Tuesday, July 23, 2019

Top 10 Darius Khondji Films

Looking at cinematographer Darius Khondji’s entire career, it’s interesting how he’s been able to balance classic with experimental, muted with neon. He can shoot one of the most visually dark crime thrillers ever made one year, then turn around and land an Oscar nomination for shooting a traditional biopic the next year. As we wait to see what visual wonder he brings to the Safdie Brothers’ Uncut Gems later this year, here’s a look at some of Khondji’s finest work to date.

10. Evita (1996)
Khondji’s only Oscar nomination (so far) came for his period-appropriate photography for Evita. Through a sepia-infused lens, Khondji captures a 1940s Argentina beautifully, and makes the film’s many musical numbers soar with nostalgia. It’s a shame Khondji has only been nominated once before, but I can’t say I’m surprised it was for an Academy-friendly film like Evita.

9. Midnight in Paris (2011)
Khondji has collaborated with Woody Allen on some of the director’s more inferior recent works (Anything Else, To Rome with Live, Magic in the Moonlight, and Irrational Man), but together, they achieved a wonderful color balance to Midnight in Paris. Whether we’re in the 2010s, 1920s, or 1890s, the camera in Midnight in Paris does a great job selling the setting.

8. Anima (2019)
Paul Thomas Anderson and Thom Yorke, as shot by Darius Khondji. What’s not to love? Anima is a 15-minute short film scored to three songs from Yorke’s new album, “Anima.” The short is as effective as you want it to be, and the film’s final set piece, scored perfectly to Yorke’s “Dawn Chorus,” is brought to vivid life by Khondji. The colors, the mood, the vibe. Anima is currently available on Netflix and begs to be seen.

7. Amour (2012)
Khondji has shot two films for Michael Haneke, the director’s American remake of his own film, Funny Games, and the Oscar-winning Amour. Both films feature a cold and detached lens that is fitting for Haneke’s vision, but, thanks to Khondji, Amour could very well be the most photographically cold film of Haneke’s career.

6. Delicatessen (1991)
Khondji has collaborated with Jean-Pierre Jeunet three times, beginning with their visually absurd work in Delicatessen, amplifying that same style for The City of Lost Children, and attempting to carry that style over into Hollywood for Alien: Resurrection. Delicatessen remains their highlight; a film so confident in its surreal vision that I can’t help but appreciate it.

5. My Blueberry Nights (2007)
Wong Kar-wai and Christopher Doyle’s decades-long collaboration is one of the best director/cinematographer pairings in modern film. Needless to say, Khondji had massive shoes to fill when he stepped in for Doyle to shoot My Blueberry Nights. But the fact that the best thing about My Blueberry Nights is its dreamy, neon-soaked photography, I’d say Khondji stepped in just fine.

4. Se7en (1995)
The look of David Fincher’s Se7en has helped make the film so iconic. This movie feels dirty, cold, and raw; it balances a hyper-awareness and a visual surrealism in such a singular way. The movie is so smart about keeping its location grimly anonymous, resulting in a rain-soaked nightmare of immense visual power. After this great collaboration, Fincher and Khondji tried to work together on Panic Room, but Khondji was let go shortly after filming began. That’s a shame. I’ve often wondered what these two could capture together again.

3. The Lost City of Z (2016)
& 2. The Immigrant (2013)
I’d argue that the look of these two James Gray films is as important as any other aspect of their respective productions. It’s impossible to imagine both films without Khondji’s hazy, muted, gorgeous visual landscapes. Both movies even end with shots that not only look stunning but conclude the narrative appropriately. It’s hard to pick a favorite between the two, but I’m so drawn to the muted greys, purples, and browns of The Immigrant. That final shot is truly breathtaking.

1. Too Old to Die Young (2019)
Nicolas Winding Refn’s new show, Too Old to Die Young, is the best-looking television show I have ever seen. And frankly, it isn’t even close. Sure, Refn says the “show” isn’t a show at all, but rather a 13-hour piece of cinema that you consume at home. Whatever we’re calling it, Too Old to Die Young is a visual game changer. Take, for instance, an extended sequence from Episode 3 in which an underage girl (Nell Tiger Free) keeps ordering drinks at an empty bar. On the surface, this scene is nothing more than two people talking. To enhance the scene, Refn and Khondji shoot Free in mostly-obscure angles then slowly cross fade to unfocused shots of the bartender. It’s a truly unique way to capture a scene, and something I have never seen done before.

