Top 10 Opening Credits

Here are what I consider the greatest opening credits in cinema history. I put some thought into it and tried not to use the overall quality of the film dictate my options. The opening credits can be a more useful tool than many realize, setting up tone and introducing history of characters and plot. I tried to find all of them on YouTube, but I was not able to find all of them.

10. Sahara (2005)
Sahara starring Matthew MacConaughey and Steve Zahn about the adventurer Dirk Pitt and his search for confederate gold in Africa. The opening sequence is a long shot circling the yacht they call home highlighting pictures and other items of Dirk and his buddy Al's time in the Navy, and their past adventures. Star Wars may have been the obvious choice especially to highlight the history explanation of the soon unfolding story, but there is something about a scrolling paragraph that lacks creativity.

9. Casino Royale (2006)
A Bond flick had to be represented. They have been by far had some of the more consistently memorable openings in cinema history. Most of the time, they are simply a chance to show the credits and spotlight a song. This is by far my favorite. I might be a little biased because its also my favorite Bond flick featuring my favorite Bond (Connery be damned), but Cornell's song is so nostalgically classic rock but oddly fitting. Plus it has some of the more inventive imagery, as opposed to the overused (but always welcome) dancing female silhouettes.



8. Se7en (1995)
I have seen many people credit Se7en with the reemergance of the high concept opening credits. It mixes the hard rock sounds of Nine Inch Nails, with a number of creepy jounral entries and creepier hands sifting through them foreshadowing the events and eventual reveal of killer, John Doe.



7. To Kill A Mockingbird (1962)
One of the more classic opening sequences, it has been paid homage to a number of times most notably with Cameron Crowe's Almost Famous, Crowe being a famous fan of the novel, referencing it in some way. The credits are played against a close-up of Scout, the young girl of the heroic Atticus Finch. It depicts Scout as the vessel for which we experience the story, and defines the subtle veil of childlike innocence in the way the story is presented to us.

6. The Fall (2006)
Director Tarsem Singh described it as "..chaos without energy." A beutiful combination of images and music. Beethoven’s Symphony No 7 sets the stage for a surreal, slow-motion mini-movie, one who's connection to the movie becomes apparent as the movie plays on, and upon second viewing becomes even more beautiful. An ode to falling.



5. 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)
A brilliant operatic science fiction. Thematically heavy, but still thrilling as the straight ahead horror/sci-fis. The opening is probably one of the most memorable openings of all time. A fantastic score that establishes the sweeping epic proportions the movie depicts. One of the most identifiable theme that makes all the right hits.



4. Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (2005)
Kiss Kiss Bang Bang is one of the biggest surprises in recent cinema weaving a smart and witty neo-noir that revels in its faults as well as its strengths. The opening sequence is a tribute to classic noir, resembling the old opening credits and retro covers of the detective yarns that spawned this underrated gem. Its jazz theme inspired images of fedora wearing gumshoes and survy seductive dames.




3. Romeo+Juliet (1996)
Baz Luhrman's take on Shakespeare's timeless tale of star cross'd lovers juxtaposes Shakes words over a modern era. In order to make the connection of Ye Olde English and 20th century America, Baz plays over the introduction of the play twice, once as a newscast on a lone television, and then again over a series of images of the movie and general 20th century iconography.



2. Watchmen (2009)
The highly acclaimed graphic novel adapted to celluloid has one of the greatest opening credits in recent time. It very well could be flash-in-the-pan opinion, but the unconventional choice of song in Bob Dylan's "These Times Are A-Changing" played against famous 20th Century iconography only this time with the added appearances of masked vigilantes to introduce us to a world with a vibrant history, a history the same as ours.....but not, leading up to the plot in question. Obviously, I cannot post the sequence, but if you look hard enough, you can still find it somewhere on-line. Thus is the beauty of the internet

1. Lord of War (2005)
Lord of War was pretty cool movie. A little too much coolness in general though. It was a dark comic drama with morally ambiguous characters. Its opening sequence is one of the MOST inventive and creative sequence to ever grace the silver screen. The camera afixed to a bullet starting at the beginning of creation to its killing blow in a war torn foreign world set against Buffalo Springfield's "For What It's Worth."