A Celebration of Opening Title Sequences (And Why They Need To Come Back)
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- čas přidán 1. 10. 2021
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Opening title sequences have been going out of style for decades now, but the thing is, they rule and should come back.
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The "don't bore me, I just wanna get to see the movie" argument is really rich in a time you have to sit through 30 minutes of commercials before the feature starts.
I was very surprised a few years ago when I went to a small, independent cinema, nothing was playing, the screen was black, and when it was time the film just started playing and I was like: ...?
On that note lets move the "trailers" back to the trail end of the movie where they initially were in the traditional theatre experience.
I hate the ads before the movies, but I LOVE seeing the trailers
I'd much rather sit through an overture and a cartoon than 10 Geico commercials.
I think your joke actually makes the point though - "I already sat through 30min of commercials, so yeah, I DO just wanna get to see the movie"
I would argue not only in favour of bringing back Overtures, but also the intermission/entr'acte as well. Movies that are 3+ hours long could greatly benefit from them.
Yes, those are definitely things that were part of the past movie viewing experience.
I wholeheartedly agree!
I was living in India in 2019 and they have intermissions for every movie. It was freaking sweet, go to the bathroom and get more snacks.
In italian cinemas this happen
While I don't care for intermissions either way (I grew up on theater so I'm used to em), but the green knight really annoyed me by setting up an intermission for 5 seconds then starting again, like me and my mate's just realised what it was and had gotten up when the movie started again.
That Edison copyright notice is deeply ironic, considering that the TA Edison company was the biggest copyright pirate of its age.
Aye. The real father of cinema was Pierre Le Prince.
Possibly murdered by Edison’s men.
Netflix's "Skip Intro" might even kill television title sequences, I pray that never happens tho
that path is already beginning. so many Netflix series don't even have an opening title. WITCHER and STRANGER THINGS just have a few seconds of the title appearing with music, while DARK CRYSTAL just drops the title somewhere over the already going picture. No cut to black or anything
Brabbel93 Stranger things does have an intro. It’s not much, but it’s something.
Nah, they leave it entirely up to the filmmakers. That’s kind of the point of the button: filmmakers could have 30 minutes of titles and it’s fine because you can skip.
I hate skipping the intro. Intros are FUN. They get you hyped up for the show.
I also like seeing variants on opening studio logos, especially all the ones for Into the Spider-Verse.
Nice pfp, that's my favorite album
@@torsoclinic what's the album?
@@chammondmccoy2726 MGMT's "Congratulations". A fantastically underrated album.
Would've LOVED for the Marvel logo to briefly flash to "Timely" as one of the alts.
Personalised logos are honestly some of my favourite things. Seeing them redesigned to suit the film's art design goes a long way to making the film seem more distinct.
My most memorable opening title sequence from recent movies would probably be "Monsters, Inc."... which, looking it up, turns 20 this year. Wow. Okay, now I just feel old.
My girlfriend just showed me a thing where Woody from Toy Story toys now gets produced with "Bonnie" written on his foot :(
Yes! That one is fantastic! I also thought of the original 101 Dalmatians.
absolutely love it!
I can hear it
That’s weird definition of recent my definition of recent is a week ago yours spans 20 years lol
Monty Python and the Holy Grail's credits are better now than they were back then. When I started watching the movie on Netflix, I had to check my language setting!
“A moose changed my language settings once”
@@Kleshumara Mynd you, Møøse language kan bë pretti wyrd…
The producers would like to apologize for the previous comments. The makers of the previous comments have been sacked.
Møøse länguage iß very cömplex.
The Life of Brian opening titles are also worth a mention. It's a big epic-flavored James Bond opening title pastiche.
And speaking of James bond pastiche opening credits, Spy Hard's opening credits (with music by Weird Al Yankovic) are pretty much the only part of that movie worth seeing.
@@Swenglish life of Brian is a brilliant movie
That Saul Bass quote makes all the sense in the world when you watch the Dead Pool Opening sequence. That sequence told me exactly what kind of movie I was about to watch.
The reason for the big, very expensive end credits for MCU movies is to keep audiences attention on the screen for the credits scene and the post credits scene.
Seriously. I thought it was a bad example for ‘elaborate sequence at the end instead of front of the movie’. MCU movies are the only movies where when the lights came on, everyone but 10 people stayed in their seats and those 10 stayed in the stairs when they noticed everyone still sitting...
That's where I disagreed with Patrick. My friends and I are always glued to the screen, we may whisper one or two things but we keep our attention all the time. But just like Patrick I also like to see who has top billing and dop, plus waiting for the post credits we play finding either weird or familiar names, like did you know that Josh Peck is credited as assistant for Chris Evans in Infinity War?
