What's James Bond 007 film has the best Credits and then Pre Credit Sequence for You (1 Viewer)

[Sultanofcinema]

The Maurice Binder Credits have long established a trademark, just like the James Bond theme for the entire series. On Her Majesty's Secret Service, You Only Live Twice, Diamonds Are Forever, The Living Daylights all have some of my favorite title graphics. The Pre credit sequence for Thunderball always knocked me out and maybe its because it was filmed on my Birthday 2/16/65 (actual birthday 2/16/58) at the Chateau d Anet. Lets talk about it!

 

[Tino]

For me it’s Moonraker. Not the most popular Bond film but I love it! Especially the spectacular skydiving pre credit sequence.

 

[Matt Hough]

Pre-credit sequence and main title: GoldenEye.

 

[Sam Favate]

The Spy Who Loved Me wins both pre-credit and credit sequence for me. I remember the audience holding its collective breath in that pre-title scene, and it has the best payoff ever. The credits have one of the best songs in the series and the visuals are great.

I also love the pre-credit and credit sequences of Goldfinger. Very powerful and pulls the audience right into the movie.

A+ for Thunderball too.

 

[Camps]

Yep, hard to beat Spy Who Loved Me. Moonraker's opener was great too (and then the movie slid downhill from there, save for the eye candy of Lois Chiles).

Thunderball's jet pack was fun too, albeit brief and frankly somewhat unconvincing. I actually like Goldfinger's a bit better.

 

[Sultanofcinema]

Yep, hard to beat Spy Who Loved Me. Moonraker's opener was great too (and then the movie slid downhill from there, save for the eye candy of Lois Chiles).

Thunderball's jet pack was fun too, albeit brief and frankly somewhat unconvincing. I actually like Goldfinger's a bit better.

The jetpack used in Thunderball was real. It was a Bell Air Rocket ( Bell Aerosystems Rocket Belt) on loan from NASA. Bill Suitor and Gordon Yeager did the flights and it could get very hot at times. Also when landing in the street, the power of the rocket Belt kicked up a lot of dirt and gravel on the roadway. But.... No well dressed man should be without one!

 

[Bryan^H]

The Spy Who Loved Me wins both pre-credit and credit sequence for me. I remember the audience holding its collective breath in that pre-title scene, and it has the best payoff ever. The credits have one of the best songs in the series and the visuals are great.

I also love the pre-credit and credit sequences of Goldfinger. Very powerful and pulls the audience right into the movie.

A+ for Thunderball too.

The Spy Who Loved Me 100%.

Such an iconic song, and Bond film. Perfection.

 

[Sultanofcinema]

The Spy Who Loved Me wins both pre-credit and credit sequence for me. I remember the audience holding its collective breath in that pre-title scene, and it has the best payoff ever. The credits have one of the best songs in the series and the visuals are great.

I also love the pre-credit and credit sequences of Goldfinger. Very powerful and pulls the audience right into the movie.

A+ for Thunderball too.

The Spy Who Loved Me would be the first time that James Bond (Roger) would be featured in the credits. Rick Sylvester who performed the ski jump performed it in Asgard and the jump in the film was the fifth attempt. The stunt cost Cubby $250,000.00. Not bad for a few seconds of screen time!

 

[David_B_K]

Yep, hard to beat Spy Who Loved Me. Moonraker's opener was great too (and then the movie slid downhill from there, save for the eye candy of Lois Chiles).

Thunderball's jet pack was fun too, albeit brief and frankly somewhat unconvincing. I actually like Goldfinger's a bit better.

The part that bugs me about the Thunderball pre-credit sequence is that when the Aston Martin shoots out the high pressure water, the baddies persist in staying in the line of fire of the water jet streams rather than merely sidestepping them and shooting 007. Still, it is one of my favorite sequences. The ones I like the best:

Goldfinger
Thunderball
The Spy Who Loved me
The Living Daylights
Goldeneye
Casino Royale

 

[Keith Cobby]

Pre-credits Spy, titles and theme must be OHMSS.

 

[Jonathan Perregaux]

Hard to choose your favorite child from so many good ones! Going with Goldfinger here.

I will say that the worst sequence, by far, must be Never Say Never Again. Off-brand for sure (like the entire movie), and just not visually interesting in the slightest. Even the music fails. Poor Sean Connery.

As a kid, I always scrutinized these things when they showed up on HBO or whatever because... well, of course I was trying to spot a boob! Visual suspense! Some title sequences delivered. Some (like NSNA) didn't even try.

 

[jayembee]

I can't choose a favorite main titles sequence. I love all of the Maurice Binder ones.

As for favorite pre-credits sequence, as I've said elsewhere, it's Tomorrow Never Dies. It's just thrilling as all get out. And I loved the exchange between the Admiral and M:

Admiral: "What does he think he's doing?!"
M: "His job."

