh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mbh)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2007, 10:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-visual-movies/390601/62 "2007-02-05T22:45:25Z")
[What A Way To Go!](http://us.imdb.com/title/tt0058743/) starring Shirley MacLaine. Most of the movie is told in the form of flashbacks, each of which is an (homage to)/(parody of) a different film genre. So the visuals are as important as the plot. ---
**Author:** ![Yookeroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yookeroo/32/323_2.png) [@Yookeroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yookeroo)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2007, 4:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-visual-movies/390601/63 "2007-02-06T04:09:36Z")
[QUOTE=HoboStew] Actually, thats pretty much the reason I started this thread. I have my TV on a wall mount, at a level roughly where a painting might hang, so I got to thinking about using the tv as a sort of moving painting when I have guests over. I’m throwing a party on saturday and my idea was to have the iTunes visualizer running for the first half of the party [/QUOTE] Now I want a giant plasma TV jsut for this. There are other visualizers out there for iTunes that are pretty cool (like [Eyephedrine](http://www.giofx.net/GioFX/Eyephedrine.html) & [Ultragroovalicious](http://www.groovyvis.com/) . I think the built-in one is the best though. As far as movies, how about this [Gartel](http://www.amazon.com/Gartel-Trance-Dance-Living-Things/dp/B0002J8PLU/sr=8-2/qid=1170734131/ref=sr_1_2/102-8141620-9582521?ie=UTF8&s=dvd) DVD? ---
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2007, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-visual-movies/390601/64 "2007-02-06T15:39:19Z")
[QUOTE=Unauthorized Cinnamon] I came in just to mention this. I saw a review somewhere, or perhaps it was even a comment here, that we should accept some movies as hinging on visuals, rather than plot, just as we can appreciate paintings as much as we do novels. People who didn’t like the movie most likely had problems with the plot, which is admittedly a bit awkward. But this movie is truly about creepy, disturbing, and downright scary images, and it works perfectly on that level. [/QUOTE] That’s what I loved about The Cell. Silly idea but wow, those dream images. ---
**Author:** ![HoboStew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/f17d59/32.png) [@HoboStew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HoboStew)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2007, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-visual-movies/390601/65 "2007-02-06T18:09:32Z")
[QUOTE=Yookeroo] There are other visualizers out there for iTunes that are pretty cool [/QUOTE] Do those other visualizers have the Apple logo in the center like the built in one? If not I will definitely check them out. I like the built in one, but there is something creepy about the way the Apple logo sneaks into the middle of the screen… ---
**Author:** ![Fiddle\_Peghead](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fiddle_peghead/32/3506_2.png) [@Fiddle\_Peghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiddle_Peghead)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2007, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-visual-movies/390601/66 "2007-02-06T19:08:48Z")
Ya wanna movie that hinges on visuals, do ya? Well, then you must check out **Koyaanisqatsi**. You could say that this movie is entirely dependent on visuals. I could do worse than direct you to a description of this film at [imdb.com](http://imdb.com/title/tt0085809/plotsummary). As described there, it is a “visual concert of images set to the haunting music of Phillip Glass.” ---
**Author:** ![Yookeroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yookeroo/32/323_2.png) [@Yookeroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yookeroo)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2007, 6:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-visual-movies/390601/67 "2007-02-07T06:17:42Z")
[QUOTE=HoboStew] Do those other visualizers have the Apple logo in the center like the built in one? If not I will definitely check them out. I like the built in one, but there is something creepy about the way the Apple logo sneaks into the middle of the screen… [/QUOTE] No Apple logo. ---
**Author:** ![panamajack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/47e85d/32.png) [@panamajack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panamajack)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2007, 6:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-visual-movies/390601/68 "2007-02-07T06:45:38Z")
**Ran** finally got mentioned, so I’ll just add **Kundun** (which is probably just as enjoyable with the sound off). As for using the TV as a moving art picture, I seem to remember that the **Punch-Drunk Love** Special Edition had a second disk with a series of images from the film put together in an interesting way (which confused me mightily when I accidentally put that disk in first). One of my favorite movies ever, the Japanese movie **Love Letter** has as a special feature the movie played with the storyboards instead of the film - all beautiful watercolors painted by the director (Shunji Iwai). ---
**Author:** ![jackdavinci](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackdavinci/32/3259_2.png) [@jackdavinci](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jackdavinci)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2007, 8:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-visual-movies/390601/69 "2007-02-07T08:12:03Z")
The Dark Crystal, The Matrix trilogy, The Neverending Story, Moulin Rouge, Innerspace, Tron, 77 Million Paintings by Brian Eno, Artmind - The Healing Power of Sacred Art with Alex Grey, Titan A.E., Treasure Planet, Atlantis the Lost Empire, Pirates of the Carribean, The Future is Wild, Neil Gaiman’s Neverwhere, Young Sherlock Holmes, Willow, The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, Aeon Flux, Fantasia, Ultraviolet, any of Bjork’s music video collections ---