But, as Patrick pointed out, some M.C.U. movies do have opening title sequences and people still stay for the extra scenes.
@@VicenteTorresAliasVits I haven't seen all of them since they were in theaters, but aren't the only ones to have a proper title sequence the GoTG movies? I can't remember any others.
@@topgun2580 "The Incredible Hulk," "Iron-Man 2" and "Black Widow."
"Sometimes audiences have... dumb opinions." Right about here is when I hit the like button.
@@ryansmith-jr4gnthat's where i hit you
Scott Pilgrim is an excellent example and I'm glad you included it. I'll also throw in The Great Muppet Caper as a great meta sequence, with one of my favorite quotes about credits -
Fozzie: "Nobody reads those names anyway, do they?"
Kermit: "Sure! They all have families."
Also, every time you talk about "ritual," I kept expecting you to mention the concept of the Magic Circle of play. You described it very well even if you didn't say that that's what you were describing.
One of my favourite opening title sequences: *Napoleon Dynamite*
They display credits printed on objects that the characters would use, shot in a top-down birds-eye-view set to "We're Going to Be Friends" by The White Stripes
It wasn't included until after the film was acquired for distribution and I'm SO glad they included it because it sets the audience for what to expect from the movie
Great call on that one! I can still hear it clearly and see the way the corndogs and ketchup are arranged in my minds eye. Cute ways that a woman trying to raise a family in a small town might try and add some joy and fun in the day, just a bit. It's nice.
"The To Do List" had credits on objects in the protagonist's room, camera whipping from object to object, set to 2 Live Crew's "Me So Horny".
YES! I loved Napolean Dynamite's opening. Sometimes clever trumps fancy
Considering this with Black Widow. That's one of the only MCU films with a title sequence and PEOPLE NOTICED. They went wild for the intro even though it wasn't flashy animation and the music wasn't even an iconic theme, it was a cover of "smells like teen spirit". It was insanely basic and people went nuts for it, I would argue it made the film feel more cinematic than other entries.
Yeah that opening credits scene gave me hope but for me at least the rest of the movie didn't live up to the opening credits promise which reminds me of X-men Origins Wolverine in retrospect.
Man that Spiderman theme never fails to get me right in the heart
Love that opening with the credits swishing past you in surround..
Honestly, even though Lawrence of Arabia's credits are one of those then-standard "text over mostly static image" types of credits sequences, I find that it's one of the best examples of "credits as overture" that you mentioned. That majestic main theme as Lawrence gets ready to ride his motorcycle, auggh I just love it. The Spider-Man trilogy and Casino Royale are some of my other favourite credits sequences. That Chris Cornell theme song fuckin slaps.
Lawrence of Arabia actually has an overture too tho before the opening credits
@@poprocks187 Oh right, that's true too. It has been a little while since I last saw it. I just remembered how perfect that opening bird's eye shot of him as he gets ready to ride his motorcycle to the tune of the main theme was.
2 I think that have the same effect from the last couple of years while also setting up the movies are Enter the Void and The Neon Demon. The Neon Demon’s vivid, highly artificial colors against a concrete wall not only create an interesting color and texture over the credits but when paired with Cliff Martinez’s eerie synth music, it also fits the aesthetic and theme of the film, the artifice of beauty and the coarse, grimy reality underneath along with evoking the 80s slashers and Giallo films the movie is working off of. Enter the Void’s slingshots you into the movie and prepares you for the sensory overload with its music and strobe titles where each crew member gets their own unique typeface and makes it so that you don’t get a minute to catch your breath until the movie is over and you have to leave the theater. Climax takes this a step further and puts them in different spots in the movie to basically act as chapter transitions where the film changes stylistic format but saves the main crew credits right before the big trip takes place and the film’s true conflict begins
Patrick, why are you not putting your Patreon credits at the start of your videos? I want you to set the mood for the video I’m about to watch with an elaborate opening credit scene!
Meanwhile, Tarantino is just happy to have time for another banging song
And Pulp Fiction, where the title rises up like the sun?? 😍 Plus, it's got two theme songs!
And an Intermission!
I loved the fact that Black Widow had opening credits.
It's even better on the re-watch. My fav is Deadpool.
I despised the opening credits sequence to that movie (what the fuck was that Nirvana cover lmao) but now that you mention it I do respect the fact that it was there
I think Black Widow required an opening sequence because of the time jump.
Title sequences often do this. Acting as a montage to fill in the background information or skip forwards in time.
Star Trek: The Motion Picture has an absolutely gorgeous overture that is worth listening to by itself. I remember seeing TMP in a theater when it opened and being floored even then, having never heard Horner's Trek score before.
Also: I'm not bothered by the elaborate post-film credits of (say) the MCU stuff. But I'm also the sort of viewer who won't stir from their seat until the last of the credits roll. Those people worked hard to get their names up there!
Not to mention the post credits sequence (or not) dilemma now.
TMP was Goldsmith, not Horner. Horner was TWoK.
TMP gets a lot of hate, and I'm not sure why. It's not a perfect movie (none are) but the music is great, and the story is the essence of Star Trek to me. The JJ Abrams Star Trek feels like a dumbed down generic space action movie. It made me want to go back and rewatch TMP, and boy did I enjoy every minute!
Hard agree. I watch TMP about once a year just to look at it and listen to it. If you settle in to just mellow out and appreciate the aesthetic of the film, it's such a rewarding time.
I don't remember the titles for Star Trek: the motion picture, BUT; I do remember the iconic score!
Most of the Trek films have had very good scores.
I actually love the Main on End title sequences as a chance to have the score shine, act as an epilogue and sort of segway the mind back into the real world from the trance like suspension of disbelief that a good film should put the viewer into.
If you want to talk about memorable theme music and title sequences, you need to mention Terminator 2. Sends chills down my spine even today.
I agree. I went back to look at a few movies that I *thought* had interesting title sequences to realize that they were only a few short but powerful seconds. But T2 was by the best of the last 30 years. Even going back to the 80s, I was surprised how many films had no title sequence whatsoever (like Robocop).
It's a genuinely memorable part of the film. I heard and saw it in my head as soon as I read your comment.
DUN DUN DUN DA-DUNN! DUN DUN DUN DA-DUNN!!
Seeing the “road show” version of Hateful Eight in 70mm was a great experience. Hearing the projector start up, the overture, the opening title sequence, the intermission; it made it all exciting again.
Title sequences at the start of the film serve a purpose, in setting the tone and expectations about the film. Ending title sequences serve a purpose as well, though. After a thrilling end, sometimes you want to dwell in the world just a little bit longer, feel the catharsis extended. This is what I felt with Black Panther and Shang Chi, wondering in awe at their art and passion. If these title sequences had been placed at the start of the film, I would have been robbed of the same emotion.
Not sure I agree. Spider-man 1 has some pretty impressive opening titles and I feel that if those were at the end I wouldn't appreciate them as much.
My favorite ending title sequence has to be Buckaroo Banzai. I can't think of another credits that I'd go watch all on its own.
I agree. The Main on End sequence allows the mind to segway back to reality after the suspension of disbelief. Title sequences sort of do the opposite. They prime the audience for the film; while end titles ease them out.
Which is more effective has a lot to do with the style and tone of the film.
Guardians of the Galaxy use opening sequences to thrust the audience into the lighthearted comedic action. The Winter Soldier and Civil Wars' end sequences hold the viewer inside the story just a bit longer to allow the score and visuals to linger. The Avengers' closings are, except Infinity War, bombastic restatements of how awesome the heroes are.
Yup, I don't think it's a case of only one being good or bad, they are both great for different things. It's just a shame that mostly we seem to have lost the starting ones
The thing is that you can't replace them, all of the Marvel credits at the end are meant to be between the end of the film and the mid credit scene. They would need to do new ones that better fit the tone of the opening for them to be at the beginning, case in point, Black Widow's opening title
I'm calling it now. That spider-eyed being sitting next to Charl on that desk is an Easter egg for the finale.
i thought that to. it's great old one charl.
Couldn't stop looking at it the whole video...
15:00 I think he's overlooking something here, which is what makes this my own favorite type of opening credits: It's *character* focused. Sure, there's no plot conveyed, but watching Peter Quill abuse the local wildlife while jamming out says a lot about who he is. Then V2's titles establish its emotional core: the crew's protective relationship to Baby Groot, as an introduction to the overall parenting theme.
Or in more down to Earth movies, you can put the credits against a character doing a mundane activity, like traversing an airport or getting ready in the morning. The "action" has little to no plot value, but HOW they do these things can completely establish their character before they even say their first line of dialogue. You might even be able to slip in some larger themes in the scenario.
(For that matter, even Temple Of Doom is more thematic than he seems to credit it: "Anything goes." Literally. By itself, opening an Indiana Jones movie with a musical number is the last thing people expect. Then the lead botches a move. It even includes reversed shots so the showgirls can do impossible choreography, even though this is supposed to be a diegetic performance. Anything goes.)
I love the opening titles to Catch Me If You Can because, in addition to the cool score, they're like a visual overture.
Also Mission: Impossible: Ghost Protocol's "Tonight, on Mission: Impossible" clips from coming scenes while the fuse burns around them is brilliant, love it.
