What were the last VFX to really blow you away?

[levcore]

We're becoming so immune to VFX and they certainly seem to be going downhill in a lot of new movies which is a shame. I recall when it seemed like the bar was really being pushed in the big movies, but now so many VFX seem barely complete.

So what were the last VFX that really blew you away or impressed you?

[DR Herbert West]

The Matrix

[BluBonnet]

I loved the VFX in Eternals (especially the 3D IMAX expanded AR version), The Marvels and Quantumania. They all worked especially well in terms of the story, coming up with a very unique look for each of those movies.

The set extensions in The Count of Monte Cristo were also very good.

[Kylo_Ren]

This is very easy to answer:

Avatar (2009)

Seeing it for the first time in IMAX 3D was a magical experience! Truly unforgettable!

[DKLou]

Despite the film being a little iffy, Prometheus had some of the best effects I’ve ever seen.

[gazza1975]

this i remember thinking was jaw dropping at the cinema in 2006

Poseidon (1/10) Movie CLIP - Capsized (2006) HD - YouTube

especially the shot at 2.35....

[RossyG]

I saw Close Encounters on 35mm last year at the Prince Charles, London, and the stuff with the mothership is still spellbinding nearly fifty years later.

Funnily enough the same day we saw The Matrix on 35mm and that held up amazingly well, too, bar the odd shot.

In terms of more recent films, I thought Napoleon and Gladiator 2 mostly used VFX well to recreate old worlds and big battles. There were a couple of janky shots here and there, though.

But in terms of VFX set pieces being impressive, it was probably Valerian from eight years ago. The Big Market and a couple of scenes in the Alpha (should be called Point Central) space station were amazing. But, as is often the case now, other VFX scenes in the film weren’t always as well done.

And as I type this I can think of two sequences in a much more recent film that really impressed me: the crashing into the planetary ring and acid blood in zero gravity scenes in Alien: Romulus.

[Martoto]

The scene of Rey sliding down the dunes next to a derelict ship and then taking off on her speeder was a powerful combination or FX, art, photography and music.

Made me smile, bigly.

[apricissimus]

The sandworms in the Dune movies (the recent ones) were quite nice.

[jess1581]

General Tarkin in Rogue One.

[CreasyBear]

Avatar in 3D in a THX auditorium at midnight in December 2009. The closest I'll come to seeing Star Wars in 1977.

I think since that point, the best visual effects shows tend to be invisible. Dune is a great example of the effects being totally seamless. Interstellar is another one in recent years.

The 90's were wild though - it was so fresh and exciting seeing convincing dinosaurs in Jurassic Park, futuristic cityscapes in The Fifth Element and The Phantom Menace, bullet time in The Matrix, and all manner of natural disaster. It seemed like anything was possible and every new event film offered something fresh. Blockbusters rarely feel like that anymore. When everything is possible, it shows the limitations of the filmmakers imagination.

[Gacivory]

I saw a video showing how much CGI was in Conclave and it blew me away. Theres so much invisible VFX that we don’t even notice until pointed out.

[Steedeel]

The Creator given its budget. Especially the running bomb robot.

[spider-neil]

Thanos. A living, breathing CG super villain and not once are you taken out of the movie by him. Hollywood had finally crossed the uncanny valley.

That should have won the Oscar.

[spider-neil]

Times I've been blown away by CG

T2
Jurassic Park
The Matrix
Avatar

[Michael11]

The Matrix.

That's the benchmark and I haven't seen anything beat it yet.

[Martoto]

The shark leaping up onto the stern of the Orca still impresses me.

Mind you so does the shot of the still submerged shark taking the estuary victim down for the first time.

As did the shot of the pier section stopping, turning and heading back toward the flailing fisherman.

[ImBlu_DaBaDee]

War for the Planet of the Apes

[Al_The_Strange]

Depending on how you look at it...

There are plenty of recent examples where VFX are being used well and can show off an amazing setpiece. Dune Part Two definitely had its fair share of awesome effects. Same for Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes.

But in terms of looking for something amazing that I've never seen before (as it was when Star Wars, The Abyss, T2, The Matrix all dropped)--I'm thinking Avatar: The Way of Water was the last time I felt like the envelope was being pushed. Even then, the first Avatar was a more impressive leap in technology.

[CreasyBear]

Originally Posted by Al_The_Strange

Depending on how you look at it...

There are plenty of recent examples where VFX are being used well and can show off an amazing setpiece. Dune Part Two definitely had its fair share of awesome effects. Same for Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes.

But in terms of looking for something amazing that I've never seen before (as it was when Star Wars, The Abyss, T2, The Matrix all dropped)--I'm thinking Avatar: The Way of Water was the last time I felt like the envelope was being pushed. Even then, the first Avatar was a more impressive leap in technology.

Way of Water was so damned immersive. I never once thought I was looking at a visual effect. But it wasn't the watershed event that the first Avatar was.