The Art of the Title Sequence

Dec 5, 2008

The Usual Suspects

The Usual Suspects contact sheet
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Sine waves shimmering upon a black harbor on an elegant loop. The music a string orchestra (a quartet?) piano and bell.

USA/Germany | 1995 | Color | 2.35:1 | English/Hungarian/Spanish/French

Extras

Image Extra iconCommentary excerpt with composer and editor John Ottman.

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(From the The Usual Suspects: Special Edition DVD and Blu-ray)

Credits

Title Designer: John Ottman

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Category: Film

Tagged:

  • gotta love post-rationalisation. how about the fact that it simply refers to the wharf where shit goes down in the movie.

    it sets mood. job done.
  • watching it just now, and realizing that it looks like sine waves, you could totally think of it as lines on a polygraph, which totally adds a whole new depth to it.
  • I agree that it is a good moodbuilder. For those who have seen the movie, you could relate the silky smooth water to the silky smooth criminal who isn't quite the usual suspect.
    Ofcourse it is boring compared to title like "thank you for smoking", but then again it is about chosing a appropiate title. So saying it is boring is just too easy and lacks insight.
    Great stuff, keep them titles coming.
  • In my top five favorite films.
    Yes these titles could have been a little more. Mainly the title of the film, perhaps white or blood red.
  • Saint
    Good title sequence. The dark water with little light is a perfect mood builder for the mystery of the film.
  • Navigator
    Simple and elegant. A fine title.
  • nlx
    Borring title sequence IMHO.
  • Bill
    A fantastic movie, but knowing the ending makes it not as good on subsequent viewings.
  • Glad to see Singer stopped the egotistical practice of including a title card that read "Bryan Singer's Film," especially since none of his films since have reached Suspect's level of awesome.
  • One of my all time favorite films. Great to have a comment from Ottman!
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