# Movies with the best atmospheres **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 18, 2018, 2:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-with-the-best-atmospheres/823144 "2018-10-18T14:40:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Maserschmidt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/maserschmidt/32/18829_2.png) [@Maserschmidt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maserschmidt)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2018, 12:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-with-the-best-atmospheres/823144/21 "2018-10-19T00:12:35Z")
> [@Tim\_R.Mortiss](#): > > _The Third Man_ (1949) is my choice for most atmospheric film ever filmed. Long shadows, high contrast, tilted horizons, and that haunting zither music… Very last post, and what I came in to say. ---
**Author:** ![SpoilerVirgin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/4491bb/32.png) [@SpoilerVirgin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SpoilerVirgin)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2018, 1:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-with-the-best-atmospheres/823144/22 "2018-10-19T01:19:47Z")
In [Far From Heaven](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0297884/?ref_=nm_flmg_act_54) (no relation to _Days of Heaven_), the atmosphere, especially the colors and the lighting, is as much a character in the film as the actors. The movie takes place in the 1950’s, and was deliberately intended to evoke the melodramas of Douglas Sirk. When I first saw it, I remember thinking that you could watch the entire movie without sound and the visuals would carry the story and have the same emotional impact. ---
**Author:** ![Novelty\_Bobble](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Novelty\_Bobble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Novelty_Bobble)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2018, 7:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-with-the-best-atmospheres/823144/23 "2018-10-19T07:02:34Z")
“The Hateful Eight” is an excellent example, as is “Fargo”. ETA - Any Terry Gilliam film probably fits the bill as well. The aesthetic and the atmosphere it creates is as much a character as any major star. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2018, 7:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-with-the-best-atmospheres/823144/24 "2018-10-19T07:56:00Z")
Mary Reilly has that creepy Victorian feel. I thought Brokeback Mountain truly had a clean, crisp outdoorsy feel to it. ---
**Author:** ![Isamu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/7c8e57/32.png) [@Isamu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Isamu)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2018, 8:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-with-the-best-atmospheres/823144/25 "2018-10-19T08:16:30Z")
Ways to establish mood: lighting, soundtrack, framing, story, dialogue etc.?. Perhaps it might be useful to examine in what way these are used in the specific films mentioned here. I’ll give one I find interesting (but a bit horrible), in The Shining, the director Stanley Kubric made Shelley Duvall re-take her scenes over and over so much so that it was beyond comprehension, it really drove her to her wits end and that harrowing feeling comes accross in her performance - she looks distressed (like the wife of an alcoholic might indeed be). I think it adds to the overall mood of the film, but it’s not a choice everyone would make. ---
**Author:** ![Treppenwitz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treppenwitz/32/3445_2.png) [@Treppenwitz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Treppenwitz)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2018, 9:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-with-the-best-atmospheres/823144/26 "2018-10-19T09:07:01Z")
Two very different examples: Edward Scissorhands, because it has completely the feel of a fairy tale, but one set in a very specific (and rather familiar) time and place, and not in any way less magical as a result of this; and Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World - just because it seems to me to be “authentic”\*, to the point that you are drawn into that world to a far greater extent than you would expect for what is, after all, a bit of a swashbuckling romp. j - - feel free to lambast me for my ignorance and naivety. ---
**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:** [October 19, 2018, 9:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-with-the-best-atmospheres/823144/27 "2018-10-19T09:12:21Z")
The movies of Jean-Pierre Jeunet ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2018, 1:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-with-the-best-atmospheres/823144/28 "2018-10-19T13:27:21Z")
> [@Novelty\_Bobble](#): > > “The Hateful Eight” is an excellent example, as is “Fargo”. Tarantino seriously overdid it in _The Hateful Eight_. Just way too much filler of setting and whatnot. Could easily cut at least 20 minutes out of it to improve the mood. ---
**Author:** ![Jonathan\_Chance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jonathan_chance/32/701_2.png) [@Jonathan\_Chance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jonathan_Chance)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2018, 1:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-with-the-best-atmospheres/823144/29 "2018-10-19T13:35:39Z")
I know I rave about this one a lot, but Jim Jarmusch’s _Only Lovers Left Alive_. Set in decaying Detroit it uses that craziness of abandoned, ruined cityscape to paint a picture of the characters as being also decaying. Just seeing the city around them makes the entire film somehow seem to be black and white instead of color. ---
**Author:** ![cormac262](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f14d63/32.png) [@cormac262](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cormac262)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2018, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-with-the-best-atmospheres/823144/30 "2018-10-19T16:13:46Z")
For entire movie, I would go along with “Das Boot”. This really seemed to capture just the general discomfort of life on a U-boat, and then added to that, the stress of being hunted. But for a single “scene”, the beginning of “Frantic” is the best example I’ve ever seen of the experience of arriving after a long (overseas) flight. It’s hard to put a finger on “how” this is achieved, but the director managed to capture that tired, disoriented, kind of zombie-like state you feel when you arrive after a long flight to a foreign land. ---
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2018, 4:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-with-the-best-atmospheres/823144/31 "2018-10-19T16:40:40Z")
