From the moment Georges Méliès wowed audiences with a rocket crashing into the moon's face in A Trip to the Moon over 120 years ago, amazing special effects have been one of the best parts of going to the movies.
From the wildly ingenious special effects of classic movies through to the visual effects trickery of today's computer-enhanced blockbusters, it's always fun to watch these eye-popping illusions and wonder how they did it.
Here, we'll look at a few of the pioneering films from different eras that used pioneering special and visual effects – whatever the technology behind them, these flicks used genius filmmaking techniques to bring the impossible to our screens.
Technically, we should draw a distinction between special effects and visual effects. Special effects are often 'practical', which means they're created for real on the set – a real explosion, for example, or wind machines and wire harnesses to make someone appear to fly. Visual effects, meanwhile, are added in post-production.
In the old days, that would mean things like painting on the frames of the actual film strip. Today, though, we are more likely to see computer-generated imagery (CGI) conjuring photorealistic, digitally-animated characters and backdrops.
However these innovative effects were achieved, these films are worth a watch to see if you can work out how it was done, or just relax and enjoy some classic movie magic.
Metropolis (1927)
Fritz Lang's 1927 silent epic made groundbreaking use of models and miniatures, combined with real actors and armies of extras through clever optical illusions.
Today, computer software is the main tool for combining different effects into one shot – a process called compositing – but for Metropolis it is all done in-camera.
Just one of the clever techniques used in Metropolis is the Schüfftan process, named for the film's cinematographer, which uses mirrors in front of the camera to create the illusion that actors are walking on miniature sets.
This intricate craftsmanship serves a dystopian vision that remains powerful today.
Jason and the Argonauts (1963)
![Jason and the Argonauts (1963) ORIGINAL TRAILER [HD 1080p] - YouTube](https://img.youtube.com/vi/WbWmMsyqf6k/maxresdefault.jpg)
Ray Harryhausen is one of the key names in special effects history. Inspired by the creature effects of the original King Kong, Harryhausen developed a process for inserting stop-motion animated characters into real footage for films like The 7th Voyage of Sinbad and One Million Years B.C.
One of his most fun achievements is the 1963 sword'n'sandal romp Jason and the Argonauts, in which Harryhausen created a jaw-dropping battle in which real actors fight seven sword-swinging stop-motion skeletons.
Rent Jason and the Argonauts on Apple TV and Amazon Video
Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988)
Not only is it fun for all the family, but this 1988 adventure was also a groundbreaking combination of real filming and animated effects.
Notice how the cartoon character Baby Herman holds a real cigar, and the animated Roger Rabbit breaks real plates over his head; to achieve those hilarious moments, the effects team built cigar-waving and plate-smashing robots that performed the actions on set in front of Bob Hoskins and the other actors, which the animators then covered over with hand-drawn animation.
CGI was still in its infancy at this point. Crucially, the complex visual tricks were used with imagination and attention to detail that "sell" the illusion: look out for the scene where Hoskins bumps his head on a lamp and sets it swinging, casting moving shadows across the entire scene.
In each frame, the animators painstakingly matched the shadows on the cartoon characters to the light in the actual set.
Watch Who Framed Roger Rabbit on Disney+
Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow (2004)
A running theme in the history of visual effects is the combination of real actors with optical illusions. Today, we're used to seeing life-like animals, aliens and superheroes digitally created and seamlessly placed next to (or over the faces of) our favourite actors.
Don't think for a second it's easy, of course – even with the help of modern computer software, today's VFX artists have to be every bit as ingenious, imaginative and painstaking as their forebears.
The computer-generated age began in the 90s with beloved blockbusters like Terminator 2, Toy Story and Jurassic Park. But one of the most ambitious CG pioneers was a huge flop even as it showed what was possible.
Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow saw Gwyneth Paltrow, Jude Law and Angelina Jolie acting entirely in front of a bluescreen backdrop, with almost the entire film's sets and effects added digitally.
It was a huge proof-of-concept by unknown director Kerry Scott Conran, paving the way for today's bluescreen blockbusters and Marvel movies – and perhaps most importantly, it's still loads of fun.
Buy Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow on Apple TV+
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