American Cinematographer picks 50 best-shot films of the decade

American Cinematographer has conducted a poll asking participants to choose the 50 best photographed films of the decade (defined from 1998-2008). Craig Kennedy at Living in Cinema posts results via Movieline where the survey procedure is outlined:

‚ÄúAC asked its international audience of subscribers to nominate 10 films released between 1998 and 2008 that they believed had the best cinematography,‚Äù the release notes. ‚ÄúA final ballot listing the 50 most popular nominees was then posted on the ASC website, and the final vote was open to the public. More than 17,000 people around the world participated.‚Äù

(Movieline says this “methodology is a little‚Ä¶ hinky.” Nominees selected by specialists in each category; winners chosen by the membership at large. Is Movieline suggesting the Academy’s system is “hinky” too?)

Lists like these are always arbitrary, and serve more as a springboard for protest than any sort of definitive pantheon. With dozens of ways to dissect the results, here’s an Oscar slant. No surprise that the cinematographers named in the top 10 are in demand for prestige projects. Most of them have movies scheduled for release this year, and they’re all likely contenders.

Emmanuel Lubezki (4 Oscar nominations) — The Tree of Life
Jeff Cronenweth (zero Oscar noms) — The Social Network
Janusz Kaminski (4 Oscar noms) — Everything You’ve Got (for James L. Brooks)
Robert Elswit (2 Oscar noms) — Salt, & The Town
Roger Deakins (8 Oscar noms) — True Grit, & The Company Men
Wally Pfister (3 Oscar noms) — Inception
C√©sar Charlone (1 Oscar nom) — no known upcoming projects

Topping the AC poll, 3-time Oscar nominee Bruno Delbonnel shot Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince last year.¬† Conrad Hall, who has two films in the top 10 and won Oscars for both (American Beauty & Road to Perdition), sadly passed away in 2003. Sorry to see there appears to be only one female cinematographer whose work is recognized on this list. Ellen for Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.

Children of Men: Emmanuel Lubezki, ASC, AMC (2006)
Saving Private Ryan: Janusz Kaminski (1998)
There Will Be Blood: Robert Elswit, ASC (2007)
No Country for Old Men: Roger Deakins, ASC, BSC (2007)
Fight Club: Jeff Cronenweth, ASC (1999)
Dark Knight: Wally Pfister, ASC (2008)
Road to Perdition: Conrad L. Hall, ASC (2002)
American Beauty: Conrad L. Hall, ASC (1999)
The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (Deakins)
Tie: In the Mood for Love (Christopher Doyle, HKSC, and Mark Li Ping-bin) and Pan‚Äôs Labyrinth (Guillermo Navarro, ASC)
The Lord of the Rings trilogy (Andrew Lesnie, ASC, ACS)
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (Ellen Kuras, ASC)
Gladiator (John Mathieson, BSC)
The Matrix (Bill Pope, ASC)
The Thin Red Line (John Toll, ASC)
The Diving Bell and The Butterfly (Kaminski)
Slumdog Millionaire (Anthony Dod Mantle, BSC, DFF)
Tie: Eyes Wide Shut (Larry Smith, BSC) and Requiem for a Dream (Matthew Libatique, ASC)
Kill Bill (Robert Richardson, ASC)
Moulin Rouge (Donald M. McAlpine, ASC, ACS)
The Pianist (Pawel Edelman, PSC)
Hero (Doyle)
Black Hawk Down (Slawomir Idziak, PSC)
O Brother, Where Art Thou? (Deakins)
Babel (Rodrigo Prieto, ASC, AMC)
Lost In Translation (Lance Acord, ASC)
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (Peter Pau, HKSC)
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (Claudio Miranda, ASC)
The Man Who Wasn‚Äôt There (Deakins)
The New World (Lubezki)
Sin City (Robert Rodriguez)
Atonement (Seamus McGarvey, ASC, BSC)
Munich (Kaminski)
The Prestige (Pfister)
Memoirs of a Geisha (Dion Beebe, ASC, ACS)
The Aviator (Richardson)
Zodiac (Harris Savides, ASC)
The Insider (Dante Spinotti, ASC, AIC)
Gangs of New York (Michael Ballhaus, ASC)
Tie: Brokeback Mountain (Prieto) and The Fountain (Libatique)
The Fall (Colin Watkinson)
The Passion of the Christ (Caleb Deschanel, ASC)
Snow Falling on Cedars (Richardson)
House of Flying Daggers (Xiaoding Zhao)
Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow (Eric Adkins)