Pick ONE movie for blocking excellence

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morisato

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Ha! Kind of a spoof on the topic in the Cinematography section but also I would like to know if anyone can think of any movies that have great blocking. Not many people think about the blocking in movies. Obviously different genres would require different type of blocking, so I guess you could choose one per genre. :)
 
"Children of Men" - Alfonso Cuaron

Sure, anything with takes "that" long is going to require great blocking by necessity, but the scene where they escape from the farm house is incredible and the final battle sequences is amazing as well.
 
Yeah Rope is pretty impressive. I'd say a lot of movies qualify but you don't notice because the blocking's so good you don't even think about it.
 
Rope is good, but it is staged like an invisible fourth wall proscenium play, which was an interesting choice, but not one that would normally play well. The blocking in Children of Men - defintely yes, absolutely brilliant.

Thomas Hughes, blocking is the strategic planning of the movements of actors in relation to cameras. Children of Men is just an amazing example because many of the shots are long, continuous shots with actors and cameras hitting their marks with mindblowing precision, while at the same time seeming entirely chaotic.
 
Well, since "Rope" is already taken...

JAWS.
The scene with Roy Schieder and Richard Dreyfuss talking to Robert Shaw about hunting the shark....that is blocking perfection.
:thumbsup:

"you got city hands...been countin money all your life"
 
Kurosawas "High and Low"
Everytime the camera settles in that movie the frame looks like a perfectly composed portrait.

"One Two Three"
Billy Wilder - entire scenes held in one long wide shot - timed perfectly.
The blocking made that movie funnier than any amount of cutting would have.
 
If you say "The Player" you can't leave out "Touch of Evil" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tW1bKefX7QU

But I'm not so sure one technical shot at the beginning really wins the cake. If your audience notices that it was one long take the whole time, they also got distracted from the story.


But having said that I will vote for "The Stunt man" which has many amazing things going on at once. Not just special FX. The scene where Peter O'Toole is hovering above Cameron on a crane really does a lot to help the scene's dynamic.

http://imdb.com/title/tt0081568/
 
Crimes and Misdemeaners...Woody Allen in general, especially his work in the 1980's...

Ingmar Bergman's "Fanny and Alexander" is probably one of the finest examples of blocking from that time.
 
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