Y’know the anime medium is keeping the art of opening credits quite alive these days
Since anime is becoming more and more popular among kids these days, I can’t wait to see the kind of films the future generation of filmmakers will bring.
Dude, like, here in Latin American, Anime has been really influential, and we Love listetin and watching Opening sequences.
They're on their own a form of art.
@@FrankQuijada Yeah, it's funny how anime only started becoming mainstream in the US with Attack on Titan, but anime has been quasi-mainstream in Latin America since the 90's.
@@gerunkwon2598 I have hope in future filmmakers.
@@MaxIronsThird anime has been mainstream in the US and Western European countries for far longer than since the release of attack on Titan. The release of Akira (1988) can be mostly accredited to bringing anime to a much wider audience in those countries, though other 1980/1990s shows also had a large impact (eg cowboy bebop, 1998)
Temple of Doom’s opening credits… *chef’s kiss*
May I just say these "non episode" videos have been an absolute delight and now I can't wait to watch them. Patrick holding forth on something of interest is an enjoyment unto itself.
Title sequences are the bomb, they're even dying in Television 😰
Just "skip into" on most streaming services these days. We're going to get to that point.
Though arguably the once per week release cycle may save the opening credits, as it can get you hyped. When binging a show the opening title can get old fast.
“Skip Intro?” I will not, thank you very much!
A Man never skips the Game Of Thrones Intro. Even on "Whatchers in the Wall" where like 4 names are listed
I certainly hope not. I love how weird some of them can get
I feel like with tv it's not really dying so much as it's splitting, titles sequences are either long and elaborate (e.g. True Detective, Game of Thrones) or they're really short (e.g. Agents of Shield) I feel like there's very little middle ground with say a 30-ish second title sequence anymore
I remember very well the interaction between projectionist, curtains, cartoons, and newsreels. In the seventies cinemas still had special interest programming, and a short. Then the curtains were closed, the lights dimmed, and the "overture" started. The curtains were an obvious cue to settle down and shut up. The curtains opened, and the movie started simultaneously. In Kograh cinema (Sydney, Australia) the organist was an active part of the proceedings until the mid eighties. Their medley of movie themes often linked up a double feature, and they finished the show with a wave to the audience, and riding the Wurlitzer as it revolved and descended into the stage floor -- to applause, of course. Good times!
The opening titles for "Superman" 1978, on a big screen. I saw it that way recently, and it is so grand, and epic with John Williams score. I'll admit, I teared up a bit.
Once Upon a Time in the West would be a worse movie without its incredible opening title sequence!
Maybe not because the scene right after were Frank and his men gun down that family is just as brilliant
But i see your point thoh
Sergio Leone movies have some amazing title sequences
The classic Disney films, the ones from Walt Disney's lifetime, had such wonderful opening credits' sequences!
I feel similarly about skits and interludes on music albums. This is something that predominantly appears in Hip Hop while most other music genres skip it entirely. It's not strictly necessary, but it adds some dimension and layers to the world of the album with some featuring radio stations or phone calls in between that tell a story alongside the album.
A Tribe Called quest would have a woman giving brief insights or inputs between songs with a digitized voice. Many years later Logic would have one of his albums start with her last words as a way to set them in a similar universe. Snoop Dogg would have his album playing on WBALLS Radio and Eminem would have angry phone calls from his manager.
Unless you count intros like the one in Shrek, my first title sequence experience was probably Monsters Inc. At the time, I'd seen so few/never seen any like it that I thought it was a thing only Monsters Inc did in that specific way.
I love hearing you talk about esoteric film stuff. I could listen all day. And completely agree on credits and overtures! Bring 'em back!
Patrick referenced The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo’s title sequence (which still owns my freaking LIFE and makes me so sad we never got to see Fincher fulfill the easter eggs that are in it) but I think The Social Network does the Overture part really well, even though we have the cold open with Mark and Erica beforehand. I never skip it and am totally willing to watch Mark run through the Harvard campus with Hand Covers Bruise playing in the background.
Fincher movies consistently have great title sequences. I'd put Se7en as his best.
Surprised you didn't mention the role Star Wars played in the fall in popularity of title sequences. While the crawl essentially serves the same artistic function you talk about in this video, Lucas didn't want to list any names until the end to create immersion into the world. He was actually fined for continuing to do this in Empire Strikes Back because it went against DGA rules at the time. He ended up leaving the DGA which was why he couldn't hire Spielberg to direct Return of the Jedi.
How comes he "hired" Spielberg to direct the Indiana jones movies then? And it's very unlikely that Spielberg would ever direct a Star wars movie anyway. He has always claimed that Star Wars isn't anything he is interested in.
