Posted by Martin:
I have been thinking about this post by Popular Mechanics since it came out a month ago. Because according to them special effects began with Star Wars and ended with CGI.
In this article the movies included are not necessarily movies with watershed technical achievements, such as the advent of sound with The Jazz Singer, or the use of deep focus photography in Citizen Kane, although both could be considered 'special' effects.
For this article will focus on movies that contained "special effects" that were followed and expounded upon by later films. These may not be the first films to contain certain special effects but they are definitely the ones that everyone else followed.
I list these not in order of importance but in chronological order.
1. A trip to the Moon (1902)
Heck, even before the advent of sound, we were putting people on the moon. This gives one of the great iconic images in film history.
2. King Kong (1933) 
King Kong brought fantastic monsters to life. This was the movie that proved it was possible to put literally larger than life characters on the screen and have it work. The movie also set in the motion the art of stop-motion photography. I ask, would we have had Harry Haussen without this movie?
3. The Wizard of Oz (1939)
I guess you could say this was the Star Wars of its time. The shot of Dorothy moving from the inside of the house to the Technicolor splendor was a huge effect in itself.
4. Citizen Kane (1941) 
Citizen Kane is famous and important for so many reasons. But because Orsen Wells was a radioman, Citizen Kane used sound design better than anyone before, communicating a large empty mansion, a bad singer, and of course a last dying breath of an old man.
5. Jason and the Argonauts (1963)
This isn't Ray Harryhausen's first work, but it is probably his one his most famous and most referenced.
6. Mary Poppins (1964)
This may sound like a strange entry. The combination of live actors and cartoons had been done before, such Fantasia, but none to this extent.
7. 2001 (1968)
This movie is important for the ending scene of Dave going through the monolith and seeing the lightshow inside. Even today the spaceship models still look very good today.
8. Star Wars (1977)
Yes, let's face facts, Star Wars is probably THE movie when we think of special effects. Think what you will of Lucas and his directing abilities, the man knew and still knows how to make the unbelievable seem to be reality. The much aligned Special Edition of this movie simply proves just how much he got it right the first time.
9. Tron (1982)
Long before the Matix, there was Tron. A movie made mostly in the computer, and remember this is 1982 folks.
10. Jurassic Park (1993)
I dare you to tell the difference between the CGI dinosaurs and the anamatronic ones. I rank this one up there with Star Wars in terms of importance. Everything we've since 1993 is based on the technology used in this movie.
These are what I consider to be the important special effect movies in history. Special effects did not begin with Star Wars and they don't end with CGI. Leave a comment and tell me what you think.
[Update Click here for a new Top Ten]
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