In interviews with filmmakers, there’s a pretty common question that is lobbed at some of the more accomplished artists—what is your best film that no one saw? Obviously, every filmmaker (outside of a few rare examples like Quentin Tarantino) has a film or two that they take huge amounts of pride in but, for whatever reason, largely went unseen by the moviegoing public. And when you’re one of the best, most prolific cinematographers working today, such as Roger Deakins, you can imagine there is at least one film that fits that category.
Deakins is an Oscar-winning cinematographer that has worked with just about every great director of the modern era. He’s also a podcast host. And on a recent episode of Team Deakins (via IndieWire), the DP spoke with fellow cinematographer Greig Fraser about the films that they’ve worked on that have sadly fallen under the radar.
For Fraser, the film that he is most proud of that never got the attention of film fans is the recent release, “Mary Magdalene,” which stars Joaquin Phoenix and Rooney Mara. That film was the unfortunate victim of some delays and didn’t actually get a release until years after it was finished. And when it was released, the reviews were…uh, mixed, to say the least.
READ MORE: ‘Mary Magdalene’: Not Even Jesus Can Save This Miserable Biblical Drama [Review]
“Some of the films I’ve been most happy with have been the films that don’t see a lot of traction,” Fraser said. “For me, ‘Mary Magdalene’ is the most beautiful film I’ve shot with the performances and the script and the actors and ensemble. But not one saw it. Maybe it’s not the best film I’ve shot, but [I think so].”
Fraser is no stranger to beautiful filmmaking, as he’s probably most famous for acclaimed features such as “Zero Dark Thirty,” “Let Me In,” “Lion,” and “Killing Them Softly.” He’s also the cinematographer for upcoming features such as “Dune” and “The Batman.”
For Deakins, the most underseen work that he thinks is his best comes from a collaboration with Martin Scorsese.
“It’s a bit of a letdown when you’ve spent so much time on something and then it’s either buried or the audience doesn’t relate to it,” Deakins revealed. “I feel that way with ‘Kundun.’ It was one of the best experiences of my life, for a lot of different reasons. Not just the challenge of the filmmaking, but the people involved and the crew and the Tibetans. It was just a wonderful experience. And the film was basically buried, frankly. It was really disheartening.”
Even though Deakins thinks “Kundun” was “basically buried” upon release, the film was nominated for four Oscars, including Best Cinematography. So, there is still quite a bit of acclaim for that feature, even if it pales in comparison to some of the other works that have earned him trophies and massive box office, such as “1917,” “Blade Runner 2049,” “Skyfall,” and “Fargo.”
You can hear the full conversation below: