Most visually stunning film you've ever seen on Blu-ray?

[SophiaaaM]

I recently rewatched Blade Runner 2049 and was completely blown away by how crisp and immersive it looked on Blu-ray. The colors, the lighting, the sound - perfection. What film totally blew your mind visually when you saw it in high definition? I’m building a list of titles that are worth owning just for the eye candy factor

[jtu128]

Lawrence of Arabia hands down. Apocalypse Now at runner up maybe. My theme is I like things that are "real". I really like the look of Blade Runner 2049 but it's all sets and CGI.

[Cremildo]

Blade Runner (1982) is one of the first movies that comes to mind when asked about "visually stunning", but I'm afraid the Blu-ray transfers for the theatrical and DC cuts aren't that impressive. Its best presentation is the Final Cut Blu-ray, but I haven't revisited that disc since circa 2009.

So it's hard to say. Recently, I was in awe of Fellini's Roma. The 2014 Masters of Cinema Blu-ray does so much justice to the film's visuals that I was shocked to learn it wasn't even derived from a 4K restoration.

[Jay H.]

Avatar: The Way of Water

[Richard--W]

Originally Posted by jtu128

Lawrence of Arabia hands down. Apocalypse Now at runner up maybe. My theme is I like things that are "real". I really like the look of Blade Runner 2049 but it's all sets and CGI.

Good choices. I would have picked both but I just watched
Criterion's new 4K UHD of Barry Lyndon.

So, Barry Lyndon. It's all real.

[Cruel Angel]

My favorites:

Films: Speed Racer, Alien, Blade Runner

TV Series: Twilight Zone, Star Trek TOS

[Streamingsux]

Blade Runner

Ran

Hot take or unpopular opinion maybe but visually, I find all of the Monsterverse movies from 2014-2024 pretty stunning for modern CGI laden blockbusters..

[lesco]

The most visually stunning film I've seen on Blu-ray implies that I've seen it only at home and not in a cinema (otherwise it would be 2001).
I guess I'd have to say Argento's Suspiria, then. I've seen just about everything else theatrically, but never that one as it looked too scary at that young age.

[LT.Schaffer]

These two come to mind For me



TV Wise

[sleeperbloke]

The Fall (2006)



Suspiria (1978)



Neon Demon (2016)



Mandy (2018)

[jtu128]

Originally Posted by Richard--W

Good choices. I would have picked both but I just watched
Criterion's new 4K UHD of Barry Lyndon.

So, Barry Lyndon. It's all real.

Great pick. I’m actually watching it now for the first time and whole heartedly agree.

[Cat III]

The Duke of Burgundy released by Curzon looks stunning. You'd think it was a 4K. Suspiria ('77) is probably king, though.

[steel_breeze]

Ohmygod so many candidates. Cinematography is a key thing that drives me to enjoy a movie; I can't stay "in" a good story with bad lighting, composition, and/or camera movement.

Usual suspects, B&W edition:
Sunrise (A Tale of Two Humans)
Citizen Kane
The Third Man
Night of the Hunter
I Am Cuba
Schindler's List

Usual suspects, Color edition:
The Graduate
Days of Heaven
Apocalypse Now
Blade Runner
Empire of the Sun
Casino
No Country For Old Men

Some surprise entries that aren't usually touted specifically for cinematography:

From my all-time favorite movie; how friggin' gorgeous is this??

[Show spoiler]

The Spielberg/Daviau pairing yielded three drop-dead gorgeous flicks, starting with this one.

[Show spoiler]

This one's super controversial, but I'm just in awe of this imagery.

[Show spoiler]

[Hammerlover]

Color: SUSPIRIA (1977)
B&W: THE INNOCENTS (1961)

[Mr Walker]

I'm torn between Blade Runner and The Good, The Bad and The Ugly.

[ravenus]

Originally Posted by Cat III

Suspiria ('77) is probably king, though.

Sound-wise too, in particular the original 4.0 track. When Jessica Harper exits the airport and the Goblin score does a back and forth on the fronts and rears, it's a ride that starts then and doesn't stop till the end.

[Shane Rollins]

First one that blew me away, as it was the first film-based Blu-ray I'd ever seen, was A Clockwork Orange (2011 Blu-ray). It's weak now, but when I saw it in HD as a kid, I was shocked that a movie could look even that good. Since then...

-Swordfish (Blu-ray and 4K)
-Little Shop Of Horrors (Blu-ray)
-Blade Runner (4K)
-2001: A Space Odyssey (4K)
-Lawrence Of Arabia (Blu-ray and 4K)
-Ben-Hur (Blu-ray)
-The Ten Commandments (Blu-ray and 4K)
-Spartacus (restored Blu-ray and 4K)
-Cabaret (Blu-ray)
-Little Darlings (4K)
-Looking For Mr. Goodbar (4K)
-Avatar 1 and 2 (Blu-rays and 4Ks)
-Reservoir Dogs (4K)
-Pulp Fiction (Blu-ray and 4K)
-Natural Born Killers (4K)
-JFK (4K)
-The Matrix (4K)
-Taxi Driver (Blu-rays and 4K)
-Goodfellas (remastered Blu-ray)
-After Hours (4K)
-Night Of The Living Dead (4K)
-The Silence Of The Lambs (Criterion Blu-ray)
-Metropolis (2010 Kino Lorber Blu-ray)

[Rzzzz]

[filmbuffTX]

When I popped in the Blu-ray for The Master for the first time it took me back how crisp and refined the picture quality and cinematography is.

I watched Flipper as a kid on reruns in the 90s and seeing it on Blu-ray felt like seeing it for the first time. The show uses a lot of underwater photography and it all looks stunning on these discs.

Color:


B&W:

[Streamingsux]

I think they go way overboard with the underwater stuff in Thunderball (no pun intended) but for what they're trying to show and the era that it was released....I've always thought that was some stunning photography..