Nothing can immerse you in a scene faster than visual effects, and nothing can ruin it more quickly. Visual effects, whether practical or CGI, are a huge part of most of our favorite films. But while some things might look great in the theater, as technology advances, they don't hold up to the test of time. Go watch Ghostbusters and tell me if the gargoyle dog is as terrifying as you remember.
But other movies age like fine wine along with their effects, and are still joys to watch even 50 or more years on. It's incredible that the Battle of Yavin and the destruction of the original Death Star looks just as good if not better than 2019's The Rise of Skywalker. And you can be sure that Jurassic Park's dinosaurs still scare just as well as they did in 1993.
Here are 20 movies with visual effects that have aged fantastically well.
3
Who framed Roger Rabbit has aged great! The animation and live action blend together so well. I rewatched it recently and I think I was more impressed watching it now than I was the first time around.
4
Davy Jones in Pirates of the Caribbean still looks fantastic.
5
The Wizard of Oz actually set standards used even today in special effects, especially doing things backwards and then rewinding the film. Car crashes and other accidents, weather events, etc. especially still use that method today and that was pioneered by the Wizard of Oz.
6
The stuff with US Presidents in Forrest Gump still looks pretty good to me.
7
The original Alien from 1979 still looks amazing.
8
Star Wars. Even non-VFX parts like the Death Star boardroom scene blow me away now with how much realer and more modern they look than tons of similar sci-fi from the time. It must've been awesome for all the actors there to see the final product and realize it looked like a stone-cold classic drama in a real starship and not a hokey B-movie.
9
2001: A Space Odyssey, still holds up. There is just something about practical effects.
10
Fifth element still looks pretty good to me. Aged like fine wine to me. A distinct visual style, especially one that is artistic instead of realistic, is always going to age better than attempts at realism.
11
The Thing still looks amazing. That scene of the body being shocked to resuscitate and just opening up to chomp down on the guys hands is still one heck of a moment.
12
Back to the Future is like the fine wine of visual effects. Those time-traveling DeLorean scenes? They're aging better than a bottle of '55 Bordeaux. Even now, Doc Brown's contraptions look so real, you half-expect Marty to pop out of your screen and ask, 'What year is it?'
13
Flight of the Navigator still holds up very well.
14
To me, LOTR is hands down the best.
15
Starship Troopers 1997 has aged incredibly well. Honestly for a mid 90s Movie the effects are absolutely incredible.
16
Puppet Yoda > CGI Yoda.
17
The Ten Commandments still looks pretty good for 1956, especially the Parting Of The Red Sea.
18
The first Matrix holds up really well for being a 25 year old action movie.
19
Citizen Kane (1942) has special effects so good that when you watch you don’t even realize it has more SFX shots than Star Wars.
20
The Polar Express. Movie creeps me out!
