Credit sequences used to be hugely important to movies. But this decade they are rare and they are becoming something of a lost art. While I loved JJ's drama and action packed take on Trek, I can't say I remember any credit sequence at all. Ships in Trek go boom, Kirk is born in the middle of a space battle Next act Kirk a few years on steals his Daddy's car and plays beastie boys, next Bar Scene and still I can't recall any credit sequence in this Star Trek block buster. When people talk of the great classic credit sequences they might recall Donner's Superman with Christoper Reeve, the French Delicatessen, Mary Poppins, Cat Ballou, Aliens or the 007s.. The job of the Credit Sequence was two fold, first introducing the names of the cast and characters and second to let audience experience pace, music tone and themes film without wasting footage, or maybe even throw in a recap on previous films/books with stock footage However we do have some great sequences this century What was the best one for you?
There was no credit sequence, but I thought it had a great title sequence and that was due mainly to the music. We hear "Enterprising Young Men" starting to build while the shuttles are adrift in space followed by the screen going dim. Then the delta appears with the title "STAR TREK" as the track hits its peak.
I thought the Watchmen credits sequence was a very effective way to put the viewer into the world of the story.
A quick recap on what they are: Wolverine - kid is at home and with friend Victor and have a nasty encounter with Victor's drunk father, bloodbath happens. claws pop out of the kid . The kid Wolverine thinks "OMG what have I done" starts running through the wild, next they are on a battlefield during the US Civil War, next invasion beaches in German-occupied France, onto Nam where by this stage his pal Victor has totally gone animalistic, lost his marbles, starts murdering his own troops and Wolverine looks less insane. At least Wolverine's a soldier with a conscience. Sequence ends with both in front of firing squad and Victor says 'Wake me when they're done' or something like that. Casino Royale- a totally new take on 007 Franchise. Totally new opening title sequences, great playing card motif, its a long opening credit with its own unique credits. Lots of spy images, black and red cut outs fighting, imagery of roulette wheels. The new Bond is very different, I give it credit for doing a great job but its one of those things that fans either loved or hated. Watchmen - Music plays out the usual Raspy Bob Dylan voice....can't remember the track> Times are changing or something? Nixon or was it TrickyDick starts winning infinite consecutive election. Doomsday clock counts down as the USSR and USA face off, we get to see an alternative reality moving from WW2 into the Apollo landings and finally into a new cold War, this looks like one miserable Dystopia. Lord of War - Life of a bullet. Nick Cage does great in this, another memorable song Buffalo Springfield For What It's Worth There's something happening here. What it is ain't exactly clear theres a man with a gun over there.... We're following the life of a bullet from its smelting in a factor, to some Russian dude selling it to some militarist regime, following the bullet as it moves from boxes and crates. The bullet finally ends up inside the brain of some 16 year old African kid. Sweeney Todd - really dark Tim Burton sequence creepy organ playing, you really get the feel of evil and blood. The haunting atmosphere combined with the dark imagery sets the tone perfectly Spider-Man. fantastic paintings from Alex Ross, some of which were recaps on previous movies. The second and first were extremely memorable, the 3rd not so much because they focused on CGI webs, sand or blackslime. First and second movie opening sequences really pays respect to the original Stan Lee comic books. Spiderman-2 probably has the best sequence the painting are works of art, the music is big, fun, loud and epic and Spiderman-2's credit sequence provides a perfect recap on the previous film. Panic Room - NYC is dull, lonely, paranoid, everything is cramped and claustrophobic. The credits are bars, the typography crushes the people of New York inside a dark prison cell. Its very basic in concept but its execution worked wonders that critics still rave about this credit sequence today. Sin City extremely faithful to its source material, the Sin City cast names are accompanied by the relevant character in their original comic book form. The music is great and we are introduced to a comic book city of gangs, prostitution and crime.
Voted Spider-Man, but only because I missed Watchmen. The first two Spidey credits are still very, very good though.
Die Another Day had a good one with the blending of the traditional montage with actual movie events. It's my favorite Bond credit sequence. [yt]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3JBzxKLs-dY[/yt]
Yep. My favorite movie opening sequence is 25th Hour. I love the way it starts as an abstraction and sneaks up on you to set the emotional stage for a very powerful movie (see it if you haven't - one of Spike Lee's best). Catch Me If You Can is also justly renowned.
I've always adored the opening credits in Se7en. Kyle Cooper did that one, and is a brilliant title designer...he also did the Spider-Man credit sequences and designed Marvel's flipbook logo. You know, the one DC ripped off.
Yup, that title reveal gave me a shiver, great music there as well. I'd have to say the the best title sequence on the list is either Watchmen or Sweeney Todd. If we're not talking movies I'd say Carnivale, and if we're not speaking specifically of opening titles, I'd say Iron Man and Lemnony Snicket's "A Series of Unfortunate Events" had some great credits sequences. I can't say I really liked the Spider-Man credit sequence. I do really like the Marvel flipbook logo though, and I remember wondering how on earth DC had the balls to rip it off so blatantly.
How'd Wolverine & Spider-Man get on the list, but not The Incredible Hulk? Or even Ang Lee's Hulk? Out of the options, I'd say Watchmen is the best of the poll.
Wolverine's credits sequence of the wars. Spider-Man 2's Alex Ross art recap of Spider-Man 1 i also like Batman's fly-around of the Bat-logo
Digital Kitchen, which is a post production agency does alot of these opening intro sequences for shows such as Dexter, Six Feet Under, Carnivale, etc and alot of movies as well
I jumped the gun and voted for 'Casino Royale' mainly by lumping in the great pre-credits sequence, the credits themselves, and the post-credits parkour exhibition, which isn't exactly fair. Just going by the credits alone, I would agree that 'Watchmen' had the strongest. The music and imagery was just perfectly matched and really got you into the mood and backstory of the film.