The Dark Knight and Inception are tied for me. Love completely different things about each, though. I will say, however, that Inception's is quite flawed a bit as I have many complaints about it I've mentioned elsewhere at length. Still adore, ADORE it.
Favorite shot from TDK- how has nobody mentioned anything from the Hong Kong jumps? When I think best shot I think... in terms of photography, not how awesome what was shown on camera was i.e. truck flip. The photography in the Hong Kong sequence blows my mind.
Inception- The shot in the bathroom of Cobb and Fischer. Should be obvious which one I'm talking about, and the single take in the hallway is brilliant. Those camera movements are fantastic. Same goes for the ski chase, the camera rapidly backtracking and going all over in Mombassa, the aerial shot, there's just so many.
1. Memento. The cinematography is that complex and it immersed me in the way the direction, the screenplay and Guy's acting put me on Lenny's viewpoint. And plus, the distinction of the camera works between the black-and-white scenes and the colored scene is just so phenomenal.
2. Following - the last frame. It sticked. Memento - opening scene (I consider it the most brilliant opening scene I've ever seen). Plus, the flashback of Lenny's wife when Lenny is talking to Natalie at the restaurant. The flashback is so wonderfully edited that it really felt like I'm Leonard Shelby myself and I'm having flashbacks of the fragments of his memory Insomnia - hmm. As far as I remember. I loved the last frame. Batman Begins - opening scene (I loved how the transition between the-bats-creating-an-outline-of-Batman-logo and the-young-Bruce-running was done) Beautiful cinemaography. The Prestige - opening scene (piqued my interest) The Dark Knight - the last frame (He is... THE DARK KNIGHT). It left a bruise in my heart. Inception - when Cobb's children looked at him. I really loved the atmosphere of that scene (the music, the cinematography, the acting)
This was an incredibly hard choice but I think I find the cinematography of TDK slightly more encompassing, skilled, and moving than Inception.
With that in mind my favorite scene from TDK is the Hong Kong jumps. The scope and the camera movements are astoundingly beautiful and picturesque
For inception, the bathroom waste-high shot is gorgeous and stirring. It's amazing how Pfister can evoke a more intense emotional response from his camera placement and movements than many films taken as a whole can.
The Prestige and Memento are by far my favorites in terms of cinematography. The Dark Knight might be third, then Insomnia, Inception, Batman Begins, and Following.
(not in order)
TDK: I'd put this separate from the others because this stands with some of the most amazing shots. The Joker driving the
police car. The truck flip. The cityscape shots. All the two-face scenes, especially the moment when he rages at the point of becoming two-face. So many shots in this movie were just mind blowing.
Inception: Difficult to chose with TDK but I'd say Inception has the best cinematography overall for many reasons
The Prestige: Loved the opening shots. Overall brilliant. Wins my 3rd place.
Batman Begins: Okay the train shots with the fight near the end were just amazing
Insomnia: Really loved the atmostphere of this movie. Really great overall.
Memento: A bit mild but simply brilliant. The black and white scenes were amazing. It looked so bold compared to other black and white shots from other movies.
