First Impressions
Some of the finest title sequences of all time are viewable on Art of the Title. DVD-quality clips of the entire damn things and way better than YouTube except there are loading problems. The first two played for me -- I watched the sequences for Bonnie and Clyde and Se7en -- and then they stopped. You click on them and the wheels just whirl around and around and you're just sitting there while life outside goes on all around you.
Some great opening title sequences that aren't listed on the site: North by Northwest, Moby Dick, Raging Bull, Teh French Connection, The Hustler, Volver, the 1953 War of the Worlds, Zodiac, The Man With the Golden Arm, White Heat, L.A. Confidential, Dr. No, The Wizard of Oz...there are hundreds and hundreds that are very sharp and pizazzy and well presented. I could go on all day. They don't have to be stylistically avant garde to be "good." They have to arrest your attention, get you into the right mood, jack up the energy, etc.
The memory plays tricks but I'm pretty sure that the worst title sequence of all time was used for Neil Simon's The Cheap Detective ('78), a '40s detective genre spoof directed by Robert Moore and starring Peter Falk. There are no opening visual titles whatsoever, as I recall. Falk says them to the camera. He literally says his own name and that of his costars, the screenwriter, the production designer, the editor, the composer, the director and so on. Am I mis-remembering? Am I describing some other film? I'm pretty sure it was this one. I remember sitting there and saying to myself, "My God, this is awful."
Posted by Jeffrey Wells on April 15, 2008 at 10:46 AM
comment #1
Geoff
says ...
Very cool. Fincher is a genius of course.
I was just watching NORTH BY NORTHWEST not too long ago and I completely forgot how cool they are. And who doesn't love that music with RAGING BULL?
As far as TV goes, THE SOPRANOS will always be my favorite. Right now the opening credits for DEXTER are brilliant.
Posted by Geoff
at April 15, 2008 12:20 PM
comment #2
btwnproductions
says ...
Otto Preminger's SKIDOO closes with credits sung-through by Harry Nilsson. No compilation is complete without Preminger's collaborations with Saul Bass. Or the Bond films, a world onto their own.
Truffaut's FAHRENHEIT 451 has spoken opening credits, supporting its theme of a book-less culture.
Posted by btwnproductions
at April 15, 2008 12:30 PM
comment #3
actionman
says ...
"They have to arrest your attention, get you into the right mood, jack up the energy, etc."
Absolutely agree with ya, Wells.
To that end, the opening credits in Tony Scott's Domino are pretty much incredible. Really sets tone, moody, and over-all style.
Also, Casino has great opening titles (Saul Bass, no?). Some other favorites are Arlington Road (though a bit rip-offy of Seven), Napoleon Dynamite, Sin City, Hostage (yes, the Bruce Willis thriller has a great opening title sequence), and Natural Born Killers.
There are so many good ones out there, these are just the first few that come to my mind.
Posted by actionman
at April 15, 2008 12:30 PM
comment #4
Dr. Smith
says ...
"Do the Right Thing" has a terrific title sequence. So does Ang Lee's "Hulk" and "Life of Brian."
Posted by Dr. Smith
at April 15, 2008 12:52 PM
comment #5
JVD
says ...
The title sequence to "JFK" has always struck me as a beautiful balance between establishing tone and back story. While the credit type is just simple white on black, the historical images and the way they are assembled to set Kennedy up as a character who will make intermittent appearances but the whole movie will ostensibly revolve around is top notch. Plus, the addition of John Williams delicate-but-regal score and Martin Sheen's narration is what really makes the whole thing work.
Posted by JVD
at April 15, 2008 12:56 PM
comment #6
PerfectTommy
says ...
Speaking of Python, Dr. Smith, what about the opening credits of "Monty Python and The Holy Grail"? Though I maybe enjoyed the closing credits in that film even more.
Posted by PerfectTommy
at April 15, 2008 1:08 PM
comment #7
actionman
says ...
Yes, the titles for JFK are most assuredly brilliant.
Posted by actionman
at April 15, 2008 1:09 PM
comment #8
Mark
says ...
Ugh, the Go sequence pictured makes me sick with flashbacks. Just brutal on the senses. Song, color, puke.
Good site though! I love that they included Samarai Champloo.
Posted by Mark
at April 15, 2008 1:19 PM
comment #9
Rich S.
says ...
They missed Zach Snyder's Dawn of the Dead. Flashes of the world going to hell in newsreel footage while Johnny Cash's The Man Comes Around plays.
Posted by Rich S.
at April 15, 2008 1:32 PM
comment #10
Bocephus
says ...