[Moon](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1182345/) (2009) did a good job portraying the seeming contradiction of the vast openness of space being a constricted, claustrophobic prison. ---
**Author:** ![GreenWyvern](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/greenwyvern/32/2834_2.png) [@GreenWyvern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreenWyvern)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2018, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-with-the-best-atmospheres/823144/32 "2018-10-19T16:55:27Z")
> [@cormac262](#): > > But for a single “scene”, the beginning of “Frantic” is the best example I’ve ever seen of the experience of arriving after a long (overseas) flight. It’s hard to put a finger on “how” this is achieved, but the director managed to capture that tired, disoriented, kind of zombie-like state you feel when you arrive after a long flight to a foreign land. That reminds me of _ **Lost in Translation** _, where that feeling of being tired, jet-lagged, and isolated in a strange foreign culture is sustained for the entire movie. Actually, this would be top of my list of atmospheric movies. [Opening scene](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hyOSuFBS7IA) [Suntory Time!](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FiQnH450hPM) [Bob and Charlotte Meet](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vGvDCmuDKKE) [Karaoke scene](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vaqbcYGTfLg) After watching these clips, I now _have_ to go and watch the whole movie again this weekend. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Novelty\_Bobble](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Novelty\_Bobble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Novelty_Bobble)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2018, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-with-the-best-atmospheres/823144/33 "2018-10-19T17:41:37Z")
> [@Treppenwitz](#): > > Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World - just because it seems to me to be “authentic”\*, to the point that you are drawn into that world to a far greater extent than you would expect for what is, after all, a bit of a swashbuckling romp. > > j > > - > - feel free to lambast me for my ignorance and naivety. not at all, it’s pretty [faithful to the time](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Iwea41ua0Y)and though it squashes a few of the books into one it is a fairly accurate portrayal of Napoleonic-era naval life. ---
**Author:** ![mcgato](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ac8455/32.png) [@mcgato](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mcgato)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2018, 7:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-with-the-best-atmospheres/823144/34 "2018-10-19T19:55:06Z")
I always like the feel of “Last Year at Marienbad” (not that I understand what is going on) and “La Belle et la Bete.” ---
**Author:** ![blindboyard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blindboyard/32/2833_2.png) [@blindboyard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blindboyard)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2018, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-with-the-best-atmospheres/823144/35 "2018-10-20T19:16:00Z")
> [@WOOKINPANUB](#): > > To me, atmosphere makes all the difference in a horror movie; almost as much as the plot. My favorite is _The Ring_, which I mention here often. One that’s more recent but lesser known is \* It Follows\*. The music doesn’t translate as well over the home t.v., but when I saw it in the theater it was almost too much to take. The setting is Detroit, parts of which obviously lend themselves to a general gloominess. All through the film there was something “off” that I couldn’t quite put my finger on and sure enough, somebody [wrote all about it](https://thoughtcatalog.com/m-j-pack/2015/08/heres-why-you-missed-the-scariest-part-of-it-follows/). The main character’s house is the very picture of a typical middle class home in the . . .'70s? As the article says, it has elements of different eras so you generally feel it’s present day but not _necessarily_. The cast are just average looking kids, except maybe for the lead, but even she just looks natural and not glammed up Hollywood. Somewhat similar, and also starring the same actress is The Guest. Well known for its unique synthwave score and retro atmosphere, and starring Dan Stevens as the antagonist. Or anything with Dan Stevens, he’s good at this sort of thing. His star turn in Legion on TV. His recent collaboration with Gareth Evans, Apostle. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2018, 1:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-with-the-best-atmospheres/823144/36 "2018-10-21T01:23:46Z")
Ridley Scott’s fantasy film _Legend_ from 1985. You could choke on that atmosphere. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2018, 2:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-with-the-best-atmospheres/823144/37 "2018-10-21T02:11:08Z")
**Hereditary** Atmosphere: Haunting, traumatic, grief-filled. I have cited this as the scariest movie I’ve ever seen and there is not one jump-scare in the entire movie. It’s all human trauma, family-grief, and because of that, it kills you with its atmosphere. ---
**Author:** ![Maserschmidt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/maserschmidt/32/18829_2.png) [@Maserschmidt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maserschmidt)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2018, 2:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-with-the-best-atmospheres/823144/38 "2018-10-21T02:44:29Z")
Wings of Desire has a dreary, happy feel, somehow. ---
**Author:** ![Plumpudding](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/edb3f5/32.png) [@Plumpudding](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Plumpudding)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2018, 10:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-with-the-best-atmospheres/823144/39 "2018-10-21T10:29:08Z")
Stalker, by Andrei Tarkovsky. Kynodontas by Yorgos Lanthimos, of The Lobster and The Killing of a Sacred Deer fame. ---
**Author:** ![Crane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crane/32/3495_2.png) [@Crane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crane)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2018, 1:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-with-the-best-atmospheres/823144/40 "2018-10-21T13:33:56Z")
Barry Lyndon Black Robe Days of Heaven I’d add Psycho. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-with-the-best-atmospheres/823144.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-with-the-best-atmospheres/823144.md?page=3)