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Robby Müller

Robby Müller

Camera

Biography

Robby Müller (4 April 1940 - 4 July 2018) was a Dutch cinematographer. Known both for his use of natural light and minimalist imagery, as well as expressionistic use of colors, Müller first gained recognition for his contributions to West German Cinema through his acclaimed collaborations with Wim Wenders. Müller's first work as a cinematographer was also Wim Wenders' first as director, Alabama: 2000 Light Years. They went on making many more films together such as Summer in the City, The Goalie's Anxiety at the Penalty Kick, The Scarlet Letter, Alice in the Cities, Wrong Move, Kings of the Road, The American Friend, Wings of Desire, Until the End of the World and Paris, Texas. Throughout the course of his career, he also worked closely with directors Jim Jarmusch (Down by Law, Mystery Train, Dead Man, Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai), Lars Von Trier (Breaking the Waves, Dancer in the Dark), Peter Bogdanovich (Saint Jack, They All Laughed), Barbet Schroeder (Barfly, Tricheurs) and Hans W. Geissendörfer (Jonathan, The Glass Cell, Carlos, The Wild Duck, Der Fall Lena Christ, Die Eltern). Müller's other work has been on both mainstream productions and independent films, including the hazy, yellow-tinted cinematography of William Friedkin's To Live and Die in LA, Alex Cox's Repo Man, Michael Winterbottom's 24 Hour Party People, Andrzej Wajda's Korczak, Jerry Schatzberg's Honeysuckle Rose, Peter Handke's The Left Handed Woman, Sally Potter's The Tango Lesson, Dom Rotheroe's My Brother Tom and Steve McQueen's Carib’s Leap. Paul Thomas Anderson referred to Müller as "The master of night exteriors. Like a chef with a secret sauce. I can't quite figure it out." Barry Sonnenfeld recalls the first thing he and the Coen Brothers bonded over was Müller's The American Friend cinematography, which convinced the brothers that Sonnenfeld had good enough taste to shoot their first film (Blood Simple). Müller died on 3 July 2018, aged 78, having suffered from vascular dementia for several years.

Known For

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6.0

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German Film Award

1951
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N/A

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Bavarian Film Awards

1979
Paris, Texas
8.1

A man wanders out of the desert not knowing who he is. His brother finds him, and helps to pull his memory back of the life he led before he walked out on his family and disappeared four years earlier.

Paris, Texas

1984
Dead Man
7.3

On the run after committing murder, an accountant encounters a strange Native American man who prepares him for his journey into the spiritual world.

Dead Man

1995
Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai
7.3

A Black hitman who models after the samurai of old finds himself targeted for death by the mob.

Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai

1999
To Live and Die in L.A.
7.1

When his longtime partner on the force is killed, reckless U.S. Secret Service agent Richard Chance vows revenge, setting out to nab dangerous counterfeit artist Eric Masters.

To Live and Die in L.A.

1985
Dancer in the Dark
7.8

Selma, a Czech immigrant on the verge of blindness, struggles to make ends meet for herself and her son, who has inherited the same genetic disorder and will suffer the same fate without an expensive operation. When life gets too difficult, Selma learns to cope through her love of musicals, dreaming up little numbers to the rhythmic beats of her surroundings.

Dancer in the Dark

2000
Breaking the Waves
7.5

In a small, conservative Scottish village, an oilman is paralyzed in an accident. His wife, who prayed for his return, feels guilty; even more, when he urges her to have sex with another.

Breaking the Waves

1996
Mad Dog and Glory
6.0

Wayne Dobie is a shy cop whose low-key demeanor has earned him the affectionate nickname "Mad Dog." After Mad Dog saves the life of Frank Milo, a crime boss and aspiring stand-up comedian, he's offered the company of an attractive young waitress named Glory for a week. At first both are uneasy about the arrangement, but they eventually fall in love. However, the situation becomes complicated when Milo demands Glory back.

Mad Dog and Glory

1993
Repo Man
6.7

A down and out young punk gets a job working with a seasoned repo man, but what awaits him in his new career is a series of outlandish adventures revolving around aliens, the CIA, and a most wanted '64 Chevy.

Repo Man

1984
Mystery Train
7.3

In Memphis, Tennessee, over the course of a single night, the Arcade Hotel, run by an eccentric night clerk and a clueless bellboy, is visited by a young Japanese couple traveling in search of the roots of rock; an Italian woman in mourning who stumbles upon a fleeing charlatan girl; and a comical trio of accidental thieves looking for a place to hide.

Mystery Train

1989
Coffee and Cigarettes
6.9

An anthology of eleven vignettes featuring star-studded casts of extremely unique individuals who all share the common activities of conversing while drinking coffee and smoking cigarettes.

Coffee and Cigarettes

2004
Until the End of the World
6.7

In 1999, a woman's life is forever changed after she survives a car crash with two bank robbers, who enlist her help to take the money to a drop in Paris. On the way, she runs into another fugitive from the law — an American doctor on the run from the CIA. They want to confiscate his father's invention – a device which allows anyone to record their dreams and visions.

Until the End of the World

1991
The Believers
5.9

Mourning the accidental death of his wife and having just moved to New York with his young son, laconic police psychologist Cal Jamison is reluctantly drawn into a series of grisly, ritualistic murders involving the immolation of two youths.

The Believers

1987
Mysteries
5.2

In the winter of 1891 a stranger arrives in a small coastal town on the Isle of Man. His presence soon disturbs the lives of the local inhabitants, especially the beautiful daughter of the parson.

Mysteries

1978
The American Friend
7.1

Tom Ripley, an American who deals in forged art, is slighted at an auction in Hamburg by picture framer Jonathan Zimmerman. When Ripley is asked by gangster Raoul Minot to kill a rival, he suggests Zimmerman, and the two, exploiting Zimmerman's terminal illness, coerce him into being a hitman.

The American Friend

1977
Barfly
6.9

Downtrodden writer Henry and distressed goddess Wanda aren't exactly husband and wife: they're wedded to their bar stools. But, they like each other's company—and Barfly captures their giddy, gin-soaked attempts to make a go of life on the skids.

Barfly

1987
Down by Law
7.3

A disc jockey, a pimp and an Italian tourist escape from jail in New Orleans.

Down by Law

1986
Beyond the Clouds
6.2

Four tales, each centered on a woman, journey inward to explore the enigmatic reality of their lives, connecting through a single narrative thread.

Beyond the Clouds

1995
24 Hour Party People
7.0

Manchester, 1976. Tony Wilson is an ambitious but frustrated local TV news reporter looking for a way to make his mark. After witnessing a life-changing concert by a band known as the Sex Pistols, he persuades his station to televise one of their performances, and soon Manchester's punk groups are clamoring for him to manage them. Riding the wave of a musical revolution, Wilson and his friends create the legendary Factory Records label and The Hacienda club.

24 Hour Party People

2002