Everyone seems to have a favorite Saul Bass opening credit sequence. Lord knows, the man did so many and with so much ingenuity it's easy to see why so many claim his credit sequences as their favorites but it also presents the problem of which one to choose. With such credit sequences as Vertigo, Anatomy of a Murder, North by Northwest and Walk on the Wild Side on his resume it's a veritable cornucopia of title sequences from which to choose. And while it's hard to deny those, especially that slinking black cat from Walk on the Wild Side, I have to go with Bunny Lake is Missing for my own personal favorite.
One of the factors in my choice, aside from the obvious, which is to say the fantastic tearing away motif, is probably that I like Bunny Lake more than Walk on the Wild Side what with its twists and turns, Keir Dullea on the swingset and Noel Coward in one of the most entertaining supporting performances of the sixties. And of course there's Laurence Olivier, walking through all of it with his kitchen sink accent, the kind he used in his cameo in The Magic Box or in his role of Archie Rice in The Entertainer, the kind where he tries to sound as if he isn't completely refined and sort of succeeds. And I'm not being derisive, I love Olivier's kitchen sink accent, even if it never quite pulls off the deception. It has a wonderfully rugged flatness about it that's entertaining just to listen to.
Back to the credits. I love them enough that they even inspired one of my favorite banners of the nearly 400 I've made here at Cinema Styles, this one here. Anyway, enough of this talk. The credits speak for themselves... and here they are.
16 comments:
Great choice!
Thanks Paul.
Walk on the Wild Side is mine because it has something this one doesn't - pitch-perfect music by Elmer Bernstein.
and YES, Bunny Lake Is Blogging is a classic that will live longer than this movie.
It can't live on past the movie. It doesn't have Keir Dullea saying "Higher! Higher!" like a five year old in the swing at the end. That's unbeatable.
I find Keir Dullea swoonworthy, so I prefer to forget that characteristic indignity Odious Otto put him through.
I almost forgot Otto's your favorite director.
Damn Nazzi!
Hey Greg, I actually just saw this film for my first time in the last few weeks. Wonderful opening credits, absolutely!
I also wanted to mention another fave Bass sequence of mine, THE MAN WITH THE GOLDEN ARM.
Great pick, Greg!
Jeffrey - Saul Bass did one terrific title sequence after another. Just amazing in his consistency of quality and originality.
Greg, totally agreed! Think there's anyone even close to him in terms of credit sequence design and accomplishments?
Not that I know of. He even has parodies of his style, the ultimate in recognition. Check out the Star Wars Saul Bass parody credits on YouTube.
Greg, I'll definitely look at some of that on YouTube. Such a great talent!
Greg, one more reason to love Bunny Lake is Missing: The Zombies on the tele in the resto-bar scene. The Zombies have always been one of my favorite British Invasion bands, and leave it to Otto to get them into his film in such an odd way.
Yeah, I love seeing "The Zombies" on the credits themselves. The name immediately sticks out from everything else.
Bunny Lake is Missing is so awesome (save for the last 5 minutes and the whole of Kier Dullea's acting) and I, too, love Olivier's kitchen sink accent!
Kendra
blog.vivandlarry.com
Dullea does kind of overplay the part doesn't he? And the last five minutes becomes a little silly it's true but I still love it. And Olivier is always interesting.
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