As you begin to explore films for visual appeal, you should look no further than by examining those selected as the best by some of the world’s best cinematographers. In January 2019, the American Society of Cinematographers celebrated a century by exploring and acknowledging 100 films worthy of celebration and examination.
According to cinematographer and list curator, Steven Fierberg, “the 100 films list will serve as a library of influential, key titles that all cinematographers should see as well as an educational tool for students, teachers and film lovers to better understand and appreciate the importance of cinematography. ‘It is our hope that the list will help cinematography to be better understood by the public — the audience — [and to showcase] each of us as an artist who is an essential contributor to the magic of cinema.’” (American society of cinematographers, 2019)
As we continue to move forward into the next century of celebrating the art of cinematography, films will be added to the list for consideration.
1. Lawrence of Arabia(1962), shot by Freddie Young, BSC (Dir. David Lean)
2. Blade Runner (1982), shot by Jordan Cronenweth, ASC (Dir. Ridley Scott) (more here and here)
3. Apocalypse Now(1979), shot by Vittorio Storaro, ASC, AIC (Dir. Francis Ford Coppola) (more here)
4. Citizen Kane (1941), shot by Gregg Toland, ASC (Dir. Orson Welles)
5. The Godfather (1972), shot by Gordon Willis, ASC (Dir. Francis Ford Coppola) (more here)
6. Raging Bull (1980), shot by Michael Chapman, ASC (Dir. Martin Scorsese)
7. The Conformist (1970), shot by Vittorio Storaro, ASC, AIC (Dir. Bernardo Bertolucci)
8. Days of Heaven (1978), shot by Néstor Almendros, ASC (Dir. Terrence Malick)
9. 2001: A Space Odyssey(1968), shot by Geoffrey Unsworth, BSC with additional photography by John Alcott, BSC (Dir. Stanley Kubrick) (more here and here)
10. The French Connection(1971), shot by Owen Roizman, ASC (Dir. William Friedkin) (more here and here)
**The remaining films are listed in order of release
Metropolis (1927), shot by Karl Freund, ASC; Günther Rittau
Napoleon (1927), shot by Leonce-Henri Burel, Jules Kruger, Joseph-Louis Mundwiller
Sunrise (1927), shot by Charles Rosher Sr., ASC; Karl Struss, ASC
Gone with the Wind (1939), shot by Ernest Haller, ASC
The Wizard of Oz (1939), shot by Harold Rosson, ASC (more here)
The Grapes of Wrath (1940), shot by Gregg Toland, ASC
How Green Was My Valley (1941), shot by Arthur C. Miller, ASC
Casablanca (1942), shot by Arthur Edeson, ASC (more here)
The Magnificent Ambersons (1942), shot by Stanley Cortez, ASC
Black Narcissus (1947), shot by Jack Cardiff, BSC
The Bicycle Thief (1948), shot by Carlo Montuori
The Red Shoes (1948), shot by Jack Cardiff, BSC
The Third Man (1949), shot by Robert Krasker, BSC
Rashomon (1950) shot by Kazuo Miyagawa
Sunset Boulevard (1950), shot by John Seitz, ASC (more here)
On the Waterfront (1954), shot by Boris Kaufman, ASC
Seven Samurai (1954), shot by Asakazu Nakai
The Night of the Hunter (1955), shot by Stanley Cortez, ASC (more here)
The Searchers (1956), shot by Winton C. Hoch, ASC
The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957), shot by Jack HIldyard, BSC
Touch of Evil (1958), shot by Russell Metty, ASC
Vertigo (1958), shot by Robert Burks, ASC (more here)
North by Northwest (1959), shot by Robert Burks, ASC (more here)
Breathless (1960), shot by Raoul Coutard
Last Year at Marienbad (1961), shot by Sacha Vierny
8 ½ (1963), shot by Gianni Di Venanzo
Hud (1963), shot by James Wong Howe, ASC (more here)
Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964), shot by Gilbert Taylor, BSC
I Am Cuba (Soy Cuba; 1964), shot by Sergei Urusevsky (more here)
Doctor Zhivago (1965), shot by Freddie Young, BSC
The Battle of Algiers (1966), shot by Marcello Gatti
Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (1966), shot by Haskell Wexler, ASC (more here)
Cool Hand Luke (1967), shot by Conrad Hall, ASC
The Graduate (1967), shot by Robert Surtees, ASC
In Cold Blood (1967), shot by Conrad Hall, ASC (more here)
Once Upon a Time in the West (1968), shot by Tonino Delli Colli, AIC (more here)
Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969), shot by Conrad Hall, ASC (more here)
The Wild Bunch (1969), shot by Lucien Ballard, ASC
A Clockwork Orange (1971), shot by John Alcott, BSC (more here)
