Look Backs: Scenes that stay with you

As I write, over 600 readers have commented on the website version of an Observer article by Philip French from last Sunday entitled 'The greatest film scenes ever shot'. The topic has been inspired by the 50th anniversary this year of the release of Alfred Hitchcock's masterpiece Psycho, whose 'murder in the shower' scene is the most memorable from the whole picture, and must be considered one of cinema's greatest.



Another memorable moment mentioned by French and one of my personal favourites is the reveal of Harry Lime (Orson Welles) by light from a window, illuminating him in a Vienna doorway in The Third Man...



The user comments are well worth reading. Some of the scenes selected by readers that also resonated with me included: the bravura tracking shot through the restaurant kitchens in Goodfellas; the car chase through the hilly streets of San Francisco in Bullitt; various Tarantino scenes (too many to list here); the unusual rainfall in Magnolia; the Russian roulette scene in The Deer Hunter... I could go on. In truth, every film I love, most I like and many I don't care for that much have a stand-out scene that is worth watching again and again.

In conclusion, I'll post one of my favourites that wasn't mentioned in the comments on the Observer article. It's weird and wonderful and I believe features one of the most unusual creatures ever seen on screen. There's a strange beauty to it that still haunts me, and it's undeniably scary but also enchanting. Hope you agree. What's your favourite scene? Please let me know below.