@@karlkarlos3545 probably has something to do with Raiders having credits at the beginning
@@1080TJ But many of Spielberg's own films don't have credits at the beginning.
Watchman’s opening credits tricked me into thinking it was a better movie.
JJ Abrams is only good at beginning things, but Zach Snyder is only good at literally beginning things.
This is true about most Zack Snyder movies tbh.
I’m genuinely curious why people hate that movie so much if someone feels like explaining it to me. Other than the violence being glamorised and the ending. It not including the aliens hoax..,👽
@Carolina Fantaccini I guess what I’m after are tangible reasons. I was obsessed with the film when I was younger haha and I still think it more or less tells the same story and was filmed in a very accurate and cinematically engaging way. It seems there is a lot of hate for the film but it’s never exactly pinpointed why it gets such a bad wrap! Stylistic the visuals alone were enough reason for me to enjoy it and it being my first exposure to the story (having gone back and revisited the og version later) so maybe I started at the wrong place?)
@@quasarulas3968 I wish I could put it more eloquently, but the reason why it's not good is cause Snyder pictures them as God's in slow motion, when Alan Moore always pictured them as fractured and not exactly the people you want as superheroes
I think that they should serve a purpose, be it establish a tone, theme, style, but there are movies thay greatly benefit from not having a title sequence so I think they shouldn't be used always.
Just read the title and thought, “hell yeah!”
The Adventures of Tintin are a dark horse pick for the greatest title sequence of all time.
Spielberg hired an amateur after he saw his fan-edit on CZcams.
Instantly came to my mind.
Credit for Catch Me If You Can too, which was also Spielberg and pretty similar.
the opening credits for Bullitt are insane. i can’t even imagine how long it took to cut in a pre-computer era
Thank you very much for giving some love to title sequences !!
As a graphic designer they are a joy to watch for me (one of my favourites will always be the opening sequence to Scott Pilgrim vs The World) but I would also add that, as a moviegoer, I like that they allow a smooth transition between the 10 to 15 minutes of ads and trailers (as it is here in France, don't know about the US) and the actual movie. We might not have cartoons and newsreels before the film but having a few minutes to give your full attention to the movie before the actual narration starts is often really enjoyable.
This is part of the reason I love this year's Black Widow film so much. The fancy credits portion was put near the start of the film after the pre-title flashback sequence.
I think opening credits in shows are possibly even sadder to see leave since it's a more recent trend of having super short boring title screens and we lose iconic bangers we can jam to before the show starts.
Edit: I just finished the last part of the video and the part about memorable scores and title sequences makes a lot of sense now and is equally as important.
The only place I still see it done well now is some cartoons and most anime
@@najee_eee Yeah anime is keeping opening credits very alive. I have playlists of them lol
@@najee_eee ......and most of Western live-action television. Breaking Bad, The Walking Dead and Game of Thrones' music wouldn't be as recognized as they are now without their opening title sequences.
@@theobuniel9643 those are exactly examples of title sequences that could be way better especially Breaking Bad since I haven't seen GOT. BB's title sequence is so short and doesn't show much visually. The only reason why that one is remembered is because the show is so good not because the title sequence matches that quality.
The title sequence for the MCU movies are the Marvel Studio logo. This is the theme we remember, and the "transition" from real life to the movie. It does tell a lot about Marvel intentions : it came only after the MCU was well established and it clearly communicates the idea that "this is a Marvel experience" first and foremost (and not a genre or an author’s piece or whatever else).
I /just/ connected why there are shorts in front of animated movies like Frozen (whose short blew me away). In my head I'd told myself it was because Disney had the old Mickey cartoons in front of their movies, not because all movies had versions of that as part of the theater experience (although I should've put it together based on drive-in theater experience clichés).
A film’s opening title sequence is equivalent to the overture for an opera or musical.
I think a big reason why Marvel movies and their imitators have these elaborate end credits sequences is that they know the audience is going to sit through them to see the after-credits scenes.
We sort of have similar things?
- games and ads and 'interviews' before movies (I especially like ones that make use of your phone)
- trailers
Neither of which are Art™️ like that, but when I went and saw Shang-Chi, my first movie since covid, I did find myself giving a little sigh as I recognized how much I missed these (sometimes stupid, ad-driven) parts of my theater-going experience.
There was an interview with Jerry Bruckheimer where he stated that he would never produce Pirates of the Caribbean if he relied on the results of polls and focus groups because no one would show any interest in pirate movies as is. Guess, the same thing is with title sequences. If the movie is great the audiences will accept it whether it has opening title sequence or not.
omg that's exactly the thought i had when i saw that title sequence of no time to die a few days ago. what rare but beautiful experience to see a gorgeously produced animation set to a great original song in cinema.
