Title Sequence Analysation

Gold finger

The sequence from Goldfinger works very well. Effects are used so that images of others can be seen within the outline of other’s faces, bodies and hands. Shots fade slowly to black, and the shots only take up ½ of the screen, leaving space for the text of the credits.

The sound track has been especially composed for the film, which is a particularly nice feature, and the sequence starts in the way that it ends.

The title sequence is quite long, which could make the audience lose interest.

How We Built Britain

The title sequence from ‘How We Built Britain’ is very effective, as the producers have found buildings or structures in the shape of the letters that make up the word ‘Britain’. These buildings have then been filmed using an aerial shot, and then edited together in the correct order. The closing frame shows stills of the buildings cut together and placed side by side to make the word ‘Britain’.

In addition, the last few letters feature the same car driving through the scene, which adds continuity to the sequence. The only bad thing about this title sequence is the fact that each shot is shown for a very short period of time, so if someone started watching part way through, they may not fully understand the action.

Blue Valentine

The title sequence for this film begins with a black screen for 11 seconds, with just non-diegetic music playing, which adds a sense of mystery to the scene. The scene then explodes into life with a firework, and a still of two characters is overlaid onto the scene. The use of the fireworks onto a black screen adds to the sense of mystery.

The disadvantage of this sequence is that the non-diegetic music is quite boring, and does not capture the audience’s attention. I personally found this title sequence quite boring, and didn’t want to continue watching after half way through.

Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events

The title sequence for Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events is an animated sequence targeted at children. The scene begins with a fade from black, with the Director’s name in the centre of the shot in white text. Then, an animated scene of a boat on waves appears, with the name of someone involved edited onto each wave.

Continuity editing is used to take the audience through a scene, from a boat, into a hot air balloon and into the woods.

At 05:05, this sequence is very long, and the repetitive non-diegetic music makes the sequence very boring to watch.   

Lolita

The title sequence from Lolita features a black and white shot of a man painting a woman’s toenails. The titles appear overlaid over the woman’s foot in an italic font, and the next name appears before the one before has gone, which creates the impression of a slow moving, relaxed movie.

The fact that there is very little action on the shot draws the attention of the audience to the titles appearing on screen, and not the action occurring on screen.