I like movies. One of my favorite feelings is the one you get when you’re waiting for a hotly anticipated movie and suddenly the pre-show ads stop, the lights go dim, and the previews start. And then, a few minutes later, the previews give way to the opening titles of the movie you've been waiting so long to see. You know what I mean? It's a great feeling.
And so of course I've compiled a list of my favorite movie scenes. There's nothing particularly inspirational about this blog post, unless you’re brought to tears by majestic dinosaurs or poetry quoted by British secret agents, which is actually a definite possibility. Feel free to express your assent or dissent in the comments.
You'll notice that most of these movies come from similar genres, with the exception of The King's Speech, which resonated on a personal level in a way that most biopics and Best Picture contenders fail to do. I won't apologize for the content of this list; while it's true that I like a lot of expensive, loud blockbusters, you won't find any Transformers or similar cinematic drivel on the list. I have some standards, after all.
As a final explanatory note, none of these scenes would reach any kind of cinematic height without the contribution of the music. I’m a huge film score buff, and I’m always conscious of the background music to any scene. As we appreciate these awesome scenes, let's not forget the contribution of the composer.
And now, the list . . .
"Welcome to Jurassic Park” (Jurassic Park)
I enjoyed Jurassic World, but the first movie has something all of its sequels lack: a sense of unashamed wonder at the pure majesty of the creatures of Jurassic Park. Marvel with Dr. Grant and Dr. Sadler as they gaze for the first time upon the biological spectacle wrought by scientists. I’m convinced that if I ever am permitted to see actual dinosaurs—through some miracle of God or science, perhaps—I will fall to my knees in awe and weep softly. And the Jurassic Park theme will invariably start playing in my head.
Tennyson (Skyfall)
From a franchise whose high points usually come from cool gadgets and hot women, this scene is surprisingly poignant. M deftly describes the necessity of MI6’s role in the changing world of espionage, her eloquent speech juxtaposed against the looming approach of the bad guy. As she starts quoting Tennyson, Bond appears, the music seething with tension. Maybe I’m just a sucker for cool voiceover scenes, but this gets me every time.
Hotel fight (Inception)
Occasionally, certain movie scenes make me laugh aloud in the theater out of the sheer awesomeness of what I’m witnessing. This was one of those scenes the first time I watched it. It’s a little lacking in emotional heft when compared to the other entries on this list, but it makes up for it in terms of visual inventiveness and overall whoa factor.
King George’s address (The King’s Speech)
As anyone who’s spent a few minutes in my company can tell you, I have a stutter. Because of this, I felt the fear of King George and felt my excitement rising at the slow building of Beethoven’s Seventh Symphony as the king gained momentum in his rousing address. I felt his tension, his agony, and finally his relief at a speech well given.
"The Hanging Tree” (The Hunger Games: Mockingjay, Part I)
James Newton Howard, the composer, deserves most of the credit for endowing this scene with an emotional punch that seizes your heartstrings and doesn’t let go until the haunting music is over. Somehow we’re made to care deeply about the faceless extras flinging themselves to their deaths.
The fall of Sauron (The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King)
I gotta be honest; it was tough picking a single scene from the Lord of the Rings trilogy, but I made a rule for this post where I could only do one scene per film series. Runners-up for the best scene of the trilogy include the bridge of Khazad-dum sequence, Sam’s “There’s good in this world” speech, and about half the scenes in Return of the King. To anyone who’s ever struggled under the weight of a seemingly insurmountable challenge, this scene is more than just a bunch of crumbling CGI buildings. At long last, after all their toils and travails, Frodo and his companions have succeeded in their quest, and you can feel the overwhelming relief, joy, and exhaustion felt by the Fellowship. And then there’s the moment of realization when Aragorn and those outside the Black Gate realize that Frodo and Sam likely made the ultimate sacrifice. I watched this scene a few days ago while I was bored at work, and I had to stop it because I was actually tearing up and didn’t want my co-workers to think I was a pathetic weirdo with leaky eyeballs.
The test drive (How to Train Your Dragon)
The music in this scene soars as high as Toothless the dragon, and that’s a large part of what makes this scene so great. John Powell’s fantastic score proves a worthy complement to the scene’s action. There’s a real sense of danger as both Hiccup and Toothless plummet toward the ground below, but when they pull out of their dive at the last moment and spin headlong through a labyrinth of rock, you can’t help but cheer.
Yoda lifts the X-Wing out of the swamp, The Empire Strikes Back
There are a number of scenes in the Star Wars trilogy that vie for the honor of most iconic, and you could make a pretty good case for any of them. But this one resonates because Yoda's timeless wisdom. Luke Skywalker watches incredulously as his downed starfighter is raised telekinetically by the diminutive Jedi Master, he mutters that he doesn't believe what he's witnessed. "That," Yoda intones, "is why you fail."
Final scene, Rogue One
Some of the the scenes above elicit feelings of appreciation for the grandeur of nature or the frailty of life. This last scene evoked feelings of OH MY GOSH OH MY GOSH THIS IS AWESOME. It's been years since I literally giggled with pure, unadulterated glee in the middle of a movie, but the sight of Darth Vader finally kicking the kind of butt we've been waiting him for to kick for years reduced me into a ten-year-old again. That moment when the red lightsaber cuts through the gloom! The guy trapped on the ceiling! The terror on the Rebels' faces! I have literally watched this scene dozens of times. Pair it with the emotional moments that come before it, and you pretty much have the perfect movie ending. (I say pretty much, because that CGI Princess Leia still weirds me out.)
Opening, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2
It's a standard movie trope: A group of space ruffians fight a giant squid monster in the background while a tiny alien tree dances to classic Earth hits in the foreground. Actually, there's nothing about this scene that was expected, which made it so great. There's a surreality to it that comes across as incredibly charming. And how cute is Baby Groot?