I mean, clearly opening title sequences have at this point completely moved over to prestige television, right? Just recently saw the pilot for Apple TV's new big budget adaptation of the Foundation books - the opening credits are as elaborate as any Bond intro I've ever seen. And it's pretty much the norm at that production level. Patrick asks at the beginning of the video to think of a favorite credits sequence; how many of you thought of the Game of Thrones intro?
True but when it comes to streaming, most people will press the “Skip Intro” button to get to the episode.
I mean, my immediate thoughts were BTAS and Cowboy Bebop, so
Westworld's intro is pretty amazing.
One of the things GoT opening had was that it changed overtime. It was both a sneaky prologue and showed the vast geography of the setting. Each time a new location is visited it's also shown visually and geographically in the title sequence.
Anime does this to an extent: having a new title every season; or even more frequently, to reflect changes in cast or shifts in tone.
@@melissaharris3389 I specifically thought of Game of Thrones when watching The Witcher, and not following where any of these kingdoms were. It was a brilliant move for GoT to show a MAP to the audience every episode, to remember where everything was and who everyone was
I love these. I’ve actually gotten into a the habit of watching films to the very end of the ending credits. Opening credits can really easily set a mood for a film, as the Nostalgia Critic said: ‘This your chance to have the trailer in the film.’ It’s also a good chance to really put the credits in the audience’s collective faces. Like, when did it become acceptable to walk out of the theatre while people are being credited for their hard work? This is probably part of the reason why many films feature two sets of credits at the end, one being elaborate and animated, the other more conventional. The Simpsons Movie even lampooned this in their credits: ‘These people worked really hard on this movie and all they ask is for you to memorise their names.’ I love opening credits, it’s like a way of saying: ‘Oh, you want to watch this movie and be entertained? Well then you should at least appreciate the cast.’ That’s why I love title sequences like those of Halloween, Dr No, Inglorious Basterds, The Hateful Eight, Batman, Superman, etc. Not to mention how those films set up the natures of those films. Literally, who would skip the opening of Halloween? Plus, you can go as wild as you want. Have you seen some of these Bond titles? They get wild. Especially going into the 90s, with the advent of CGI. And they can even establish the world of the film, ie, Watchmen. That would have worked as just a montage, but it also became a way of telling you who worked on the film you’re about to watch. They especially work when you have an all-star cast. Like, imagine if Infinity War had opening credits. Just imagine the fanboy squeals as names like Robert Downey Jr, Chris Evans, Chris Pratt, Benedict Cumberbatch and Tom Holland popped up.
The best part of Black Widow is literally the title sequence!
It's weird how good the MCU is at making opening title sequences seeing as they rarely do them.
I can't agree with you more
And I remember that cover of Nirvana more than I should. I mean, the cover in itself is good but seeing it in the backdrop of this dark short story of girls being trafficked and brainwashed definitely helped. So I think Patrick is onto something
and then they butchered it with a boring mediocre plot at the second half of the movie, and basically making the title sequence useless because it set the tone that we've never got
@@wiraydh If only the David Hayter script was dusted off that had the better idea of what a Black Widow movie should be.
i'll grant that "the difference? showmanship" matches up with your script better, but it just sounds like an inferior version of Megamind's "Presentation!" scene
I truly do miss opening credits scenes, you can really get a rush of anticipation if you've seen the movie 100 times
Among very recent films, Leos Carax's Annette has a great overture sequence that sets the tone in a ritualistic way, just like you (and I) love them.
THIS IS WHAT I'VE BEEN SAYING FOR YEARS!! It's the thing that helps bring you into the film's narrative and start you on this emotional journey. I love a movie that just jumps right into the story, but it's so common now that I miss sitting through some beautiful music and credits helping me get set up for the story. SHOWMANSHIP! I love that. Keep it up WIllems!
I have been lobbying for years that what most movies today lack is that word. Showmanship. So many times do I go to the cinema and there seems to be very little excitement by the filmmakers making the movie. Part of that is the Hype-section of the title sequence. Especially in Marvel Films. There just isn't that sense of "Let me show you the world I created here, the magical splendor."... We get the fanfare of the Marvel logo, then the formalised action beats start at set intervals for a couple of hours. If the filmmakers aren't truly excited to show us their film... why should I be excited to see it?
There is really only one thing I would add to what the video has already said. That is that with the title sequence we also have the opportunity to do the cold open. Where we start the film with an exciting preview of what we can expect from the rest of the film. Then the title sequence to hammer home that yes, you are in the correct auditorium. In action films it's usually basically the climax of a movie we haven't seen yet, but it sets the tone of all things that follows and even in some cases starts off some sequence of events or some establishes something the protagonist will struggle with later on.
The most puzzling trend for me in the last little while is the idea that our entertainment should be presented in the most standard, no-frills, utilitarian manner possible. The lack of opening title sequences in major motion pictures, gritty realism and earth-tone colour palettes in AAA video games, the decline of non-synth instruments and solos in mainstream pop music, pro athletes getting criticized for scoring _too many_ points and not keeping it simple like the trash players everyone loves for some reason. Point being, this whole thing about opening credits sequences is just part of a greater trend of people wanting their entertainment experiences as austere as possible. It's depressing.
@@KibblezanBitz > the decline of non-synth instruments and solos in mainstream pop music
Bruh, Dua Lipa had a hit single that had an audible slap bass line. And Silk Sonic (Bruno Mars and Anderson .Paak's new project) has non-synth instruments spread all over their music. were they not *"REAL INSTRUMENTS!!1!"* enough for you? This is some "le wrong generation" bullshit.
Also, the decline of solos has to do a lot more with the decline of guitar music IN GENERAL in Western pop music, which is a whole other topic in of itself.
@@theobuniel9643 I only meant comparatively and in the mainstream. Relax.
"Sometimes, audiences have dumb opinions!"
Welcome to the comments section of any local TV news outlet website
This may not be high cinema, but the opening credit sequence of Short Circuit (1986) made a huge, huge impact on me in my childhood. In the age before computer animation, this fairly light-hearted family film using practical robots had a credit sequence with extreme closeups of the practical robotics laid over militaristic and digital sounding music. What an impact. But it *also* functioned as a mis-direct, in that this film ostensibly about a very dangerous malfunctioning military robot turns out to focus on a pretty sweet and innocent "toddler" who wants to understand what is sacred about life. Bonus thing I didn't understand as a kid: the sequence ends on an image of the logo of the weapons manufacturer, which is a literal robotic Vitruvian Man! Great stuff!
Disney had some amazing opening credit sequences in the 60s and 70s. My two favorites are for 101 Dalmatians - the images you see actually reflect the credits shown (spots turn into notes for the music credits, and the animation credits show the characters and backgrounds being drawn on screen) - and The Rescuers, shot from the POV of a message in a bottle, done in still pastel pictures. It's thrilling and soothing at the same time.
I couldn’t wait for No Time to Dies opening sequence and the whole audience was in complete silence I think audiences are generally starting to miss them. The opening credits make soundtracks more memorable and get me so pumped. What you said about music I think it was Bobby Burns back in the day said something similar to you and it’s very hard to find memorable blockbuster soundtracks
OMG. It is soooo good, to have Patrick back just talking about fascinating stuff, with knowledge and passion, without skits or bits or coconuts... Please, even if you go back to "narrative" episodes, every now and then give us THIS! Missed it so much and loved the last couple of episodes so much! ❤
A problem with modern theaters is we do get a lot before a movie - ads, trailers, ads to buy popcorn, messages to turn off our phones and more ads. While I love title sequences*, I can see why many folks just want to get to the movie. I hope the rise in seat reservations helps alleviate that.
*I love trailers too, but honesty CZcams is a better place to watch them now.
Patrick: I’m gonna take a break from work… by doing more work
I love all the title sequences from Daniel Craig James bond series, pure art
The Craig-era title sequences have mostly been overseen by Daniel Kleinman (who has been doing the 007 titles since Goldeneye). Quantum of Solace was the only work not done by him I think, being made instead by the motion graphics gurus at MK12.
It was a genuine pleasant surprise to see opening credits with _Black Widow_
Great essay! One thing: Marvel probably puts their fancy animation at the end to make you stay for the post credits scene
22:03 let's just appreciate the fact that Pat put Creed in this
And then the record scratch
The first thing I thought of when I saw the notification was Casino Royale :D I have seen and listen to that intro so many times since I found it last year.
The original (1967) version was a great entry drug to Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass.
Yep me too. Absolutely CR 2006 is a brilliant sequence
Panic room. Charade. Footloose. Grease. Psycho. I love a good opening credit that really sets the stage.
I suggested this to Patrick on Twitter so glad he made it!!
Great video as always!
I love the fact that some opening and closing titles can be so good they even outshine the movie their in.
X-Men Origins Wolverine. That opening showed so much promise
gawsh. i forgot how much danny elfman made me feel THINGS. it was a 2 second snipped and i got goosebumps.
As someone who's been concerned about the lack of great scores in movies for a while now, I hadn't directly made the link to title sequences, but this is so true, we need that time to get into the world and familiarise ourselves with the themes of the story! Fantastic video
Really liked the lighting setup and colour grading in this video!
