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100 + Most Iconic Movie Images

100 + Most Iconic Movie Images, Moments or Scenes:

In the entire history of cinema, these are 100 of the most iconic or defining moments, scenes, or images. They are the most memorable, defining film moments and come from some of the all-time best scenes or images in motion pictures - a tribute to the stars and scenarios that have made an indelible imprint upon our memories and collective visual consciousness - and can't be forgotten. They have all become emblematic, and have taken on a life of their own, and are usually easily recognizable - from just one screenshot.

Additionally Recommended:

What Makes a Great Film Scene? (illustrated)
100 + Most Scary and Iconic Movie Images, Moments or Scenes (illustrated) plus 50 + Honorable Mentions
Memorable Moments and Scenes: Introduction
100's of Greatest Film Scenes (illustrated)
Tribute to the 100 Greatest Film Scenes (illustrated) and fully described
50 Greatest Movie Moments of All Time - TV Guide ranked (illustrated) list from 2001
100 Great Movie Moments (illustrated) - film critic Roger Ebert's selections from 1995
100 Years at the Movies - Chuck Workman's compiled list of clips from 1994
The 'Best Of...' Film Scenes
Top 100 Greatest Film Quotes (illustrated)
50 States: Most Authentic and Famous Films

100 Most Iconic Movie Images

(chronological)

The "Birth of Cinema" - in L'Arrivée D'Un Train À La Ciotat (1895, Fr.)

The Shocking, Very First Film Kiss in The Kiss (1896)

Rocket Ship Stuck in the Man in Moon's Surface in La Voyage Dans La Lune (1902, Fr.)

Bandit Shooting at Audience in The Great Train Robbery (1903)

The Birth of the Tramp - Kid Auto Races in Venice (1914)

Predatory Vampirish Count Graf Orlok in Nosferatu (1922, Germ.)

Harold Lloyd Hanging From Clock in Safety Last (1923)

Woman Shot in Eye During Odessa Steps Massacre in
Battleship Potemkin (1925, USSR)

Transformed Maria Robot Brought to Life in Metropolis (1927, Germ.)

The Trial and Execution of Jeanne D'Arc in The Passion of Joan of Arc (1928, Fr.)

House Collapse on Buster Keaton in Steamboat Bill, Jr. (1928)

The First View of the Hulking Monster in Frankenstein (1931)

King Kong Atop the Empire State Building in King Kong (1933)

Factory Worker (Charlie Chaplin) Consumed in Machine in Modern Times (1936)

The Evil Queen/Old Hag with Poison Apple in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937)

"Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn" in Gone With the Wind (1939)

Filibuster Scene in Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939)

Ruby Slippers: "There's no place like home" Magic Spell in The Wizard of Oz (1939)

Hitler Look-Alike Dancing with World Balloon in The Great Dictator (1940)

Enigmatic Last Word Uttered at Death "Rosebud" in Citizen Kane (1941)

The Self-Sacrificing, Tearful Airport Farewell Between Rick and Ilsa in Casablanca (1942)

Ending Reunion Scene in It's a Wonderful Life (1946)

"Badges? We ain't got no badges..." in The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948)

Enigmatic Doorway Appearance of Harry Lime (Orson Welles) in The Third Man (1949)

"All right, Mr. De Mille, I'm ready for my closeup" in
Sunset Boulevard (1950)

Stanley Kowalski Screaming for "Stella!" in A Streetcar Named Desire (1951)

"Singin' in the Rain" in Singin' in the Rain (1952)

The Hawaiian Ocean-Beach Embrace-Kiss in From Here to Eternity (1953)

Spying on Greenwich Village Apt. Neighbors in Rear Window (1954)

Sharing Spaghetti Strand with Unexpected Kiss in Lady and the Tramp (1955)

LOVE and HATE Tattooed on Preacher's Fingers in The Night of the Hunter (1955)

James Dean's "You're Tearing Me Apart" in Rebel Without a Cause (1955)

Marilyn Monroe's Dress Above Subway Grating in The Seven Year Itch (1955)

Ethan Edwards (John Wayne) Framed at Dark Doorway in The Searchers (1956)

Moses' Parting of the Red Sea During Exodus in The Ten Commandments (1956)

Climactic Destruction of Railroad and Bridge in The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957)

The Chess Game Between the Knight and Death in The Seventh Seal (1957, Swe.)

