10 Incredible Shots That Totally Defined Movies
A single shot that represents the entire film.
As much as every film is so much more than any one of its single shots, there's no denying the all-encompassing quality that an incredible image can conjure.
A shot that's gorgeously composed while also true to the themes of the piece can linger in the audience's mind long after the end credits have rolled, effectively serving as visual shorthand for the movie itself.
These 10 shots, then, aren't merely brilliant one-off images but also entirely representative of the film, capturing its essence in a single beautiful frame.
While it's fair to say to that not all great films necessarily boast one single, defining image, these 10 films absolutely do, with shots which immediately conjure up myriad feelings in viewers.
Even a cursory glance at these shots will transport audiences to their first awe-struck time watching the movie, along with every other aspect of the scene - the actors, the movement of the camera, the music, and so on.
It takes a special kind of filmmaking talent to have that effect on viewers, but these 10 shots dug deep into viewers' hearts and minds...
10. When Dinosaurs Ruled The Earth - Jurassic Park
Picking just one shot from Steven Spielberg's legendary dino blockbuster sure isn't easy, but is there any image more iconic or indelible than that of the T-rex triumphantly roaring in the visitors' center after saving the hapless humans from a pack of raptors?
It's a visual that so perfectly encompasses the wonderful absurdity of dinosaurs existing in the modern world - or better still, the human arrogance of believing that we would ever be capable of taming and controlling them.
And it's all topped off by the "When dinosaurs ruled the Earth" banner, serving as an undeniably unsubtle yet playful reiteration of the film's primary theme, an enduring testament to the film's impossibly well-aged visual effects, and also a giddy homage to Val Guest's 1970 dinosaur film of the same name.