These 25 movie scenes would look totally different without their special effects. Movies have been using CGI for decades to bring otherwise impossible landscapes, characters, and more to life. While some of these visual effects can look quite dated now, there are still movies like Jurassic Park that hold up incredibly well.
However, the use of visual effects has only become more prominent as the years have gone, and some have mastered the ability to blend in what is practical with what is not really there. This can often be seen with the Best Visual Effects awards at the Oscars, which this year saw First Man's subtle but perfect use of CGI defeat Avengers: Infinity War's thousands of VFX shots, including many of the main characters - such as Thanos. As great as these movies are to look at when they are finished, they are far less impressive without the special effects.
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In the latest Screen Rant video (featured at the top of this post), we take a look at 25 movie scenes that are completely different without CGI. While many of these scenes are clearly using VFX to bring them to life, the behind-the-scenes look at what it took to film a portion of them is great insight for fans looking to get a peek at the movie making process.
There's plenty of revolutionary films in the CGI landscape that made this list. The Wachowskis pushed the limits of visual effects 20 years ago with The Matrix, and their use of bullet time has attempted to be replicated many times since. While they helped show how special effects can evolve action, it has been Andy Serkis who has attempted to perfect the art of motion and performance capture. Through his work on Lord of the Rings and the recent Planet of the Apes trilogy, he has delivered some of the best digital performances the world has ever seen.
As technology continues to advance, the limitations of CGI become smaller and smaller. One of the practices that is gaining momentum is digitally deaging actors. Captain Marvel just recently showed how seamless this process has become after making Samuel L. Jackson look 30 years younger to play a young Nick Fury. Another big test for this technology will come later this year with Martin Scorsese's The Irishman, which will feature Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, and Joe Pesci deaged for roughly half of the film. Furthermore, there's impressive technical achievements coming all the time with Alita: Battle Angel or what Jon Favreau is looking to accomplish on The Lion King and James Cameron on Avatar 2.