Friday, September 27, 2013

The Encyclopedia of Cinematography (G-H)

Just as a reminder: in the spirit and thrust of this series, the names beside the titles are of the PHOTOGRAPHER of the film, and not of the director.  

Gallipoli (Russell Boyd, 81) 
The sandy dunes of WWI Turkey, set opposite the vast spread of Australia, with only dupes as its players.

Giant (William C. Mellor, 56)
This, amongst many in George Stevens' film, is one of the king images in all of American cinema. Taking this single shot in, it's impossible to think of anything other than America's hugest possibilities, and its bitter downfalls. Giant is filled with such luminous work. 

Gimme Shelter (Albert Maysles, David Maysles, and Gary Weis, 70)
The blood red of it all; the last of an era; the perfect shot.  The ultimate in documentary cinematography. 

Glory (Freddie Francis, 89)  
This particular image...it's like a stupefying painting--as are many in this landmark, underrated film, shot by an unconditional master of the art form.

The Godfather (Gordon Willis, 72)
This says it all. I mean...it changed the look of movies forever.  Still, to this day, in movies, darkness is treasured over brightness because of this one title.  Willis was a true maverick and, while he profited from his willingness to go there, he suffered, too. 

The Godfather, Part II (Gordon Willis, 74)
This says it all, too.  In both sections of this massive mob tale, Gordon Willis made history, and set a deeply felt visual tone for decades of subsequent filmmaking.  And this is an understatement. 
 
Gone with the Wind (Ernest Haller [and Lee Garmes], 39) 
Though it's really a product of special effects, this combination of live action and matte painting somehow illustrates everything one needs to know about this landmark film. 

The Good, The Bad and The Ugly (Tonino Delli Colli, 66) 
A threesome, at each other's throats, and out for blood.  One stupendous film, in one single shot. 

The Gospel According to St. Matthew (Tonino Delli Colli, 64)
A rebel, amongst a band of followers.  And a movie that stands as an inspiration, with its astounding photography as one of its greatest attributes. Still, Delli Colli might be the least talked-about genius of motion picture photography.
 
The Graduate (Robert Surtees, 67)
With this, the veteran Surtees never matched his mastery of bright and dark.  His athletic playfulness here with lighting and focus is something of wonder, even for a photographer as well-versed as he.  

Gravity (Emmanuel Lubezki, 2013) 
A absolutely unbeleiveable melding of so many diverse filmmaking crafts, all with the immaculate look of the film as the ultimate goal.  The greatest 3D movie ever made; it makes you feel as if you've never really experienced the whole of the process before. And the attention to cinema detail is just incredible, in all moments.  
  
Great Expectations (Guy Green, 46)
The blending of lights and darks, of art direction and costuming--it's all the evocation of impressive, deeply felt emotion towards and adoration of Dickens' story well told. 

The Greatest Story Ever Told (William C. Mellor and Loyal Griggs, 65)
Widescreen at its most inconceivably brilliant (even if the film is extremely difficult to get through). 

The Green Ray (Sophie Maintigneux, 86) 
A woman's crippling loneliness, seen at its dazzling pinnacle, and then at its brilliant relief.  In my opinion, director Eric Rohmer's most seriously affecting achievement.
 
The Grey Fox (Frank Tidy, 82)
An old cowboy, in a new land. Every wrinkle in our lead's face tells a tale. 

Gun Crazy (Russell Harlan, 50)
One of the great early indie movies, and one that still resonates more than 60 years later as an influence on modern photography.   Its famous single shot of a bank robbery (taken outside the bank) remains a marvel.  

La Haine (Pierre Aim, 95) 
Street thugs in France, in snappily framed black-and-white. Extra exciting! 

 Hair (Miroslav Ondriecek, 79) 
All sides of the late 60s, seen with a dreamy, dynamic feel.

Harakiri (Yoshiro Miyajima, 62) 
The ultimate in samurai epics, transmitted with suitably breathtaking imagery.
 
Hard Boiled (Wing-Hung Wong, 92)
Action cinematography at its very best. Pure chaos. 
 
The Haunting (Davis Boulton, 63)
Indescribable terror.  In each and every shot, Boulton's lighting works in tandem with the expertly insane art direction to convey an overwhelming sense of unrest. 

 Heat (Dante Spinotti, 95)
Law and order battle it out, with a light-dappled L.A. as background.  
 
Heaven’s Gate (Vilmos Zsigmond, 80)
All the way through, even with the negative buzz, one has to marvel at its look!

The Heiress (Leo Tover, 49) 
Absolutely unforgettable in its dark portrayal of a stolen life. 
 
The Hill (Oswald Morris, 65)
Stark and driven, with a perfect use of wide lenses and a stunning sense of of lighting.  

Holy Mountain (Rafael Korkidi, 73)  
Scene after scene, this is one movie that offers the sort of bizarre images that we can barely even dream of.  
 
The Honeymoon Killers (Oliver Wood, 69)
An indie masterpiece, perhaps chiefly because of Wood's grainy, stupendously lit tableaus. 

Hope and Glory (Phillippe Rousselot, 87) 
Britain in WWII splendor, with an appropriately dialed-down color palette.  
 
Hour of the Wolf (Sven Nykvist, 68)
Nykvist pulls out all of his tricks, in service of an insurmountable horror show. 
 
The House of Mirth (Remi Adefarasin, 2000)
This is a trip back in time, all the way through.

Howards End (Tony Pierce-Roberts, 92) 
A painting in movement. 

How Green Was My Valley (Arthur Miller, 41)  
How gorgeous is this? And the entire movie reaches this peak.

Hud (James Wong Howe, 63) 
Oh my god...Howe's work here is beyond reproach, all the way through...absolutely one of the best black-and-white movies ever filmed. 

Hugo (Robert Richardson, 2011) 
Turn-of-the-20th-Century, in Paris, regal and in sumptuous 3D

The Hurt Locker (Barry Ackroyd, 2008) 
The perfect blend of shaky-cam documentary-style and a more grounded narrative-aimed photography. 

The Hustler (Eugene Shuftan, 61) 
A man minus pluck, arriving to shoot against his most respected rival.  Shuftan's expressive widescreen black-and-white photography here is without equal. 

No comments: