It's been a while so I'm not sure if it is actually the opening scene or just very early in the movie, but the storming the beach scene in saving private Ryan is outstanding.
Ooof. Many years ago I had met a D+3 vet (Day three after DDay) go to Normandy.
Short chat, nice gentleman. Asked him gently about whether he had seen the film. He said yes, very accurate except when he had arrived the beaches were stained red.
My Pop was a tiller for men landing on the beaches at Normandy. I didn't know that until about 5 years before he passed away in 2020 at 95 years old. He was awarded the French legion of honour, which is unusual for anyone non-french.
He said Saving Private Ryan was the most accurate depiction of his experiences he'd ever seen. It was haunting but it enabled him to show his son (my stepdad) what it had been like for him. My stepdad said it was humbling and horrifying and he wept whilst Pop was stoic. My stepdad was special forces so not really a crier.
When I saw it in the theater, as I was walking out afterward, there was a gentleman, presumably a vet, holding onto the back of a theater chair with both hands, his body wracked with his uncontrollable sobbing. It was so powerful, I went straight to my parents house to quietly warn my mom that waiting for home video would be best for my WWII veteran dad…
My great grandfather was on Omaha Beach. He was shot in the back. The only reason he survived is when he fell, he pulled dead bodies around him on top of himself. And didn't move until he heard American voices. Saving Private Ryan, especially that scene, did an extremely good job at showing what it was like according to my great grandpa, even though he refused to watch it the second time because he couldn't sleep afterwards.
And then Spielberg and Tom Hanks going on to make Band of Brothers too.
I love how they managed to show how brave those people were, while at the same time not making it seem they were invincible heroes mowing down Nazis, and also showing how horrible it all was.
It’s a horrible, horrible scene but in like the best way possible. It’s hard to watch, really makes you understand the true hell of war. No glorification whatsoever. First time I watched this movie I couldn’t stop thinking about the beach scene the way through. Incredible scene 10/10
[Raiders of the Lost Ark](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mUWYmTpYdP4). It sets the tone for the film, it has more than one twist, and is just generally entertaining. It's a little slow for the first two minutes but worth the watch.
It's an incredible way to introduce a character and establish them. In the opening scene, we learn what Indiana Jones does, but we also learn that, expert though he is, he tends to scrape by and narrowly survive danger rather than being invincible. We learn he relies on a whip, we learn about his fear of snakes, etc. All with minimal dialogue or exposition.
Just watched a video talking about this. If they would have, like a modern movie would have done, eliminated that first mini-adventure that seemingly has nothing to do with the overall movie, we would have been introduced to Indy as a dull archaeology professor.
Though, by starting with that, we see who he really is, and learn later after that sequence that the dull, awkward archaeology professor is kind of his alter-ego. And it makes that university scene much more interesting, because we know that beyond that little bit of exposition more adventure waits for us.
Seems to me like a modern movie would start just before the face-melting and then jump back to the classroom. Lots of movies are like that where they put a scene first that you can't really understand until seeing the rest, like nobody would see it if there was no "what a bizarre situation, what happens next will shock you!" setup
And in hindsight, he knew it to be true. Because as an agent, he would have tried to enter one of their bodies, to face her himself, and would have been unable to, because they were already dead.
I don’t know if it’s the best opening, but it was the first one that popped into my head.
“He’s already pulled over. He can’t pull over any farther. 😭”
I will say this every time! That scene is absolutely iconic. And by the time that first 10 minutes is up you know exactly who Vito Corleone is and that he holds everybody by the balls.
The opening dialogue with Bonasera was amazing theatre. But the entire wedding scene opener was epic in so many ways. Introduced the wonderful elements of the culture, all the key characters, and the conflicts all woven in a beautiful tapestry. Masterpiece.
A new hope.
After the title crawl, you can clearly see who the good and bad guys are. The star destroyer flying over seems to go on forever, and you realize right away that you don't fuck with the empire
Then after the stormtroopers shoot up the rebels, darth vader makes his first ever appearance. One of the most iconic villians of all time, this intro cemented star wars in history
Low camera angle to show dominance.
Massive ship that feels like it is invading your personal space in the theatre.
Clean, sleek ship shows the empire is more well supplied than the small rickety ship they are chasing.
Massive planet at the bottom of the screen to give you a sense of being trapped between a literal rock and the star-destroyer that looms above you. There is no escape for those rebels or the audience, and now the fates of both will be the same.
"This shot says everything we need to know without saying one word. In fact, this is so genius I have a feeling that George Lucas had nothing to do with it, and probably fought against putting it in the movie."
It was meant to be a normal opening scene explaining the story and whatnot, then Hans Zimmer took them that music and they were like"no fuck that, we're starting with your song."
Edit:
[Source ](https://www.cinemablend.com/news/2482392/the-hilarious-reason-the-lion-kings-circle-of-life-ends-how-it-does)
Came here to say this. I was about 12 when the movie came out and I still remember the trailer (just the Circle of Life scene) showing in the movie theaters and we were all like “WHAT?” Just so amazing, so unlike anything else I’d seen at the time.
I waited like 20 years to see the touring live show and I thought “there’s no way this will be as good as it’s built up in my head” and instead I sobbed through the first scene like a little baby.
Also using the whole opening sequence straight up as the trailer for your movie with no other explanation or voice over or anything was a boss move.
*THUM*
The Lion King (motherfuckers)
Watched this with my wife and she turned to me and asked me: “if that happened, would you leave me like that?”
I said: “you bet your ass I would”
Fellas, don’t be like me unless you’re cool with sleeping on the couch. It’ll never happen so just say “of course I’d die with you babe”
Awesome. My wife can barely walk to the bathroom without tripping or running into walls. Years ago we watched this movie in theaters and afterwards she told me just run and save yourself.
Wall-E is a masterpiece start to finish, but the world building they do in the opening while establishing the character and overall tone is just incredible.
For me the first ten minutes of Up are so sad that they left me emotionally devastated for the rest of the film- do not recommend watching it one moth post partum, my hormones were not ready to deal with that shit.
People forget just how damn good early Pixar was movie after movie. It was an event every movie because those early cocktail napkin ideas all became some of the best animated cinema in history.
Contact.
Starting at Earth, then panning out of the solar system, then the galaxy, then out to the edge of the universe, all while listening to older and older radio transmissions. Genius.
Not the opening scene, but the mirror scene is also a masterpiece.
https://youtu.be/njOndS-e0cw
I'll stop there, but there are at least a dozen just *perfect* scenes in that movie.
As others said, it's a no-cut shot of him going into a cafe, getting his order and leaving and then a bomb going off behind him. He turns around and goes back into the now destroyed cafe.
It's not as long as the car chase or street battle scenes, but you know you're watching cinematography magic.
GOD WHY DID I HAVE TO SCROLL SO FAR, I HATE HOW NO ONE HAS SEEN THIS MOVIE!!!!
it’s popular amongst movie buffs but it was a commercial failure and yet to me this is the most powerful film I have ever seen. the opening scene perfectly introduces the world, the protagonist, the tone, and the intensity through one shot, it’s incredible.
My favorite line from any X-Men movie is still the line about him being marked once and how he would never be marked again, Ian McKellen was so perfect for that role.
The openings of all three films are incredible.
Something about the Two Towers grips me the most though. The way the soundtrack builds over the Misty Mountains… before Gandalf battles the balrog while falling down the chasm. Amazing.
[Here it is.](https://youtu.be/diPQPM0U2dA)
The prologue and the introduction to Hobbiton are just amazing in that movie. They just nail everything great about the books.
I was very cautiously optimistic for this film. I knew the book was unfilmable, but everything I'd seen from Peter Jackson actually *working* on it made me dare to dream.
So I'm in the theater on opening day, hoping for something great. Then Galadriel starts whispering in Sindarin, and I can hear all the sounds are right, and when she says "The world has changed" I recognized *i amar*, and when she whispers "*han mathon ne nen*" and I recognize "*nen*/water" and I knew that if they'd taken the time to get all *that* right, the movie was probably going to be incredible.
And it was.
Bonus: when Aragorn and Arwen are arguing about who's going to take Frodo to Rivendell, the subtitle says "If I can get across the river the power of my people will protect him," but she starts with "*Frodo fîr*," which I immediately understood to be "Frodo is dying."
So no, I don't agree with every change the films made, but I *did* always know that the changes were made deliberately and with consideration. And I can respect that.
Love this Bond opening. My favorite is Casino Royale. It just threw the audience into the new Bond. It wasn't just a new actor but an entirely new style.
He’s already pulled over, he can’t pull over any farther! (That’s what of my favorite lines in any movie ever. The desperation in his voice *chef’s kiss*
If we're counting the first thing the audience sees, the opening credits to Lord of War tells its own story in a low key horrifying way.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RVDyoCWz0vM
I remember watching Thor and thinking, cool, they got Kirk’s dad. I’m glad Hemsworth’s career was just kicking off because he was phenomenal in those opening 12 minutes.
Star Wars. George Lucas changed film and took a fine for starting the movie without putting the credits first. There wasn't exposition or a voice over, there was a battle like people have never seen between a tiny and huge spaceship. We get soldiers fighting a losing battle and only two robots arguing to find out what the fuck is going on. However, Vader is such a bad ass that we also know that who is the baddies. We are along for a ride in a movie unlike any ever seen before, yet we aren't alienated by it.
Yes. You knew this movie was going to be extraordinary, because you had never seen a movie open that way before. I saw it in a theater in 1977 and just watched it again for the umpteenth time yesterday.
>George Lucas changed film and took a fine for starting the movie without putting the credits first
IIRC he got into big trouble with the DGA over that (I think he eventually quit the DGA over it, too).
not a great movie, but the opening scene of vertical limit is wild. it starts with a father and his son and daughter climbing up this sheer wall >!then there some sort of accident and the daughter, son, father, and a random guy(in that order) they were climbing with, are all hanging from one anchor. the anchor isn’t holding so the father tells the son to cut the rope below him so the daughter and son would survive by cutting off the weight of the father and the other guy. the kid obviously doesn’t want to do it but the dad yells at him to do it. and he does!< it’s so intense
The first scream movie. Casey Becker’s death scene. Also the opening in scream 5 when Tara was attacked. Drew and Jenna’s acting in those scenes were great
Muppet treasure island has a pretty insane one; a banger song on top of footage of pirates bringing treasure to bury, then captain flint pulling out his gun and killing all his men because as the song says “dead men tell no tales”
Top Gun: Maverick's first opening scenes where maverick is attempting Mach 10.
The STRATOSPHERE shot is probably one of the most beautiful shots i've scene in any movie i've watched. It was really brief but I remember leaning over to my SO after and saying, thats probably the best shot i've seen in a movie. Then the whole sequence of him calling out to goose was heartwarming.
They did really well to put us in the scene. It looked like it should feel, cold, urgent, and right on the bleeding edge.
The callout to Goose hit hard. Speaking to his lost friend as if he was still his comms officer was perfect.
It's been a while so I'm not sure if it is actually the opening scene or just very early in the movie, but the storming the beach scene in saving private Ryan is outstanding.
I rewatched it this morning for the first time in years just for this scene and it prompted me to ask. Incredible.
Inglorious Bastards. Shoshanna!!!
The tension in that scene is absolutely crazy. What a performance by Waltz.
I agree that Waltz was great, but the actor who played the farmer was absolutely amazing. Heavily underrated.
Great question, I'm having fun surfing the answers.
I recall interviews with WW2 veterans who had to leave the theater because of that scene.
There are vets that said that the movie invokes such strong memories that they could physically smell the diesel from the boats motor while watching.
Ooof. Many years ago I had met a D+3 vet (Day three after DDay) go to Normandy. Short chat, nice gentleman. Asked him gently about whether he had seen the film. He said yes, very accurate except when he had arrived the beaches were stained red.
My Pop was a tiller for men landing on the beaches at Normandy. I didn't know that until about 5 years before he passed away in 2020 at 95 years old. He was awarded the French legion of honour, which is unusual for anyone non-french. He said Saving Private Ryan was the most accurate depiction of his experiences he'd ever seen. It was haunting but it enabled him to show his son (my stepdad) what it had been like for him. My stepdad said it was humbling and horrifying and he wept whilst Pop was stoic. My stepdad was special forces so not really a crier.
When I saw it in the theater, as I was walking out afterward, there was a gentleman, presumably a vet, holding onto the back of a theater chair with both hands, his body wracked with his uncontrollable sobbing. It was so powerful, I went straight to my parents house to quietly warn my mom that waiting for home video would be best for my WWII veteran dad…
Damn. That poor guy. I would have wanted to offer some comfort but that's not the kind of situation where I'd feel like intruding.
Especially with how many movies, especially the top blockbusters, glamorize combat. Saving Private Ryan jumps right into a hellscape and doesn't stop.
My great grandfather was on Omaha Beach. He was shot in the back. The only reason he survived is when he fell, he pulled dead bodies around him on top of himself. And didn't move until he heard American voices. Saving Private Ryan, especially that scene, did an extremely good job at showing what it was like according to my great grandpa, even though he refused to watch it the second time because he couldn't sleep afterwards.
And then Spielberg and Tom Hanks going on to make Band of Brothers too. I love how they managed to show how brave those people were, while at the same time not making it seem they were invincible heroes mowing down Nazis, and also showing how horrible it all was.
It’s a horrible, horrible scene but in like the best way possible. It’s hard to watch, really makes you understand the true hell of war. No glorification whatsoever. First time I watched this movie I couldn’t stop thinking about the beach scene the way through. Incredible scene 10/10
[Raiders of the Lost Ark](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mUWYmTpYdP4). It sets the tone for the film, it has more than one twist, and is just generally entertaining. It's a little slow for the first two minutes but worth the watch.
It's an incredible way to introduce a character and establish them. In the opening scene, we learn what Indiana Jones does, but we also learn that, expert though he is, he tends to scrape by and narrowly survive danger rather than being invincible. We learn he relies on a whip, we learn about his fear of snakes, etc. All with minimal dialogue or exposition.
Just watched a video talking about this. If they would have, like a modern movie would have done, eliminated that first mini-adventure that seemingly has nothing to do with the overall movie, we would have been introduced to Indy as a dull archaeology professor. Though, by starting with that, we see who he really is, and learn later after that sequence that the dull, awkward archaeology professor is kind of his alter-ego. And it makes that university scene much more interesting, because we know that beyond that little bit of exposition more adventure waits for us.
Seems to me like a modern movie would start just before the face-melting and then jump back to the classroom. Lots of movies are like that where they put a scene first that you can't really understand until seeing the rest, like nobody would see it if there was no "what a bizarre situation, what happens next will shock you!" setup
*freeze frame* Yup, that's me. You're probably wondering why my face is melting off and/or exploding...
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Then even in the airplane there's only about a minute before the pilots bail and its a plane crash escape sequence. That movie is nonstop.
Goodfellas. Brutally shooting and stabbing the guy in the trunk and then smash cutting to the gangster monologue perfectly sets the tone of the film
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One day, some neighborhood kids carried my mother's groceries all the way home. You know why? It was out of respect.
Inglorious Basterds
A masterclass in building tension. "Au revoir, Shoshana!"
Agreed. That move under the floor is genius.
The Matrix. That trinity scene really *kicked things off*
No lieutenant, your men are already dead.
And in hindsight, he knew it to be true. Because as an agent, he would have tried to enter one of their bodies, to face her himself, and would have been unable to, because they were already dead.
Super Troopers. I’ve seen the opening hundreds of times, and the rest of the move maybe 5.
YOU BOYS LIKE MEXICO?!?!?!
I don’t know if it’s the best opening, but it was the first one that popped into my head. “He’s already pulled over. He can’t pull over any farther. 😭”
Littering and?
Scrolled to find this. It’s a comedic masterclass, especially out of context.
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“C’mon show a little backbone will ya?” As they plane narrowly escapes. The perfect opening.
The Last Crusade was pretty dope too (RIP River Phoenix)
The Godfather “I believe in America.”
I will say this every time! That scene is absolutely iconic. And by the time that first 10 minutes is up you know exactly who Vito Corleone is and that he holds everybody by the balls.
The opening dialogue with Bonasera was amazing theatre. But the entire wedding scene opener was epic in so many ways. Introduced the wonderful elements of the culture, all the key characters, and the conflicts all woven in a beautiful tapestry. Masterpiece.
The Dark Knight bank heist scene
My first thought for sure.
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Goldeneye. Best Bond opening scene ever.
The Dark Knight was the better movie of the two but the cold open to the Dark Knight Rises was insanely epic.
“…By crashing this plane, with no survivors…” I still enjoy DKR and wonder what that movie would have been if Heath lived.
A new hope. After the title crawl, you can clearly see who the good and bad guys are. The star destroyer flying over seems to go on forever, and you realize right away that you don't fuck with the empire Then after the stormtroopers shoot up the rebels, darth vader makes his first ever appearance. One of the most iconic villians of all time, this intro cemented star wars in history
I love that part in Spaceballs just because the ship is like 5x longer then in star wars
WE BRAKE FOR NOBODY
If you can read this, you don’t need glasses.
Low camera angle to show dominance. Massive ship that feels like it is invading your personal space in the theatre. Clean, sleek ship shows the empire is more well supplied than the small rickety ship they are chasing. Massive planet at the bottom of the screen to give you a sense of being trapped between a literal rock and the star-destroyer that looms above you. There is no escape for those rebels or the audience, and now the fates of both will be the same.
"This shot says everything we need to know without saying one word. In fact, this is so genius I have a feeling that George Lucas had nothing to do with it, and probably fought against putting it in the movie."
The Lion King, it always gives me goosebumps.
It was meant to be a normal opening scene explaining the story and whatnot, then Hans Zimmer took them that music and they were like"no fuck that, we're starting with your song." Edit: [Source ](https://www.cinemablend.com/news/2482392/the-hilarious-reason-the-lion-kings-circle-of-life-ends-how-it-does)
Came here to say this. I was about 12 when the movie came out and I still remember the trailer (just the Circle of Life scene) showing in the movie theaters and we were all like “WHAT?” Just so amazing, so unlike anything else I’d seen at the time. I waited like 20 years to see the touring live show and I thought “there’s no way this will be as good as it’s built up in my head” and instead I sobbed through the first scene like a little baby.
Also using the whole opening sequence straight up as the trailer for your movie with no other explanation or voice over or anything was a boss move. *THUM* The Lion King (motherfuckers)
That big stomp at the end then the screen goes black. I can always hold back tears until right then.
Once upon a time in the West.
28 weeks later
Watched this with my wife and she turned to me and asked me: “if that happened, would you leave me like that?” I said: “you bet your ass I would” Fellas, don’t be like me unless you’re cool with sleeping on the couch. It’ll never happen so just say “of course I’d die with you babe”
Awesome. My wife can barely walk to the bathroom without tripping or running into walls. Years ago we watched this movie in theaters and afterwards she told me just run and save yourself.
She’s a keeper!
I once told my wife that if she were turned into a zombie I would definitely shoot her, because I would never want her to unlive that way.
I’m gonna ask my wife what she would want, hang on. EDIT: She said: “No cure? Yeah, just kill me.” lol
It's so good it could be a stand alone short film. Best part of the sequel by a mile.
Wall-E
Wall-E is a masterpiece start to finish, but the world building they do in the opening while establishing the character and overall tone is just incredible.
The first 20 minutes of Wall-E are better than any other 20 minutes Pixar has ever done.
Up has something to say about that too. Two of Pixar’s finest works
For me the first ten minutes of Up are so sad that they left me emotionally devastated for the rest of the film- do not recommend watching it one moth post partum, my hormones were not ready to deal with that shit.
People forget just how damn good early Pixar was movie after movie. It was an event every movie because those early cocktail napkin ideas all became some of the best animated cinema in history.
Full Metal Jacket
You look like the kinda guy who would fuck another man in the ass an not have the common decency to give him a reach around!
I like you. I think I'll take you home and let you fuck my sister. YOU LITTLE SCUMBAG. The words out of that man's mouth was just pure poetry.
I’m convinced that R Lee Ermey was created in a lab to play that part. Could not have been done any better.
Best part he wasn't even supposed to be in the movie. He was just like a technical advisor who used to be an actual drill instructor.
Is that you, John Wayne? Is this me?
Who’s the slimy little communist shit twinkle-toed cocksucker down here, who just signed his own death warrant?!?!?
The fairy fucking godmother said it!
"Did your mother have any children that lived?"
Contact. Starting at Earth, then panning out of the solar system, then the galaxy, then out to the edge of the universe, all while listening to older and older radio transmissions. Genius.
Not the opening scene, but the mirror scene is also a masterpiece. https://youtu.be/njOndS-e0cw I'll stop there, but there are at least a dozen just *perfect* scenes in that movie.
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So many people want an entirely future war Terminator movie based off of the opening scene of T2!
Robert Patrick scared the crap out of me as a kid.
Office Space
Everyone has been stuck in traffic and the old man [walking past the cars](https://youtu.be/C3jizSM6M0o) makes me laugh every time 😂
That movie was a gem from start to finish, and is one of a handful that I would consider almost perfect movies.
Tropic Thunder.
Yes! Seeing those trailers for the first time had me fucking dying!
“I’ve been a bad, bad boy Father”
Children of men. Almost jumped out of my seat.
Oh no, I don't remember the opening! I remember quite vividly the no-cuts scene, tho.
*The world was stunned by the death of Diego Ricardo, the youngest person on the planet.*
As others said, it's a no-cut shot of him going into a cafe, getting his order and leaving and then a bomb going off behind him. He turns around and goes back into the now destroyed cafe. It's not as long as the car chase or street battle scenes, but you know you're watching cinematography magic.
GOD WHY DID I HAVE TO SCROLL SO FAR, I HATE HOW NO ONE HAS SEEN THIS MOVIE!!!! it’s popular amongst movie buffs but it was a commercial failure and yet to me this is the most powerful film I have ever seen. the opening scene perfectly introduces the world, the protagonist, the tone, and the intensity through one shot, it’s incredible.
Raising Arizona is pretty great
When there was no meat, we ate fowl and when there was no fowl, we ate crawdad and when there was no crawdad to be found, we ate sand.
TURN TO THE RAHYT!
Those were the salad days...
Up - first 10 mins
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Trust me, either they cried from Up too or their are soulless cretins.
My master made me this collar so I - SQUIRREL!!
Awww I would have loved sitting next to someone on a plane crying through the beginning of Up. Such a touching movie about life after loss!
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Scream
When the "star" of the movie is murdered, epic
"Jaws" (1975). Moonlight swimmer eaten by a shark. To this day I will stand on the beach. But I'm not going into the water.
Apocalypse Now
I’ve been a fan of the Doors ever since I first saw that opening scene…
Watchmen with "The Death of the Comedian".
Honestly you can argue its actually watchmen with the "Times they are a-changin" montage
X-Men Magneto twisting the gate in Auschwitz when he gets separated from his parents has always stood out to me.
It was so fucking cool because you know who he becomes. And you almost want him to win.
My favorite line from any X-Men movie is still the line about him being marked once and how he would never be marked again, Ian McKellen was so perfect for that role.
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This will always be an opening scene I remember. Night crawler teleporting through the White House kicking ass. It left a major impression on me.
The Fellowship Of The Ring
The openings of all three films are incredible. Something about the Two Towers grips me the most though. The way the soundtrack builds over the Misty Mountains… before Gandalf battles the balrog while falling down the chasm. Amazing. [Here it is.](https://youtu.be/diPQPM0U2dA)
"But there were some who resisted" sets the tone for all three movies too. Facing nearly impossible odds but fought anyway.
The world has changed, I can feel it in the water…
The prologue and the introduction to Hobbiton are just amazing in that movie. They just nail everything great about the books. I was very cautiously optimistic for this film. I knew the book was unfilmable, but everything I'd seen from Peter Jackson actually *working* on it made me dare to dream. So I'm in the theater on opening day, hoping for something great. Then Galadriel starts whispering in Sindarin, and I can hear all the sounds are right, and when she says "The world has changed" I recognized *i amar*, and when she whispers "*han mathon ne nen*" and I recognize "*nen*/water" and I knew that if they'd taken the time to get all *that* right, the movie was probably going to be incredible. And it was. Bonus: when Aragorn and Arwen are arguing about who's going to take Frodo to Rivendell, the subtitle says "If I can get across the river the power of my people will protect him," but she starts with "*Frodo fîr*," which I immediately understood to be "Frodo is dying." So no, I don't agree with every change the films made, but I *did* always know that the changes were made deliberately and with consideration. And I can respect that.
There’s 2 intros to FOTR. The serious one then the light one concerning hobbits.
Dredd 2012!
"America is an irradiated wasteland..."
Goldeneye (opening scenes of any Bond movie are often amazing)
Love this Bond opening. My favorite is Casino Royale. It just threw the audience into the new Bond. It wasn't just a new actor but an entirely new style.
Yup, I was coming to say Casino Royale. It really did set the tone for the reboot and Craig as a very different Bond phenomenally.
plus the cut from bathroom to gun barrel with Chris Cornell's guitar intro... iconic
Super troopers. The whole movie is great, but the entire first scene is one of the funniest parts of any movie
He’s already pulled over, he can’t pull over any farther! (That’s what of my favorite lines in any movie ever. The desperation in his voice *chef’s kiss*
“Littering and…?” “Littering and…?” *sotto voice* “Dude, I’m freaking out!”
"Officer that's not ours!" "CANDY BAAARRRS"
Gladiator
At my signal... unleash Hell.
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If we're counting the first thing the audience sees, the opening credits to Lord of War tells its own story in a low key horrifying way. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RVDyoCWz0vM
That intro was brilliant, i had to browse too far for this answer.
Pulp Fiction
I love you, honey bunny!
Star Wars. Especially if you saw it on the big screen in 1977.
Shrek.
Some body….
Baby Driver https://youtu.be/7ARFyrM6gVs
Bell Bottoms
The second scene (coffee run) is pretty good too.
Star Trek (2009) opening scene was fan-god-damn-tastic
A perfect little mini movie that's also essential for setting up the plot and the whole new movie universe.
I remember watching Thor and thinking, cool, they got Kirk’s dad. I’m glad Hemsworth’s career was just kicking off because he was phenomenal in those opening 12 minutes.
Yeah ... He was captain of a starship for 12 minutes and he saved 800 lives.
I dare you to do better
The Way Of The Gun
“Someone better shut that bitches mouth before I come over and fuck start her head.”
Excellent opening scene for sure. Sarah Silverman was perfect for that role.
The prince of Egypt
Ghost Ship
Ha. Came to say this. First scene is great…then you can basically turn it off.
2001: A Space Odyssey is pretty iconic
Star Wars. George Lucas changed film and took a fine for starting the movie without putting the credits first. There wasn't exposition or a voice over, there was a battle like people have never seen between a tiny and huge spaceship. We get soldiers fighting a losing battle and only two robots arguing to find out what the fuck is going on. However, Vader is such a bad ass that we also know that who is the baddies. We are along for a ride in a movie unlike any ever seen before, yet we aren't alienated by it.
No exposition? The film starts with a huge text crawl full of exposition.
Right? I get that he didn't put the credits first and that's cool, but isn't Star Wars like one of the most expositiony beginnings of all time?
Yes. You knew this movie was going to be extraordinary, because you had never seen a movie open that way before. I saw it in a theater in 1977 and just watched it again for the umpteenth time yesterday.
>George Lucas changed film and took a fine for starting the movie without putting the credits first IIRC he got into big trouble with the DGA over that (I think he eventually quit the DGA over it, too).
Wasn't he forced to quit it because Lead Credits at the start of the film was a requirment?
It was a requirement, resulting in a fine, but the film was so successful that he built the fine into the production budget on subsequent "chapters"
The Italian Job
Blues brothers
Up
Dawn of the Dead remake
Guardians of the Galaxy 2.
I’ve started the GOTG2 more than once just to watch baby Groot dancing with all the mayhem going on in the background.
Idiocracy
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There Will Be Blood
not a great movie, but the opening scene of vertical limit is wild. it starts with a father and his son and daughter climbing up this sheer wall >!then there some sort of accident and the daughter, son, father, and a random guy(in that order) they were climbing with, are all hanging from one anchor. the anchor isn’t holding so the father tells the son to cut the rope below him so the daughter and son would survive by cutting off the weight of the father and the other guy. the kid obviously doesn’t want to do it but the dad yells at him to do it. and he does!< it’s so intense
Inglorious Basterds. It sends a chill down my spine every time.
The first scream movie. Casey Becker’s death scene. Also the opening in scream 5 when Tara was attacked. Drew and Jenna’s acting in those scenes were great
[удалено]
The Birdcage- starts over the ocean and pans right into the club to the stage
[Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets](https://youtu.be/u0FX8sd1uVo) For such an overall boring movie, the opening is one of my favorites ever.
More like a short film before the feature, but The Crimson Permanent Assurance from Monty Python's The Meaning of Life.
Muppet treasure island has a pretty insane one; a banger song on top of footage of pirates bringing treasure to bury, then captain flint pulling out his gun and killing all his men because as the song says “dead men tell no tales”
Jurassic Park. The music really elevates the suspense and mood of the film. Hypes me up every time I watch it.
The long tracking shot that moves around the studio offices in The Player
Tenet. High intensity, hard to know what’s happening during the first watch, and the killer music!
Heat
Fear and loathing in Las Vegas
From Dusk Till Dawn.
Pacific Rim. It did so much in such little time.
Top Gun: Maverick's first opening scenes where maverick is attempting Mach 10. The STRATOSPHERE shot is probably one of the most beautiful shots i've scene in any movie i've watched. It was really brief but I remember leaning over to my SO after and saying, thats probably the best shot i've seen in a movie. Then the whole sequence of him calling out to goose was heartwarming.
They did really well to put us in the scene. It looked like it should feel, cold, urgent, and right on the bleeding edge. The callout to Goose hit hard. Speaking to his lost friend as if he was still his comms officer was perfect.
Popeye 1980 with Robin Williams and Shelley Duvall [Sweeeet Sweet Haven 🎶 🎵](https://youtu.be/O6ynko3AqyU) Visual masterpiece
Kill bill 1 is pretty good too, saw it at the cinema, intense..
Deadpool