A Brief History of Special Effects Milestones.  

Some films are so revolutionary or offer such a memorable sequence that they become milestones in the history of CGI and Special effects. Here is a list of some of the movies that offered that certain magic.

1968
"2001: A Space Odyssey"
Who can forget that Star Gate sequence and the Star Child? And how many people scratched their heads at the time, wondering if they'd taken too much acid and asking themselves just what the heck was going on in that last part of the movie?

1977
"Star Wars"
It's the dawn of the new era, and that Death Star sequence still stands the test of time. Classic "Star Wars" is better than any alternate reality that spawned Jar Jar Binks and Boy Band Vader.
"Close Encounters of the Third Kind"
Now thats an alien mother ship.

1981
"Raiders of the Lost Ark"
I still get the chills whenever I remember the first time I saw that climatic moment when the Nazis opened the Ark of the Covenant.

1982
"Tron"
not only does it feature a lot of computer animation, but it's also one of the first films based on a video game. Plus it's all about a world inside a computer. That geeky enough for ya?

1984
"The Last Starfighter"
Instead of miniatures, the filmmakers decide to use CGI.

1985
"Young Sherlock Holmes and The Pyramid of Fear"
Man, I loved this movie! And it owns the distinction of having the first 3D digital or CGI character. Yup, it's the wrath of the stained-glass knight. And "Eithar" rocks!

1986
"Luxo Jr."
Finally, movie audiences get to see believable character movement in computer animation. Thanks to this Pixar flick directed by the genuis himself, John Lasseter.

1988
"Who Framed Roger Rabbit"
This movie successfully combined live action and animated characters. And who would have thought we'd see Bugs Bunny and Mickey Mouse in the same movie, plus Donald Duck facing off with Daffy?

1991
"Beauty and the Beast"
Dazzling blend of traditional and computer animation, plus it was nominated for Oscar Best Picture.

1992
"Terminator 2: Judgment Day"
Blame James Cameron and his T-1000 cyborg, 'coz this one was the first blockbuster to feature those nifty morphing effects.

1993
"Jurassic Park"
Steven Spielberg first thought of using stop motion, but advances in computer animation made the T-Rex believable-- and unbelievable. Who can forget seeing those dinosaurs for the first time on the big screen?

1995
"Toy Story"
Pixar makes history again with the first computer-generated feature film.

1999
"Star Wars: Episode I-- The Phantom Menace"
Call it CGI mania, 'coz this one tried to enhance everything digitally-- and featured the CGI character Jar Jar Binks. Too bad it sucked.
"The Matrix"
Of course, I'd rather remember 1999 for this flick-- and the Millennium Bug, I guess. The Wachovski Brothers started a new era, because now every action movie can be classified as pre and post Matrix-- plus everybody wants Bullet Time.

2001
"Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within"
The first completely CGI movie to feature hyper-realistic characters. Revolutionary in many ways, but bombed at the box office, thanks in no small part to an uninspired script dialogue. Maybe chocobos could have saved the day.
"Shrek"
The first winner of the newly created Oscar category, Best Animated Feature.

2004
"Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow"
The first movie to be shot entirely against blue screen.