Master of light

Cinematographer Stanley Cortez's masterful use of light

Night Of The Hunter is in my top ten favourite films of all time. In my humble opinion this scene is one of the greatest in movie history. One that I could talk about for hrs but I'll let the film do the talking


Edit:

Dave Said:

"I am a massive critic of modern films etc and the lousy lazy all over lighting. You'll have to lend this to Ken - looks brilliant."


It is a brilliant film, Dave, Robert Mitchum at his very best. Surprisingly its the only film Charles Laughton directed. Why he stopped after night of the hunter I don't know but it's our loss.

There's an episode of the Simpsons (The Seven Beer Snitch) where Chief Wigum is slagging off how CSI is shot and lit. You then see a shot of Wigum from inside a coke can and he looks down in to the hole and says " Yeah that's it... All flash and no meaning"


I watch a hell of a lot of movies. Any lighting has to be appropriate for the scene or subject, Like photography. The temptation to go Noir with lighting is hard to resist. I get just as pissed by over cooked lighting. Some times less is more and sometimes more is more but the content/subjects got to dictate that.

Another beautifully lit Film is the Coen Brothers: The Man Who Wasn't there



Shot by the brilliant Roger Deakins who's worked a lot with the Coen brothers. He shot their remake of True Grit and the cinematography is stunning