When they do title sequences they should show just the people who worked behind the scenes and not the actors so we can appreciate the work and craft and appreciate the acting/actors at the end
The first Matrix in 1999 introduced me to what would be my favorite production studios of all time that’s Warner Bros. I still love it to this day, and I would never miss the intro Credit of any movie produced by WB. All the titles from 2001 A Space Odyssey to Blade Runner and now DC movies like Batman and Aquaman are just pure art.
Yes!! The Shape of Water came right to mind. I think it's one of most memoriable scores of past decade. I remember how it captured your attention immediately during the title scene of the movie and set the mood for the film.
OMG, man, i'm so in love with your style of quotes!
I love this part of the movie, but if the "WB logos" "THX logos" "Universal logos" uniqly modified for that particular movie, that is the dark chocolate dipped cherry on top!!!
I would definitely add The Avengers theme to the list of memorable superhero scores, you can probably ask random people to hum it and they'd be able to without thinking.
Possibly because Silvestri's arrangement for the superhero team is one of few reoccurring leitmotifs in the whole MCU which also helps make it memorable. Even when one of the score composers establishes an identifying theme for an individual character in a Marvel film, the next composer often skips on the opportunity to re-use the same one with that character's next MCU appearance.
This was an amazing video..thanks for sharing. Loved it..
I love the "So long and thanks for all the fish" title song in the HHGG movie!
George Lucas had no opening credits in Star Wars, and got bounced from the Directors Guild because of it.
Its interesting because the Star Wars films have a specific stylized opening that fulfills the same function that opening credits usually do. We get the text "a long time ago in a galaxy far far away...." and then the title of the movie followed by a text craw to draw us in and help us discover the world. It sets the tone of the movie remarkably well. Plus back before disney got a hold of Star Wars, the fox logo used to play which helped serve as a sort of signal that the "curtains were opening" so to speak.
@@galactic85 yes, it draws you into the world, but it doesn't list the director, producer, key players, etc. Which, I suppose, doesn't always really matter.
20 seconds in and I wholeheartedly agree
These last few episodes have been really great. Keep 'em coming!
Films within the past 10 years with the best opening credits sequences
-Godzilla 2014 (soft shout out to the 1998 Roland Emmerich version, better than you remember)
-Kong: Skull Island
-The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
-Batman V Superman + Army of the Dead
-The Adventures of Tintin
Also Man on Fire has a hugely underappreciated one. RIP to the legend Tony Scott
This whole video is a elaborate "I went really hard on the opening titles of my movie and I need to justify that I spent almost 10 minutes of the film on it and didn't want to cut my work" isn't it?
I know this is going to sound weird but I just started my second year at university studying film and TV production and literally my first assignment is to create an intro title sequence for a film or TV show, lowkey feels a little surreal lmao
Mmmmmmm... Fight Club.
That long tracking shot from inside the brain all the way out the nose to that resting shot of Edward Norton with the gun in his mouth with that Dust Brothers soundtrack just kicking off. Such a distinct mood setter.
I love how Gone in 60 Seconds title sequence hypes you up. The movie is brainless action fun and style but that opening is so enjoyable
Also: I know I'm not the only one who enjoys the pre-film advertisements and trailers cinema experience
I do not like trailers before a movie because they're loaded with spoilers and sometimes show a movie's entire plot in order. 1917 would have been amazing if I hadn't seen the entire film (practically) in the trailer.
yeah I actually stopped to watch trailers a little bit before the pandemic begun, so I'm having trouble with those when I go to the cinema today. I mean, I do NOT want to see the trailer for Dune! Geez!
Here's the thing: I love well-done title sequences. Visually interesting, just the right length, good score etc. But most title sequences were never like that. Most title sequences were a slog - boring, long, drawn-out affairs. You got the gist, and the emotion they were going for, in the first 30 seconds and then the emotion gradually gave way to boredom and impatience as they just went on and on and on - seemingly forever.
Like most things, title sequences can be done well. And sure, if you've got a good title sequence, by all means stick it in your movie. But don't "bring back title sequences" just for having them back. Don't have a title sequence "just because". If you can't do anything good or interesting with it - and I agree most examples used here are good and interesting - just do like Nolan and skip them.
You make a real compelling argument. Thank you so much for the work you've done with this video.
The BEST version of these sequences, is when the visuals are actually informing the narrative. Not just eye-candy. "Bullit" is a great example of this.
I've never thought about this. I have a much harder getting into movie that don't have titles sequences (basically movie that are in this era). Versus back when I was younger and whenever I watched older movies they were much easier to get in the groove. Plus you convey all the important bits in a movie in a creative way. They definitely need a comeback.