The Best Cinematography of the 21st Century

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The technology of cinematography has undergone some of the most seismic shifts in film history this century, with what began in the 2000s as an almost entirely photochemical process transforming into the digitally captured, manipulated, and projected images of today. The art of cinematography, however — using light, color, and texture to express ideas and elicit emotional reactions from the audience — remains intact.

In 2017, IndieWire made a list of the best shot feature films of the century thus far; the list was updated in 2020, and what follows is the third and most extensive version of the list. It’s also the first to be spearheaded by the IndieWire Craft team, which has grown considerably since this list was first published. Ranking cinematography is, in some ways, a fool’s errand given the broad variety of genres, resources, and intentions encompassed by the films below, but these are 60 titles that IndieWire believes will stand the test of time.

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  1. 66 new

    Black Swan

    2010, in 12 top lists Check
  2. 32 new

    Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind

    2004, in 28 top lists Check
  3. 60 new

    The Dark Knight

    2008, in 27 top lists Check
  4. 10 new

    Kill Bill: Vol. 1

    2003, in 18 top lists Check
  5. 2 new

    The Tree of Life

    2011, in 13 top lists Check
  6. 94 new

    No Country for Old Men

    2007, in 23 top lists Check
  7. 50 new

    Le fabuleux destin d'Amélie Poulain

    2001 — a.k.a. Amélie, in 27 top lists Check
  8. 75 new

    The Fountain

    2006, in 4 top lists Check
  9. 17 new

    Gravity

    2013, in 12 top lists Check
  10. 6 new

    There Will Be Blood

    2007, in 20 top lists Check
  11. 96 new

    El laberinto del fauno

    2006 — a.k.a. Pan's Labyrinth, in 33 top lists Check
  12. 30 new

    Mulholland Dr.

    2001 — a.k.a. Mulholland Drive, in 26 top lists Check
  13. 105 new

    Spring Breakers

    2012, in 5 top lists Check
  14. 11 new

    Kill Bill: Vol. 2

    2004, in 9 top lists Check
  15. 39 new

    Children of Men

    2006, in 12 top lists Check
  16. 98 new

    The Prestige

    2006, in 15 top lists Check
  17. 28 new

    Interstellar

    2014, in 13 top lists Check
  18. 90 new

    Melancholia

    2011, in 10 top lists Check
  19. 64 new

    Antichrist

    2009, in 8 top lists Check
  20. 61 new

    Zodiac

    2007, in 14 top lists Check
  21. 26 new

    Mad Max: Fury Road

    2015, in 23 top lists Check
  22. 1 new

    The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward...

    2007, in 7 top lists Check
  23. 44 new

    The Aviator

    2004, in 8 top lists Check
  24. 79 new

    Her

    2013, in 10 top lists Check
  25. 83 new

    La La Land

    2016, in 18 top lists Check
  26. 42 new

    Skyfall

    2012, in 4 top lists Check
  27. 93 new

    The New World

    2005, in 10 top lists Check
  28. 51 new

    Black Hawk Down

    2001, in 5 top lists Check
  29. 109 new

    Under the Skin

    2013, in 10 top lists Check
  30. 45 new

    Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

    2011, in 2 top lists Check
  31. 85 new

    Låt den rätte komma in

    2008 — a.k.a. Let the Right One In, in 14 top lists Check
  32. 13 new

    Miami Vice

    2006, in 4 top lists Check
  33. 110 new

    What Lies Beneath

    2000, in 3 top lists Check
  34. 104 new

    Spectre

    2015, in 2 top lists Check
  35. 49 new

    Cidade de Deus

    2002 — a.k.a. City of God, in 22 top lists Check
  36. 89 new

    The Master

    2012, in 7 top lists Check
  37. 76 new

    The Grand Budapest Hotel

    2014, in 16 top lists Check
  38. 69 new

    Collateral

    2004, in 6 top lists Check
  39. 55 new

    Enter the Void

    2009, in 7 top lists Check
  40. 100 new

    The Revenant

    2015, in 11 top lists Check
  41. 82 new

    Killing Them Softly

    2012, in 0 top lists Check
  42. 72 new

    Dunkirk

    2017, in 8 top lists Check
  43. 12 new

    Blade Runner 2049

    2017, in 9 top lists Check
  44. 33 new

    The Neon Demon

    2016, in 3 top lists Check
  45. 73 new

    The Fall

    2006, in 6 top lists Check
  46. 112 new

    Y tu mamá también

    2001, in 15 top lists Check
  47. 3 new

    Fa yeung nin wah

    2000 — a.k.a. In the Mood for Love, in 30 top lists Check
  48. 27 new

    Moonlight

    2016, in 13 top lists Check
  49. 19 new

    Once Upon a Time in... Hollywood

    2019 — a.k.a. Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, in 10 top lists
    Check
  50. 71 new

    Le scaphandre et le papillon

    2007 — a.k.a. The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, in 7 top lists Check
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Last updated on Aug 20, 2023; source