Sean Azze Posted July 31, 2005 Share Posted July 31, 2005 I was thinking how much I love the opening credits to the Coen Brothers' "The Big Lebowski" (shot by Roger Deakins). From the moment when a blank screen covered in bowling alley symbols opens up to reveal the back of a set of 10 bowling pins, I knew I was in for something fun. I love the ECU of the ashtrays, the score cards, and the air vents. The shallow focus shot of the stereotypical bowler's gut waving in celebration of a strike is truly hilarious. And who could forget that tracking shot of a ball rolling down the lane right to the very end (seamlessly accomplished using some sort of remote control car if I remember correctly) Oh, and the music kicks ass. A song so fitting for the scenario, you can imagine it playing over the loudspeaker of the alley. Definitely my favorite opening credit sequence. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member Wendell_Greene Posted July 31, 2005 Premium Member Share Posted July 31, 2005 Se7en Raging Bull Anything by Saul Bass Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member David Mullen ASC Posted July 31, 2005 Premium Member Share Posted July 31, 2005 Se7enRaging Bull Anything by Saul Bass <{POST_SNAPBACK}> I agree. I also like the title sequences in Jeunet's films, particularly the tabletop titles in "Delicatessen". Powell-Pressburger's "I Know Where I'm Going" also has a nice opening title sequence. "The Shining" has an evocative title sequence. "Dr. Strangelove" also has a very symbolic & funny one. Of the Hitchcock/Bass titles, I probably like "Vertigo" the most, mainly for the music though. Bass' titles for "Spartacus" were also very interesting. I was blown away by the "Superman: The Movie" main titles when I was a teenager. I also like how the title for "Silverado" comes up as the camera tracks out of the darkness of the shack to see the valley beyond. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member Tim J Durham Posted July 31, 2005 Premium Member Share Posted July 31, 2005 Se7enRaging Bull Anything by Saul Bass <{POST_SNAPBACK}> The closing credits of "A Hard Days Night" are fantastic and I liked the opening credits of "7" until I realised what it was I was looking at. Then I wanted to vomit in my popcorn. It was downhill from there. Guess you could say I'm a detractor. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Welle Posted July 31, 2005 Share Posted July 31, 2005 (edited) Many of "The Pink Panther" movies have great opening credits. I can tell you what my least favorite (read, "most boring") credit sequence is. That would be "Speed," travelling down 30 flights of floors on an eleavtor--each one stopping to read a credit. Great movie, tedious credits. Mike Welle I was thinking how much I love the opening credits to the Coen Brothers' "The Big Lebowski" (shot by Roger Deakins). From the moment when a blank screen covered in bowling alley symbols opens up to reveal the back of a set of 10 bowling pins, I knew I was in for something fun. I love the ECU of the ashtrays, the score cards, and the air vents. The shallow focus shot of the stereotypical bowler's gut waving in celebration of a strike is truly hilarious. And who could forget that tracking shot of a ball rolling down the lane right to the very end (seamlessly accomplished using some sort of remote control car if I remember correctly) Oh, and the music kicks ass. A song so fitting for the scenario, you can imagine it playing over the loudspeaker of the alley. Definitely my favorite opening credit sequence. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Edited July 31, 2005 by Mike Welle Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Landon D. Parks Posted July 31, 2005 Share Posted July 31, 2005 Harry Potter and the chamber of secrets: Nothing beats flying through the warner logo, then down through the clouds into surrey and into Harry's window. When you see that, you know the movie gonna be an epic one. I also liked the way the camera zoomed back real quick to reveal the Harry Potter and the prisoner of azkaban title.... Those HP movies seem to have some of the best opening title themes I'v seen in a long time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gordon Highland Posted July 31, 2005 Share Posted July 31, 2005 of course, Se7en Carnivale (TV) American Splendor Napoleon Dynamite Six Feet Under (TV) Catch Me if You Can The Naked Gun Panic Room Adaptation (a black screen w/ V.O. and tiny text) One Hour Photo American Psycho A Nightmare on Elm Street and while they have nothing to do with graphical sequences, my favorite two opening shots are Boogie Nights, and of course, the ass-tastic Lost in Translation Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Lary Posted July 31, 2005 Share Posted July 31, 2005 Requiem for a Dream - Excellent rotting vine effect in the typeface, nice montage (and effective use of split screen) that tells the backstory and introduces us to the juicer infommercial. Beautiful photography, as well. City of Lost Children also, not so much for the titles themselves, but the opening sequence with the Santa nightmare is brilliant. I like the simplicity in A Clockwork Orange as well. The striking use of primary colors and the short duration of the sequence suites the film perfectly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member David Mullen ASC Posted July 31, 2005 Premium Member Share Posted July 31, 2005 Yes, I forgot about the credits to the first "Naked Gun" with the foreground police car roof and revolving light going through all sorts of locations, including a girls shower room. That had me laughing... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member Jason Debus Posted July 31, 2005 Premium Member Share Posted July 31, 2005 Any of the Maurice Binder Bond films. I think I'm especially partial to 'For Your Eyes Only' because of the water theme. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Panczenko Posted July 31, 2005 Share Posted July 31, 2005 I have always loved the opening credits from "From Russia with Love"- also, if I'm not mistaken, a Maurice Binder creation. The projected credits on the bodies of the Gypsy belly dancers is a foreshadowing of what turns out to be several major plot points of the movie, but, more than that, it's just plain cool to watch! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Daniel J. Ashley-Smith Posted July 31, 2005 Share Posted July 31, 2005 Not that I really have a favourite, but "James Bond" is memorable. "Irreversible" is interesting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member Stephen Williams Posted July 31, 2005 Premium Member Share Posted July 31, 2005 Not that I really have a favourite, but "James Bond" is memorable. "Irreversible" is interesting. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Hi, Goldfinger was cool! remember it was over 40 years ago! Stephen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest fstop Posted July 31, 2005 Share Posted July 31, 2005 (edited) I have always loved the opening credits from "From Russia with Love"- also, if I'm not mistaken, a Maurice Binder creation. The projected credits on the bodies of the Gypsy belly dancers is a foreshadowing of what turns out to be several major plot points of the movie, but, more than that, it's just plain cool to watch! <{POST_SNAPBACK}> This was actually designed by Robert Brownjohn, Binder's assistant. Brownjohn also designed the titles for Goldfinger, which, incidentally, were photographed by David Watkin! I am not a big fan of Binder's titles, they are horribly crude and smutty when they should be sexy and suggestive. The dayglo party poppers in the A VIEW TO A KILL title sequence are always refered to as an all time Bond low, while the bubbles and open ladies legs of the THUNDERBALL titles were all too easily sent up by Weird Al Yonkovic for Leslie Nielsen spoof SPY HARD. What was Binder thinking here?: Oh, and can anybody tell me what Sheena Easton was doing in the opening credits of FOR YOUR EYES ONLY??!!: I much prefer Brownjohn's work, and also Daniel Kleinman's digital opening credits to the Brosnan Bond movies. And that's some feat, given that there hasn't been one GOOD Brosnan Bond title song! Kleinman is more intelligent with abstraction and montage imagery, and he can keep the ladies fully clothed yet have them scream sexuality with more class than Binder ever knew. North By Northwest is a big favourite title sequence of mine. I also really like Lawrence cleaning his bike on Lawrence of Arabia. It's funny this thread has popped up, because unfortunately nowadays filmmakers are encouraged not to pride their titles in the spectacular fashion of SUPERMAN, instead relegating them exclusively to the end credits! For everything it got right, the new Batman movie didn't have a title sequence- it didn't even tell you the name of the film until the end credits!! It's funny, because not long ago everyone was having those jittery, scratchy, largely unreadable "Imaginary Forces" title sequences that looked like something from a Nine Inch Nails video (think Se7en, Ally McBeal, Blade, etc): Edited July 31, 2005 by fstop Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member Stephen Williams Posted July 31, 2005 Premium Member Share Posted July 31, 2005 This was actually designed by Robert Brownjohn, Binder's assistant. Brownjohn also designed the titles for Goldfinger, which, incidentally, were photographed by David Watkin! <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Hi, I heard from Trevor Bond, who worked with Robert Brownjohn on the first 3 Bond movie Titles, that the belly dancer had to eat bananas before they filmed! He apparantly had to hold her ankles so she didn't move so much for close ups! Stephen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Salzmann