Klute (1971), shot by Gordon Willis, ASC
The Last Picture Show (1971), shot by Robert Surtees, ASC
McCabe and Mrs. Miller (1971), shot by Vilmos Zsigmond, ASC, HSC
Cabaret (1972), shot by Geoffery Unsworth, BSC
Last Tango in Paris (1972), shot by Vittorio Storaro, ASC, AIC (more here)
The Exorcist (1973), shot by Owen Roizman, ASC (more here)
Chinatown (1974), shot by John A. Alonzo, ASC (more here)
The Godfather: Part II (1974), shot by Gordon Willis, ASC (more here)
Barry Lyndon (1975), shot by John Alcott, BSC (more here)
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (1975), shot by Haskell Wexler, ASC
All the President’s Men (1976), shot by Gordon Willis, ASC (morehere)
Taxi Driver (1976), shot by Michael Chapman, ASC
Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977), shot by Vilmos Zsigmond, ASC, HSC
The Duellists (1977), shot by Frank Tidy, BSC
The Deer Hunter (1978), shot by Vilmos Zsigmond, ASC, HSC (more here)
Alien (1979), shot by Derek Vanlint, CSC (more here, here and here)
All that Jazz (1979), shot by Giuseppe Rotunno, ASC, AIC
Being There (1979), shot by Caleb Deschanel, ASC
The Black Stallion (1979), shot by Caleb Deschanel, ASC
Manhattan (1979), shot by Gordon Willis, ASC
The Shining (1980), shot by John Alcott, BSC (more here)
Chariots of Fire (1981), shot by David Watkin, BSC
Das Boot (1981), shot by Jost Vacano, ASC
Reds (1981), shot by Vittorio Storaro, ASC, AIC
Fanny and Alexander (1982), shot by Sven Nykvist, ASC
The Right Stuff (1983), shot by Caleb Deschanel, ASC
Amadeus (1984), shot by Miroslav Ondricek, ASC, ACK
The Natural (1984), shot by Caleb Deschanel, ASC
Paris, Texas (1984), shot by Robby Müller, NSC, BVK
Brazil (1985), shot by Roger Pratt, BSC
The Mission (1986), shot by Chris Menges, ASC, BSC
Empire of the Sun (1987), shot by Allen Daviau, ASC
The Last Emperor (1987), shot by Vittorio Storaro, ASC, AIC
Wings of Desire (1987), shot by Henri Alekan
Mississippi Burning (1988), shot by Peter Biziou, BSC
JFK (1991), shot by Robert Richardson, ASC
Raise the Red Lantern (1991), shot by Fei Zhao
Unforgiven (1992), shot by Jack Green, ASC (more here)
Baraka (1992), shot by Ron Fricke
Schindler’s List (1993), shot by Janusz Kaminski
Searching For Bobby Fischer (1993), shot by Conrad Hall, ASC
Trois Coulieurs: Bleu (Three Colours: Blue; 1993), shot by Slawomir Idziak, PSC
The Shawshank Redemption (1994), shot by Roger Deakins, ASC, BSC (more here)
Seven (1995), shot by Darius Khondji, ASC, AFC (more here and here)
The English Patient (1996), shot by John Seale, ASC, ACS
L. A. Confidential (1997), shot by Dante Spinotti, ASC, AIC (more here)
Saving Private Ryan (1998), shot by Janusz Kaminski (more here and here)
The Thin Red Line (1998), shot by John Toll, ASC (more here)
American Beauty (1999), shot by Conrad Hall, ASC
The Matrix (1999), shot by Bill Pope (more here)
In the Mood for Love (2000), shot by Christopher Doyle, HKSC
Bonus films beyond the 20th Century
Gladiator (2000), shot by John Mathieson
The Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring (2001), shot by Andrew Lesnie
Gangs of New York (2002), shot by Michael Ballhaus
Cold Mountain (2003), shot by John Seale
The Aviator (2004), shot by Robert Richardson
Batman Begins (2005), shot by Wally Pfister
Children of Men (2006), shot by Emmanuel Lubezki
There will be Blood (2007), shot by Robert Elswit
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008), shot by Claudio Miranda
Avatar (2009), shot by Mauro Fiore
Inception (2010), shot by Wally Pfister
War Horse (2011), shot by Janusz Kamiński
Life of Pi (2012), shot by Claudio Miranda
Gravity (2013), shot by Emmanuel Lubezki
Birdman (2014), shot by Emmanuel Lubezki
Mad Max: Fury Road (2015), shot by John Seale
La La Land (2016), shot by Linus Sandgren
Blade Runner: 2049 (2017), shot by Roger Deakins
Roma (2018), shot by Alfonso Cuarón
1917 (2019), shot by Roger Deakins
Mank (2020), shot by Erik Messerschmidt
American society of cinematographers. (2019, January 8). ASC list of 100 milestone films in cinematography of the 20th century. Retrieved from https://theasc.com/news/asc-unveils-list-of-100-milestone-films-in-cinematography-of-the-20th-century
Manning II, N. T. (2021, February 7). Picture this: Cinematography of the 21st century [PDF lecture notes].
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