The Thrilling Chariot Race Between Messala and Judah Ben-Hur in Ben-Hur (1959)

The Attacking Crop-Dusting Plane Scene in North by Northwest (1959)

Concluding "Well, nobody's perfect" Scene in Some Like It Hot (1959)

Anita Ekberg in Rome's Trevi Fountain in La Dolce Vita (1960, It.)

Shower Stabbing Scene in Psycho (1960)

Window-Shopping in NYC in Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961)

Ursula Andress Emerging from Water in Dr. No (1962, UK)

Peter O'Toole as Lawrence Blowing Out Match in Lawrence of Arabia (1962)

First View of Nymphet Lolita in Lolita (1962, UK)

Major Kong Riding Descending Nuclear Bomb in Dr. Strangelove Or:... (1964)

"The Hills are Alive..." in The Sound of Music (1965)

Clint Eastwood as Blondie in spaghetti western - The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly (1966, It./Sp.)

Seduction of Benjamin Framed by Mrs. Robinson's Leg in The Graduate (1967)

The Post-Apocalyptic Ending, Discovery of Statue of Liberty in Planet of the Apes (1968)

Jump Cut from Tool to Spacecraft in 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)

Freeze Frame Ending - A Doomed Bolivian Shootout in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969)

Hippie Cross-Country Bikers on Road Trip in Easy Rider (1969)

Opening 6-minute Speech of Gen. Patton Before US Flag in Patton (1970)

"There was me, that is Alex, and my three droogs..." in A Clockwork Orange (1971, UK)

Clint Eastwood's Vigilante SF cop and .45 Magnum, "Do you feel lucky, punk?" in Dirty Harry (1971)

Racehorse's Bloody Head in a Silk-Sheeted Bed in The Godfather (1972)

Devil-possessed Head-Spinning Regan in The Exorcist (1973)

Dr. Frankenstein: "Give my creation...Life!" in Young Frankenstein (1974)

First Full View of Great White Shark: "You're gonna need a bigger boat" in Jaws (1975)

"I'm as mad as hell..." newscaster Howard Beale in Network (1976)

Rocky's Training Montage Ending Atop Steps in Rocky (1976)

Travis Bickle's "You're talkin' to me?..." delivered to Mirror in Taxi Driver (1976)

Barry Opening Door to Glowing Alien Encounter in
Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977)

Russian Roulette Prisoner Torture During Vietnam War in The Deer Hunter (1978)

Chest-Bursting Birth of Baby Alien in Alien (1979)

Emergence of Willard from Jungle Water in Apocalypse Now (1979)

The Opening Credits Sequence to George Gershwin's Music in
Manhattan (1979)

Bo Derek's Slo-Motion Beach Jog in 10 (1979)

"Heeeeeeeere's Johnny!" Through Splintered Door in
The Shining (1980)

Darth Vader's confession to Luke: "I am your father" in Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back (1980)

Slo-mo Olympic Runners in Credits Sequence in
Chariots of Fire (1981, UK)

Indy in Booby-Trapped Cave in Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)

Replicant Roy's Soliloquy ("Time to die...") in Blade Runner (1982)

ET and Elliott's Bicycle Moon Silhouette in E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial (1982)

Fantasy Scene - Phoebe Cates Opens Red Bikini Top Poolside in Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982)

The Sacrificial Death Scene of Vulcan Captain Spock in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982)

Underwear Lip-Synching to "Old Time Rock n Roll" in Risky Business (1983)

Taunting Challenge: "Say hello to my leetle friend" in Scarface (1983)

The Time-Traveling DeLorean in Back to the Future (1985)

The Death of Sgt. Elias in a Crucifixion Pose in Platoon (1986)

Final Dance Lift ("(I've Had) The Time of My Life") in Dirty Dancing (1987)

Life-Sized Piano Keyboard in F.A.O. Schwartz Toystore in Big (1988)

Boom Box Serenade (Peter Gabriel's "In Your Eyes") in Say Anything... (1989)

Sally's Simulated Orgasm in a NYC Deli in When Harry Met Sally... (1989)

Kevin's Scream After Applying After-Shave in Home Alone (1990)

Dr. Hannibal Lecter's Muzzled Restraint in The Silence of the Lambs (1991)

Suicidal Leap in Ford T-Bird Convertible into Grand Canyon in Thelma & Louise (1991)

Uncrossing Legs Crotch-Flash in Basic Instinct (1992)