The title sequence for Cache was fitting. Much like the movie, you have to look very closely to really understand them.
Posted by Bocephus
at April 15, 2008 1:32 PM
comment #11
Doug Pratt
says ...
The rest of the movie is terrible but the title sequence for Walk on the Wild Side is a masterpiece.
Posted by Doug Pratt
at April 15, 2008 1:37 PM
comment #12
actionman
says ...
Even though it's very brief, the puzzle-piece opening titles for The Game are excellent. Come to think of it...has there been a Fincher film that didn't have amazing opening titles? The opening titles in Panic Room are amazingly surreal.
The Kingdom has a slam-bang opening as well. Really well done.
Posted by actionman
at April 15, 2008 1:49 PM
comment #13
Sergio
says ...
Peter Hyams' limp, dull film noir spoof Peeper also has spoken credits done by a Humphry Bogart look-alike.
But some of my favorite title sequences just off the top of my head have been those for The Kingdom, Casino Royale (both 1967 and 2006 versions) and On Her Majesty's Service
Posted by Sergio
at April 15, 2008 2:04 PM
comment #14
El Kabong
says ...
I've always liked the opening titles of Preston's Sturges' "The Palm Beach Story", which make me feel like I'm watching the sequel to some other, long-forgotten, Claudette Colbert screwball comedy.
Also, it's been a helluva long time since I've seen it, but doesn't a voice-over narrator read off the opening credits for Godard's Contempt?
Posted by El Kabong
at April 15, 2008 2:21 PM
comment #15
The Winchester
says ...
Actionman beat me to the Panic Room title sequence.
What I like best about the Go opening sequence is how the Columbia logo music is hijacked halfway through by the techno song. Love that opening.
Posted by The Winchester
at April 15, 2008 2:25 PM
comment #16
lazarus
says ...
Once Upon A Time In The West.
That is all.
Posted by lazarus
at April 15, 2008 2:27 PM
comment #17
Josh Massey
says ...
Wow, I came here to say three films, and all three have already been taken - Panic Room, Dawn of the Dead and JFK.
I remember seeing Dawn, and almost immediately thinking, "Wait, what? This might not be a piece of shit." And I think it ended up on my Ten Best list that year.
Posted by Josh Massey
at April 15, 2008 2:50 PM
comment #18
El Kabong
says ...
Oh, and I forgot to say hello to Jeff and all of the rest of you regular denizens of HE in my first post. I'm a longtime reader (since the Movie Poopshoot days) who's finally decided to be more than a passive participant. Now I want to be part of the problem : ).
Cheers!
Posted by El Kabong
at April 15, 2008 2:59 PM
comment #19
Mark
says ...
In argument against Fincher's openings, i have to admit that i never "got" the opening of Fight Club. Zoom out from inside the cells of Norton's brain to a gun inside his mouth? Even after you figure out what's going on, it has close to zero meaning in regards to the movie, and is not memorably animated imo.
There was a great opportunity in the credit sequence to further play with viral marketing themes. But when i see cells, i just think viral. Made no sense to me.
Posted by Mark
at April 15, 2008 3:02 PM
comment #20
seventy3
says ...
I love the opening titles for American Psycho.
Posted by seventy3
at April 15, 2008 3:06 PM
comment #21
Geoff
says ...
"Even after you figure out what's going on, it has close to zero meaning in regards to the movie, and is not memorably animated imo."
What's going on in his head has zero meaning? Really?
Posted by Geoff
at April 15, 2008 3:07 PM
comment #22
Doug Pratt
says ...
It was Farenheit 451 that has spoken credits
Posted by Doug Pratt
at April 15, 2008 3:11 PM
comment #23
Mark
says ...
Geoff. "What's going on in his head has zero meaning? Really?"
Yes, the biology of the protagonist's braincells has zero meaning to the viewer, absolutely. It's such a literal angle to take, and i'm unsure why so many people are impressed by it.
Posted by Mark
at April 15, 2008 3:19 PM
comment #24
Geoff
says ...
When I first saw the film I didn't know what insane and scary environment I was surfing around in. I thought it was a cool "what the fuck?" stylistic choice when I realized those were sweat glands. The whole film was a fresh and hip assault on the senses.
Only when the big reveal comes around did it make perfect sense, and it was great when I saw it a second time.
I'd say you're in the minority, but to each his own.
Posted by Geoff
at April 15, 2008 3:42 PM
comment #25
erniesouchak
says ...
I hope they included "The Ninth Gate"!
Posted by erniesouchak
at April 15, 2008 4:17 PM
comment #26
Mark
says ...