Posted July 31, 2005 Share Posted July 31, 2005 I quite like "Pi" , "The Island of Dr. Moreau", "La Dolce Vita" and "Elephant Man" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Daniel J. Ashley-Smith Posted July 31, 2005 Share Posted July 31, 2005 Hi, Goldfinger was cool! remember it was over 40 years ago! Stephen <{POST_SNAPBACK}> I think the intro titles nowadays are made with digital FX, but in the older films they were all done with optical effects. Pretty amazing for the time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jaan Shenberger Posted July 31, 2005 Share Posted July 31, 2005 jules et jim mean streets office killer imaginary forces' end credits to 'lost in space' -- perfectly appropriate for a self-conscious retro remake film saul bass' 'to kill a mockingbird' -- generally credited for almost single-handedly creating the "default" title sequence technique of graceful xcus of inanimate objects as typography elegantly appears within negative space kyle cooper's 'island of dr. moreau' -- though it's very well crafted, it's a complete ripoff of stan brakhage's films. also, approximately ten times more entertaining and involving than the actual movie. kyle cooper's 'seven' -- though this unfortunately led to way too many films using the tabletop photography/scratchy typography technique imaginary forces' 'sphere' saul bass' 'cape fear' remake love the simple & stark white on black title cards cut to the music for most of woody allen's films in the 80s. they really set the tone in presenting the film to the audience as "art" and subtley implies the concept of auteurship by using the same typeface from film to film treasure island (1999) -- excellent faux-1940s titles on glass with cast shadows from a moving light source best of all time: saul bass' end credits for 'west side story' (and the opening overture animation was excellent as well) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member Adam Frisch FSF Posted July 31, 2005 Premium Member Share Posted July 31, 2005 Bass's Spartacus is brilliant as David said. The Man With The Golden Arm is another good Bass sequence, but everything from him was pretty much up there. The Bonds, of course. They all have some nice stuff in them. I though GoldenEye was a throwback to some nice in-camera stuff with all those crescents and hammers. Was that Kleinman? Guilty admission: Passenger 57 has a very nice sequence. Casino, of course. Panic Room. Just about anyting from the 70's. I am too saddened by todays films that completely bypass not only a title sequence, but titles at the beginning alltogether! It's very annoying - I like to see the key contributors presented. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sneeze proof Posted July 31, 2005 Share Posted July 31, 2005 I watched Constantine last night and I quite liked the effect of the titles being blown away. Batman (the first one with Michael Keaton) was cool. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member Robert Edge Posted August 1, 2005 Premium Member Share Posted August 1, 2005 I am too saddened by todays films that completely bypass not only a title sequence, but titles at the beginning alltogether! It's very annoying - I like to see the key contributors presented. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> I watched Gods and Monsters the other night and got a kick out the end credits, which begin with "A Good Cast Bears Repeating". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sneeze proof Posted August 1, 2005 Share Posted August 1, 2005 Run Lola Run has a nice effect where the camera rises out of the crowd as all the people form together to create the letters. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Francisco Valdez Posted August 1, 2005 Share Posted August 1, 2005 Fahrenheit 451 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sean Azze Posted August 1, 2005 Author Share Posted August 1, 2005 It's funny this thread has popped up, because unfortunately nowadays filmmakers are encouraged not to pride their titles in the spectacular fashion of SUPERMAN, instead relegating them exclusively to the end credits! The other side of that argument is when a film has a spectacular opening credit sequence, but the other 90 minutes of the flick are a complete letdown. "Panic Room" had a great intro with 3D credits scaling skyscrapers, yet the rest of the film was relatively dissapointing. (then again, my opinion may have been influenced by how much I enjoyed Fincher's previous films - particularly Seven and Fight Club) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andreas Thalhammer Posted August 1, 2005 Share Posted August 1, 2005 i like every title designed by Kyle Cooper (Se7en, Spiderman I+II...). Anyone remember the Dawn of the Dead remake title sequence? that was cool... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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