Prior to that, my favorite was The Spy Who Loved Me, with that terrific ski jump and Union Jack parachute.

 

[mskaye]

Hard to choose your favorite child from so many good ones! Going with Goldfinger here.

I will say that the worst sequence, by far, must be Never Say Never Again. Off-brand for sure (like the entire movie), and just not visually interesting in the slightest. Even the music fails. Poor Sean Connery.

As a kid, I always scrutinized these things when they showed up on HBO or whatever because... well, of course I was trying to spot a boob! Visual suspense! Some title sequences delivered. Some (like NSNA) didn't even try.

Never Say Never Again is one of the great missed opportunities in cinema history. Still remember being dejected after seeing it on its opening weekend. It has a decent action sequence or two but is just off. Yes the credits are as impactful as a 1mph breeze and the music is just dreadful and wrong. The only consolation was that Octopussy was suprisingly very entertaining.

 

[Sam Favate]

Never Say Never Again is one of the great missed opportunities in cinema history.

One of my friends and I spent that summer watching all the Bond films. I’d gotten a CED player and we bought them all. Of course, we saw Octopussy in the theater and loved it, and we were so excited that we’d get to see a new Sean Connery Bond movie on the big screen, directed by Irvin Kershner no less! And, yeah, it was a let down.

 

[Dick]

Hard to choose your favorite child from so many good ones! Going with Goldfinger here.

I will say that the worst sequence, by far, must be Never Say Never Again. Off-brand for sure (like the entire movie), and just not visually interesting in the slightest. Even the music fails. Poor Sean Connery.

As a kid, I always scrutinized these things when they showed up on HBO or whatever because... well, of course I was trying to spot a boob! Visual suspense! Some title sequences delivered. Some (like NSNA) didn't even try.

I really like NSNA, but I agree with you on the points you make. The main title sequence (which doubles as the pre-credit action sequence) has terrible, desaturated color (the greens of the jungle look like pea soup) and a horrible title song (sung by Lani Hall, who I really liked when she was a member of Sergio Mendes and Brasil). I like many Michel Legrand scores, a couple among my favorites (THREE MUSKETEERS, WUTHERING HEIGHTS), but this one sucks big time.

 

[Sultanofcinema]

Hey Dick,
Had you had the opportunity to hear Legrand's
score for 1969's Castle Keep or Le Sauvage with Catherine Deneuve?

 

[Sultanofcinema]

I really like NSNA, but I agree with you on the points you make. The main title sequence (which doubles as the pre-credit action sequence) has terrible, desaturated color (the greens of the jungle look like pea soup) and a horrible title song (sung by Lani Hall, who I really liked when she was a member of Sergio Mendes and Brasil). I like many Michel Legrand scores, a couple among my favorites (THREE MUSKETEERS, WUTHERING HEIGHTS), but this one sucks big time.

Hey Dick,
Had you had the opportunity to hear Legrand's
score for 1969's Castle Keep or Le Sauvage with Catherine Deneuve?

 

[GlennC]

I always wished that once NSNA was under the same ownership as the other films that they would replace the music with some John Barry.

 

[Sultanofcinema]

I know I will suffer a lot of wrath for this.
Nothing can help Never Say Never Again. I have NEVER considered it part of the series which is is not. I have seen it twice theatrically and really despise for it for so many reasons. I remember when the "battle of the Bonds" happened and although I was at the Premiere of Octopussy, Octopussy is the OFFICIAL next Bond as part of the UA series. Connery later said he had NEVER worked on such an unprofessional production. He was called back for reshoots, which he hated even on the 60's Bonds. He NEVER liked the fact that the UA productions took up 6 months of his life and of course, the main reason was that he felt he should have been the "third" producer so he would get his fair share of the profits. This film was Sean's middle finger to Harry and Cubby. What a thanks for making a former brick layer, coffin polisher and milkman an international star. remember at the Premiere/Champagne early morning screening of this film when the shark was killed underwater and the audiences actually booed that the shark was killed?! This is how much the film annoyed folks. I would not have wanted to see Sean back as Bond after Diamonds. But when he came back for this and Diamonds, nothing seemed to matter to folks I speak with. It didn't matter how bad the production values were or how boring the film was, like NEVER, just that Sean was back. Bond jogging next to Felix, throwing urine into the face of a bad guy in a fight scene, seeing his hair different shades throughout the film due to reshoots and the close up slow-motion scene of him and Kim on the horse going over the cliff with the terrible bluescreen behind him. I was howling. I can give you a lot more facts but then this really requires a new thread so we can discuss further. But this would be what the future Bonds after Diamonds would have been like had Connery stayed on.

 

[Jonathan Perregaux]

The only redeeming thing about NSNA was it starred Clay Basket.