The batwing in "Batman" breaking through the clouds and coming to a halt, for just a moment, in front of the moon.
shareIt's more than one shot, but it does feel huge...
The opening shot of Fury, with the German soldier riding into view through the fog of war from the horizon, through the wreckage of WWII tanks and then [spoiler]gets pounced on and brutally killed by knife[/spoiler] the horse is let go, as the allied soldier climbs up on his tank and is silhouette by the faded light... he lowers his gaze... in contemplation, sorrow or just to catch his breathe? ... we don't know...
In terms of single shots, watch any Michael Bay movie, for all of the criticisms he gets people do not recognise that he can make a single frame and shot look huge... His problem is when the whole movie is full of epic shots, nothing feels epic...
One from an underrated movie: The opening shots of the favelas in Brazil, in The Incredible Hulk (the Ed Norton one).
The long, long shot going up this huge hill, with just endless tiny houses stacked together. It's something else.
Obviously I like the train scene in Spiderman 2, but I'm also a huge fan of the ending of The People Under the Stairs. I won't detail either - just check them out if you haven't and you'll see what I mean.
shareDoc Brown looking amazed as the time machine disappears leaving the two tracks of fire behind it
shareLuke Skywalker, binary sunset, A New Hope
shareof course all the responses are 70's and 80's films with macho leads as if film began then. Well, to me one of the most epic shots ever is Gloria Swanson fading into the camera in the end of Sunset Boulevard.
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