At that time it had become sort of cliche to do an initial sequence that zooms in from outer space down into a character's house, ala The Burbs or Men in Black, ect. So i also think that the fight club sequence aims to turn that cliche inside out.
Even though it wasn't for me, i guess there's no point in bitching about it, though i enjoyed your take on it.
Posted by Mark
at April 15, 2008 4:21 PM
comment #27
christian
says ...
Glad I didn't have to mention SKIDOO.
Posted by christian
at April 15, 2008 6:11 PM
comment #28
lipranzer
says ...
One of my favorite opening credits sequences is for Kenneth Branagh's DEAD AGAIN, not so much for the titles as how everything is set up so well.
Posted by lipranzer
at April 15, 2008 6:57 PM
comment #29
christian
says ...
This French spy parody 0SS 117 CAIRO NEST OF SPIES has a dead-on Bass-esque 60's title scene.
Posted by christian
at April 15, 2008 7:07 PM
comment #30
arturobandini
says ...
HelLO? BARBARELLA has the grooviest opening titles...ever. How quickly we forget.
Don't know if it stands up today, but in 1984 I saw STREETS OF FIRE multiple times just for the opening title sequence alone; it goes on for about 20 minutes.
Cronenberg's CRASH has very, very trippy titles (special mention to Howard Shore's even trippier music). In fact, all of Cronenberg's movies have well-thought-out titles. It's his theory that a good opening title sequence (before the narrative starts) will lull the viewer into a trance so s/he can prepare to suspend disbelief.
Posted by arturobandini
at April 15, 2008 8:05 PM
comment #31
moviemaniac2002
says ...
Some main title goodies to remember:
Frankenheimer's "Seconds" (Rock Hudson as
a New York suburbanite refurbished with a
new face, body and life via a creepy Faustian
organization) Brilliant visuals-distorted facial
iimages set to Jerry Goldsmith's ominous score.
"Dr.Strangelove" - Airborne, re-fueling B-52s
which look like they're screwing ..to "Try A
Little Tenderness" Only Kubrick could find a
way to introduce full penetration into a major
feature film.
"Dr.No" - Unlike the controlled artistry of all the
other Bond main titles, this stuff just looks wildly
colorfully crazy..like they were visually making
it all up as they filmed it....weird goofy noises
before the gun-barrel logo, then pop-art flashing
gumballs, then calypso sillouettes, then "Three
Blind Mice" Nutty, but always fun to watch.
And no matter what anyone says, I still love the
endless claymation titles to "Brain Donors", that
long forgotten, misbegotten attempt to make a
modern day Marx brothers movie, with John
Turturro doing Groucho
Posted by moviemaniac2002
at April 15, 2008 9:50 PM
comment #32
DavidF
says ...
Fight Club's opening is tracking out from the fear centre of the brain, not Norton's sweat glands. Apparently, they actually made some effort to make the trip geographically accurate, for what that's worth.
What's funny is that X-Men (also 20th Century fox) had a very similar sequence shortly after.
And, yes, David Fincher is a genius but he is not the one who designs his title sequences.
The opening of Alien, with its freaky quiet and the title gradually being pieced together, is worthy of mention. Star Wars, of course, has one of the best openings ever precisely because it lacks a title sequence.
Posted by DavidF
at April 16, 2008 6:26 AM
comment #33
El Kabong
says ...
Sweet Jeebus, I'm glad I'm not the only one out there that remembers "Brain Donors". Back in high school a friend taped it off cable and we watched it quite a bit over the course of one long boring summer.
All I really remember of it now is Turturro's lawyer character chasing after an ambulance while the William Tell Overture played on the soundtrack. What an odd little film.
Posted by El Kabong
at April 16, 2008 6:38 AM
comment #34
the king
says ...
Raging Bull
Posted by the king
at April 16, 2008 10:23 AM
comment #35
Jeffrey Kunze
says ...
Dead Man
Posted by Jeffrey Kunze
at April 17, 2008 12:01 PM
comment #36
bmcintire
says ...
Along the lines of GO (and yet another Fincher mention), I loved the opening titles to ALIEN 3, especially they way they hijacked the closing violin strain of the Fox logo. It told the story of Ripley's ship crashing and the fate of her fellow survivors in beautiful yet brutal blasts of information. Stunning.
Posted by bmcintire
at April 17, 2008 2:47 PM
comment #37
Dr. Smith
says ...
"Contempt" also has VO opening credits
Posted by Dr. Smith
at April 20, 2008 12:05 PM
comment #38
jany
says ...
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Posted by jany
at April 22, 2011 12:30 AM