**Author:** ![Yookeroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yookeroo/32/323_2.png) [@Yookeroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yookeroo)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2007, 2:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-visual-movies/390601/70 "2007-04-17T02:45:22Z")
[QUOTE=HoboStew] I’m throwing a party on saturday and my idea was to have the iTunes visualizer running for the first half of the party and then later running a movie with no sound, but one with particularly excellent visuals. We’ll see how it works out. [/QUOTE] How did it work out? ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2007, 3:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-visual-movies/390601/71 "2007-04-17T03:21:10Z")
Immortal, another CGI tour-de-force. ---
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2007, 3:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-visual-movies/390601/72 "2007-04-17T03:37:12Z")
Well, someone already mentioned anything by Ridley Scott: Legend Alien Gladiator 1492 Conquest of Paradise Kingdom of Heaven Blade Runner Black Hawk Down or his brother Tony: Top Gun Days of Thunder Spy Game Enemy of the State or any of the Bruckheimer / Bay films: Armageddon The Rock Pearl Harbor and of course, any of the Pirates of the Carribean films ---
**Author:** ![Tuckerfan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@Tuckerfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tuckerfan)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2007, 6:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-visual-movies/390601/73 "2007-04-17T06:24:59Z")
The George Clooney version of _Solaris_, and Spielbergs _A. I._ ---
**Author:** ![Vision\_of\_Love](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/5f8ce5/32.png) [@Vision\_of\_Love](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Vision_of_Love)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2007, 10:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-visual-movies/390601/74 "2007-04-17T10:47:23Z")
Again, **The Fifth Element**. I believe the upcoming DVD (or HD video) release of **Planet Earth** is also going to be impressive. ---
**Author:** ![fessie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c37758/32.png) [@fessie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fessie)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2007, 11:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-visual-movies/390601/75 "2007-04-17T11:16:44Z")
_A Room With a View_ _The Mission_ _Koyaanisqatsi_ ---
**Author:** ![Stan\_Shmenge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/94ad74/32.png) [@Stan\_Shmenge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stan_Shmenge)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2007, 7:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-visual-movies/390601/76 "2007-04-23T07:35:07Z")
[QUOTE=Tuckerfan] The George Clooney version of _Solaris_, [/QUOTE] Is one of the worst movies ever made. We watched the movie until the end, asked for our money back. Not only did we get our money, the theater manager apologized. “I know, it’s terrible.” ---
**Author:** ![buns3000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/c89c15/32.png) [@buns3000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/buns3000)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2007, 11:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-visual-movies/390601/77 "2007-04-23T11:03:20Z")
The Spike Lee film, **Mo’ Better Blues** (one of my all time faves), is great to look at. The music is pretty hot, too. Denzil Washington and Wesley Snipes both peak with this one. ---
**Author:** ![This\_ll\_Do](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/this_ll_do/32/3023_2.png) [@This\_ll\_Do](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/This_ll_Do)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2007, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-visual-movies/390601/78 "2007-04-23T16:24:33Z")
_Out of Africa_ ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2007, 4:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-visual-movies/390601/79 "2007-04-23T16:42:54Z")
You’re all going to laugh, but I think both the Charlize Theron _Aeon Flux_ and the Milla Jovovich _Ultraviolet_ are visually stunning - a vision of the future I much prefer over Blade Runner and its children. Lovely use of colour in the latter, too. ---
**Author:** ![freekalette](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/50afbb/32.png) [@freekalette](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/freekalette)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2007, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-visual-movies/390601/80 "2007-04-23T18:25:34Z")
How about _Jurassic Park_? Even in today’s swirl of _LOTR_ and _Pirates_ and _300_, it still awes me when those brontosauri show up the first time. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-visual-movies/390601.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-visual-movies/390601.md?page=5)