What Is The Best B&W Movie Of The Last 25 Years?

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Another question: Do you think B&W movies will slowly make a comeback?

B &W definitely has a place especially in movies which are very introspective and in which color would be a distraction. The noire films are well named they are best done in B & W

ruveyn

I can't see them making a comeback, so many moviegoers are brainwashed to believe that it has to be in color or it's too "old fashioned" to be any good. That's what my daughter thought until I made her watch 'It's a Wonderful Life' and 'Paper Moon' with me and she enjoyed them both. I can't remember if she's seen 'Young Frankenstein' yet.

Of the ones I've seen in recent years, I really liked 'Sin City' and Frank Darabont's 'The Mist.' Of course, The Mist was originally shot in color, the BW version was only released as a bonus when it went to home video, but I think the movie works better as a BW film than it did in full color. I haven't seen 'The Artist' yet.

Best = Forbidden Planet.

There are many great inspirational movies created in B&W.
There will always be a subculture who enjoy the uniquness of ideas in the old B&W movies.

Metropolise is B&W without sound, yet is still a great movie to watch.
Any of the charly chapman movies are fun to watch.
There were many epic movies similar to The Ten Commandments, that are awe inspiring movies.
And many sci-fi like Forbidden Planet, The Day The Earth Stood Still. Day of the Triffids. Birds. Wat of the Worlds.

IMO, at some point in the future, Hollywood may realize that moviegoers will become
tired of 3D movies and bring back B&W movies, though it would be interesting to see an action movie or a sci-fi movie that is both in B&W and 3D.

Of the ones I've seen, most were released between the early 1990s and early 2010s.

The Artist

Sin City

Schindler's List

Following

Good Night & Good Luck

Coffee & Cigarettes

The White Ribbon

Unfortunately, the only 'black and white' film that I have seen from the past 25 years is Sin City. It's striking and perversely enjoyable, but I wouldn't call it the best black and white film of the past 25 years simply because I have watched no other.

I'm trying to think of other B&W movies that have come out lately but if any of them are better than Schindler's List, I'd be fairly surprised.

I think for best cinematography I would have to pick "The American Astronaut" I love the film's quirky sense of humor but what is particularly interesting is the extremely careful and intelligent use of lighting and contrast in the images.

While not as beautifully shot, "Brand Upon The Brain" has some of the most creative black and white cinematography (it has a few shots in color so maybe you would argue the point) Anyway, it is shot in super-8 on stylized sets with over the top acting. "The Saddest Music in the World" (also by Guy Maddin) is similarly shot.

It's more than 25 years old so I guess it doesn't count, but some of the black and white in "Wings of Desire" would get my vote.

I think what black and white does is it reduces the visual complexity of an image, allowing the director to focus attention more carefully. It allows the storytelling to be a bit more artificial and abstract rather than being a color for color direct representation of the original scene. I personally prefer black and white over color, maybe because it is less stuff screaming for my attention.

My avatar is a self portrait that I shot with a digital camera. The original is in color but is a far weaker, less striking image. By reducing the image to black and white as well as increasing the contrast, I eliminated any extraneous details and focused all the attention to the single lit eye.

I think black and white will come and go with various fashions but I don't think it will ever disappear entirely since it is such an effective way of creating an image.

Ed Wood.