The 45 Most Beautiful Shots of Cinematic Sunsets

Sunsets have provided a backdrop to some of the most powerful, beautiful, and memorable scenes in movies.

The sun sets every single day, without delays or interruptions. It’s all just part of the universe’s natural cycle that we don’t pay much attention to, and maybe even take for granted sometimes. Still, few things are as naturally beautiful or inherently awe-inspiring as sunsets, either. At face value, they’re just really pleasant to look at, but on a deeper level sunsets contain the power to evoke a range of emotions. And if you’re lucky enough to take a picture of a sunset in all its natural splendor and upload it to Instagram, your social media will be the best around that day.

Naturally, sunsets also lend themselves perfectly to art and visual media. As feasts for our eyes, few images are as striking, which makes them irresistible to some creators looking to grab our attention. However, sunsets can also be interpreted symbolically; perhaps to mark the end of a journey, a passage of time, or an era, for example. In some instances, they also signify danger due to the arrival of imminent darkness and danger. The next time you’re looking at the sun going down and admiring its beauty, please bear in mind that vampires will be waking up and preparing for a night of feasting on your fellow members of humankind. That being said, sunsets are so cool that the risk of being eaten is worth it.

Filmmakers clearly understand the appeal of sunsets, though, hence why they’ve used them time and time again to enhance their works in a variety of ways. And given that images of sunsets have contributed so much to the art of cinema, we decided it was time to honor them. Obviously, this isn’t a comprehensive collection of all the incredible sunset shots out there, but we have selected 45 favorites which showcase filmmaking at its most visually spectacular and evocative. Additionally, this is the only list we’ve published where comedies about amateur stuntmen can co-exist alongside gory horror fare, prestige historical dramas, and sci-fi epics without seeming out of place. That unlikely unity alone makes sunsets worth praising.

Star Wars: Return of the Jedi (1983)

DP: Alan Hume ⏐ Director: Richard Marquand

War Horse (2011)

DP: Janusz Kamiński ⏐ Director: Steven Spielberg

Dersu Uzala (1975)

DP: Asakazu Nakai, Fyodor Dobronravov & Yuriy Gantman ⏐ Director: Akira Kurosawa

Hour of the Wolf (1968)

DP: Sven Nykvist ⏐ Director: Ingmar Bergman

Flesh and Blood (1985)

DP: Jan de Bont ⏐ Director: Paul Verhoeven

The Monster Squad (1987)

DP: Bradford May ⏐ Director: Fred Dekker

Sukiyaki Western Django (2007)

DP: Toyomichi Kurita ⏐ Director: Takashi Miike

King Kong (2005)

DP: Andrew Lesnie ⏐ Director: Peter Jackson

Harold & Maude (1971)

DP: John A. Alonzo ⏐ Director: Hal Ashby 

The Zero Theorem (2013)

DP: Nicola Pecorini ⏐ Director: Terry Gilliam

 

Lawrence of Arabia (1962)

DP: Freddie Young ⏐ Director: David Lean

Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015)

DP: Dan Mindel ⏐ Director: J.J. Abrams

Spider-Man 3 (2007)

DP: Bill Pope ⏐ Director: Sam Raimi

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974)

DP: Daniel Pearl ⏐ Director: Tobe Hooper

For a Few Dollars More (1965)

DP: Massimo Dallamano ⏐ Director: Sergio Leone

Tales from Earthsea (2007)

Director: Gorō Miyazaki

Halloween III: Season of the Witch (1982)

DP: Dean Cundey ⏐ Director: Tommy Lee Wallace

The Rock (1996)

DP: John Schwartzman ⏐ Director: Michael Bay

Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989)

DP: Douglas Slocombe ⏐ Director: Steven Spielberg

The Good Dinosaur (2015)

DP: Sharon Calahan, Mahyar Abousaeedi⏐ Director: Peter Sohne

Vampires (1998)

DP: Gary B. Kibbe ⏐ Director: John Carpenter

Days of Heaven (1978)

DP: Néstor Almendros ⏐ Director: Terrence Mallick

Domino (2005)

DP: Daniel Mindel Christensen ⏐ Director: Tony Scott

 

Hercules (1997)

DP: Rasoul Azadani ⏐ Director: Ron Clements, John Musker

Tombstone (1993)

DP: William A. Fraker ⏐ Director: George P. Cosmatos

Before Midnight (2013)

DP: Christos Voudouris ⏐ Director: Richard Linklater

Hot Rod (2007)

DP: Andrew Dunn ⏐ Director: Akiva Schaffer

 

Star Wars: A New Hope (1977)

DP: Gilbert Taylor ⏐ Director: George Lucas

Jurassic Park (1993)

DP: Dean Cundey ⏐ Director: Steven Spielberg 

Easy Rider (1969)

DP: László Kovács ⏐ Director: Dennis Hopper

From Dusk Till Dawn (1996)

DP: Guillermo Navarro ⏐ Director: Robert Rodriguez

Unforgiven (1992)

DP: Jack N. Green ⏐ Director: Clint Eastwood

Sicario (2015)

DP: Roger Deakins ⏐ Director: Denis Villeneuve 

 

The Green Ray (1986)

DP: Sophie Maintigneux ⏐ Director: Eric Rohmer

Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)

DP: Douglas Slocombe ⏐ Director: Steven Spielberg

Walkabout (1971)

DP & Director: Nicolas Roeg

Titanic (1997)

DP: Russell Carpenter ⏐ Director: James Cameron

Apocalypse Now (1979)

DP: Vittorio Storaro ⏐ Director: Francis Ford Coppola 

 

The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (2007)

DP: Roger Deakins ⏐ Director: Andrew Dominik

Armageddon (1998)

DP: John Schwartzman ⏐ Director: Michael Bay

Gone with the Wind (1939)

DP: Ernest Haller ⏐ Director: Victor Fleming 

Badlands (1973)

DP: Tak Fujimoto, Brian Probyn, Stevan Larner ⏐ Director: Terrence Malick 

Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)

DP: Andrew Lesnie ⏐ Director: Peter Jackson

E.T. the Extra-terrestrial (1982)

DP: Allan Daviau ⏐ Director: Steven Spielberg

Mad Max: Fury Road (2015)

DP: John Seale ⏐ Director: George Miller

The post The 45 Most Beautiful Shots of Cinematic Sunsets appeared first on Film School Rejects.