The T-Rex in Jurassic Park (1993)

Girl in Drab Red Coat Amidst B/W Holocaust in Schindler's List (1993)

Andy Liberated From Prison in the Cleansing Rain in The Shawshank Redemption (1994)

Alien Destruction of the White House in Independence Day (1996)

Lovers Jack and Rose at Bow of Doomed Ocean Liner in Titanic (1997)

Mary's Hair Gel Coxcomb in There's Something About Mary (1998)

Fantasy Bed of Red Rose Petals in American Beauty (1999)

Close-Up of Heather's Teary Confessional in The Blair Witch Project (1999)

Dodging Bullets in Bullet-Time in The Matrix (1999)

Decomposed Samara Crawling Out of TV in The Ring (2002)

Fifty + Honorable Mentions

Civil War Battle Scene in The Birth of a Nation (1915)

Babylonian Temple Scene in Intolerance (1916)

Lucy's Forced Smile in Broken Blossoms (1919)

Somnambulist Cesare's Eyes Opening in The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1920, Ger.)

Charlie Chaplin Rescuing and Hugging The Kid in The Kid (1921)

Shadow of Count Graf Orlok Ascending Stairs in
Nosferatu (1922, Germ.)

Runaway Baby Carriage During Massacre Montage in Battleship Potemkin (1925, USSR)

Collapse of Train on Rock River Bridge in The General (1927)

Slicing of Human Eyeball With Razor in Un Chien Andalou (1929, Fr.)

Hand Reaching Out for Butterfly in All Quiet on the Western Front (1930)

Silhouetted Murder (Marked by X) in Scarface (1932)

Hitchhiking Competition in It Happened One Night (1934)

The Entrance of the "Bride" in The Bride of Frankenstein (1935)

Sir Guy vs. Robin Swordfight in The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938)

The Yellow Brick Road and Emerald City in The Wizard of Oz (1939)

Kane (Orson Welles) Campaigning in Citizen Kane (1941)

Jane Russell's Bountiful Assets in The Outlaw (1943)

"Anybody Got a Match?" in To Have and Have Not (1944)

Machine-Gun Murder of Pina (Anna Magnani) in Rome, Open City (1945, It.)

Young Son Bruno Clasping Hands with Father in The Bicycle Thief (1948, It.)

Concluding "Shane. Shane! Come back!" Goodbye Scene in Shane (1953)

The Final "Danse Macabre" in The Seventh Seal (1957, Swe.)

The Transformation Scene in Vertigo (1958)

The Ending: Kiss in the Rain in Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961)

Floating Away But Tethered in Mid-Air in 8 1/2 (1963, It.)

Gold-Painted Bond Girl Jill Masterson (Shirley Eaton) in Goldfinger (1964)

Wedding Day Bus Ride in The Graduate (1967)

Lobotomizing HAL-9000 in 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)

Don Vito Corleone Presiding in The Godfather (1972)

Arrival of Father Merrin in The Exorcist (1973)

"Forget it, Jake, it's Chinatown" in Chinatown (1974)

The Flight of Superman in Superman: The Movie (1978)

Light-Saber Duel in Star Wars - Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back (1980)

Freddy Krueger's Bathtub Scare in A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)

Triumphant Fist-Pump in The Breakfast Club (1985)

John McClane's "Yippee-Ki-Yay M-F" in Die Hard (1988)

Color-Nicknamed Criminals' Introductory Walk in Reservoir Dogs (1992)

William Wallace's Rallying Battle Cry: "They'll Never Take Our Freedom!" in Braveheart (1995)

Ethan's Descent into the CIA Vault in Mission: Impossible (1996)

Watching "Project Mayhem" in Fight Club (1999)

Maximus' Visions in the Afterlife in Gladiator (2000)

The Elusive Ring in The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)

The Entrance of Captain Jack Sparrow in Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003)

Joel and Clementine Preserving Memories in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004)

Ennis' and Jack's Bromance in Brokeback Mountain (2005)

The Battle of Thermopylae in 300 (2006)

Jake's Love Affair in Pandora with Na'vi Neytiri in Avatar (2009)

The Zero-Gravity Hotel Corridor Sequence in Inception (2010)

Kowalski Disconnecting Himself in Space in Gravity (2013)

Daydreaming and Growing Up in Boyhood (2014)

Imperator Furiosa's Primal Scream in Mad Max: Fury Road (2015)

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