Sunday, November 30, 2008

Versus Number Fifteen

Pulp Fiction Opening versus Trainspotting Opening

Was amidst a pretty terrible Thanksgiving drive home yesterday, when I found myself digging through crusty Case Logic cases to find forgotten gems. After a thoroughly enjoyable 2 hours of listening to the soundtracks of Trainspotting and Pulp Fiction, a peculiar fact dawned on me- these two films have two of the coolest openings in cinematic history. Also consider that they were made in the mid-90s, when somewhat of a mini film noir-Renaissance sent shock-waves down the linearity of film making and demonstrated to budding auteurs that you can make films with grit on a relatively shoe-string budget and still be successful. Anyway, will spare you an over-blown tirade on the merits of Boyle and Tarantino's masterpieces- just thought it would be cool to share these two clips.       






Conclusion: Both are fantastic beginnings and fitting microcosms of what made this genre/ era of film so invigorating: obscure yet unforgettable music, dialogue that was as literate as it was quick, a sense of humor as dark as Vincent Vega's tie, and an unflinching eye for the most horrific of acts. Still, I pick Trainspotting's intro just because "Lust of Life" is a personal favorite song, and the narration discussing the pro's and con's of domestication is a tad more poignant of a topic of conversation than common annoyances of liquor store robberies (even if not as humorous). 

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