Confession Time: There are some movies that I am attracted to and utterly in love with simply for their looks. Their art design. Their sets. Their costumes. Their makeup.
Some films serve as aesthetic eye candy and I love them for it.
And, given my historical preferences towards clothes, architecture, and grandiose color schemes, my favorite films are often period films. And honestly, because some films are so beautiful, I require multiple viewings to actually pay attention to the story, since my mind cannot let go of the beautiful images that waltz their way into my life and weave through my consciousness.
Some films on my list below have little to no character development or story, like Sophia Coppola’s Marie Antoinette where the titular character tries on clothes, parties with her friends, and eats trays and trays of delicious food that looks so opulent and so colorful, it looks as done up and fake as the Queen’s set of friends.
Other films on the list are loaded with story (see: The Importance of Being Earnest). The characters’ emotions are so effusive and weighted that they literally bleed into the character’s surroundings (e.g. in another one of my favorites, Tarsem Singh’s The Fall). However, regardless of their plot lines, the movies that comprise this list are perfect if you are ever in the mood to disengage your mental faculties and fully engage your scrumptious senses.
And honestly, when you have sets and costumes as luscious as these, who needs a story?
WARNING: Some of these films look good enough to eat (case in point: Marie Antoinette).
I often make fun of my action-packed, adrenaline-junkie dad, whose taste in film begins and ends with action movies that have no character development, but lots of pyrotechnic development (and destruction). However, upon further reflection, I realized that I have the exact same feelings towards beautiful films.
Top Five Beautiful Films to Satiate Your Visual Senses
- Life is Beautiful
The title makes the beauty of this film pretty self-explanatory. I love the set design of this film because it reminds me of a cobble-stoned Italian city street or a pink and green speckled flower stand that is brimming over with life. Although the end is not the happiest, the characters are fully realized thanks to excellent art design that reverberates the story’s highs and lows through color. - The Importance of Being Earnest
In the true spirit of its creator, Oscar Wilde (one of my greatest aesthetic inspirations) the art design of this film is like a decadent raspberry cheesecake. Washed in tones of orange, red, and pink, this film captures the trivial, yet beautiful pursuits of the Victorian aesthete. Including lavender dresses with hydrangea hats, and delicious chocolate colored velvet jackets and - Marie Antoinette
The shoes. The hair. The cupcakes. While there is little to no dialogue throughout the film, there is plenty to gaze and wonder at what a life would be like with no darkness, gravity, or contemplation. The film thrives on light, fluffy pastels that adorn everything from the gleaming wooden floors to the gold-inlaid ceiling. - Memoirs of a Geisha
Based on the novel by Arthur Golden, this film oscillates between heavenly white tones, black swirling night scenes, and blood red romance and vengeance scenes that will sweep you away to the Japanese world of the geisha. Brief flickers of soft candle light also add to the film’s mystique and intriguing visuals. - The Duchess
Granted, any film that has Keira Knightley in it is going to be beautiful, but this film is so breathtaking, you will find yourself reaching for the golden chandeliers and decadent English boxwoods that beckon you from the big screen. Knightley’s wigs alone, adorned with feathers, glitter, and cascading ribbons will almost make you topple over in eye-candy ecstasy.
So there you have it! If you’re craving some cinematic eye candy, look no further! Although do keep your eyes peeled for an ‘Eye Candy Film List: Part 2’.
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