As a whole, this show is not for everyone. Hell, it isn’t even for most people. But no matter your tolerance for Refn’s pacing, it is very difficult to imagine someone watching this show and not being impressed by how it looks. It took me nearly a month to get through all of Too Old to Die Young, but Khondji’s compositions have been imprinted in my mind, and because of this, I feel compelled to watch the show again immediately. That’s the power of the visual form.

You May Also Like

14 comments:

  1. I have yet to see Too Old to Die Young (which I'll likely watch later in the year) while Anima is something I might actually watch immediately as me and mother just got Netflix, Hulu, and other streaming services thanks to my sister.

    Everything else you mentioned I have seen as Khondji is underrated as it's a shame that he's only nominated for Evita which is an alright film.

    There's other films that he shot that I want to mention such as Stealing Beauty which I think is one of Bernardo Bertolucci's underrated films as my parents liked it because of its setting.

    I think he did an excellent job in My Blueberry Nights which is still my least favorite WKW film as I just felt it was so derivative of his entire body of work as I don't think it stands out very much.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Stealing Beauty was really close to making the cut here. I love the work Khondji and Bertolucci did together. And I completely agree about your thoughts on My Blueberry Nights. Interesting experiment that he did a film in English, but it's far from his best work.

      Delete
  2. A shame about Panic Room. That movie has such a distracting, gimmicky cinematography which completely takes me out of the movie every time I watch it. In Se7en cinematography adds so much to the film, complimenting it in a great way, especially the way John Doe is hidden for big part of the movie - in shadows on the stairs and in that reflection in the puddle, it's just so well done.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I have to assume that Khondji rejected the heavy CG type of cinematography Fincher wanted to do in Panic Room, so Fincher ultimately replaced him. I agree, the look of Panic Room is a bit much, but I can see how it influenced his films down the line, which I dig.

      Delete
  3. I didn't recognize his name right away, but I have seen some of his work. Se7en is my favorite here, the cinematography in that was perfect for the tone. Midnight in Paris is the only Woody Allen film I've ever liked, he probably breathed some life into that for me.

    I've always meant to see My Blueberry Nights and never got around to it. I need to re-add that to my list.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Seriously, how good does Se7en look? The cinematography really is perfect in helping to sell the tone of that movie. And I'd be interested to hear your thoughts on My Blueberry Nights.

      Delete
  4. I've seen 4 of the 10 - Midnight in Paris, Amour, Se7en, and The Immigrant. I might have to revisit Amour, though not sure I want to put myself through that again. It's an excellent movie, but I don't remember much about its look. The other 3 are definitely spectacular looking, especially Se7en. The camera helps build an oppressive atmosphere much to the film's benefit.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I hear you on Amour. Whew, that's a tough one to make it through. That movie just looks and feels so unbearably cold to me. There's a detachment to it that I really appreciate.

      Delete
  5. I just watched Delicatessen for the first time. I love how he managed to make the film look dreadful and charming at the same time.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Completely agree! That is one damn unique looking movie.

      Delete
  6. I really dig Khondji's work. He's had a fairly varied career but he brings a Rembrandt-like command of light that puts him in the same league as Chivo and Deakins. Unfortunately, few of his films have been commercially successful or slam-dunk critical hits. If there's any justice, The Immigrant will only grow in notoriety with time. Ditto My Blueberry Nights, which I sense I hold in higher esteem than you. The story is daft but, viewed as a WKW's paean to a bygone America that only really ever existed in pop culture, it's kinda breathtaking and even poignant. I'd also make a case for the more "commercial" entries in Khondji's filmography (few of which were actually hits): In Dreams, The Beach, Panic Room and The Interpreter.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I actually like My Blueberry Nights a bit more than my comment suggested. I do think the cinematography is the best part about the film, but I loved seeing WKW's interpretation of a very specific America. Love the David Strathairn/Rachel Weisz relationship in that.

      Delete
  7. Oh, and I glossed over the fact that Khondji was fired off of Panic Room. He was the credited cinematographer alongside Conrad Hall and I never bothered to interrogate the reasons why there were two of them. I assume he had a heavy influence on the look of the film in pre-production and it LOOKS like a Khondji film.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I always assumed that as well. Maybe I heard Fincher elaborate more about this in the commentary for that movie, but Fincher definitely takes the blame for Khondji's departure. It probably didn't help that the movie had a false start before finally beginning production.

      Delete