While it isn't as common with modern movies, fans might remember a number of live-action films featuring an animated opening sequence using various forms of animation that separated each film and made them all the more memorable.
Some animated openings became more memorable than the movies themselves, either through the unique characters created within or the storytelling that occurred in an opening that could have otherwise just been a series of title cards running across the screen. Taking a closer look at a few of these movies today, people can remember or maybe discover a few great animated opening sequences.
The Cast Of Grease Got Ready For Their Return to Rydell High
1978's theatrical adaptation of the musical Grease explored the developing relationship between Danny Zuko and Sandra "Sandy" Dee after a romance-filled summer in the 50s that ended when they joined the T-Birds and the Pink Ladies for their senior year at Rydell High.
The movie featured an animated intro that introduced an animated cast of characters as they prepared for the first day of school while Frankie Valli's "Grease" played on the radio, which transitioned to live-action at Rydell following a series of billboard titles.
A Fistful of Dollars Featured A Silhouetted Western Gunfight
The opening of Sergio Leone's iconic 1964 spaghetti western A Fistful of Dollars was created by Iginio Lardani and featured experimental animation techniques blended with Ennio Morrone's breathtaking score that depicted a gunfight between silhouetted cowboys on horseback.
The red, black, and white animation was a dynamic representation of iconic western themes spread among the cast's title cards that only further hyped the start of the live-action film, which launched Clint Eastwood and Leone's critically-acclaimed "The Man With No Name" trilogy.
An Animated Cowboy Appeared In The City Slickers Franchise
Following star Billy Crystal's comedic gorging during the Running of the Bulls that opened 1991's City Slickers, the animated title sequence introduced a cowboy character who performs a series of rope tricks that tease a few of the gags from the movie itself.
The animated cowboy and his arsenal of lasso tricks steer the various title cards throughout the sequence as he avoids (or creates) hilarious calamities alongside an animated bull. The animated cowboy added to the opening credits significantly and prepared viewers for the Western setting appropriately.
Animated Children Escaped Giant Horrors In Honey, I Shrunk The Kids
1989's Honey, I Shrunk The Kids transformed the opening title sequence into an animated series of shorts that featured unrelated cartoon children as they attempted to escape increasingly dangerous threats after being hit by a size-changing beam.
The initial threats to the shrunken kids came from the typography as the titles toppled over and raced across the screen, forcing the children to flee across an ever-changing landscape that included a giant dustbuster, a spinning record player, and the inside of a toaster before they found themselves mailed away in an envelope.
Tomcats Starred Animated Animals From The Lead Character's Comic Strip
2001's Tomcats followed a comic creator as he attempts to get his old friend married in order to win a long-standing bet with a huge cash reward that is given to the last bachelor standing, which he needs to deal with a gambling debt.
The opening animated sequence featured the anthropomorphic dog and cat main characters of the lead character's comic strip as they competed for the attention of an oblivious woman walking through the various title screens before they teamed up for various hijinks.
A Fully Powered Crimson Bolt Stars In Super's Animated Opening
James Gunn's Super released to theaters in 2010 and introduced fans to the Crimson Bolt, a real-world costumed hero played by Dwight Schrute's actor Rainn Wilson who didn't have any powers but still managed to deal out justice with his trusty pipe wrench.
The movie's opening titles from Puny Entertainment featured an amateur comic book animation that featured a fully-powered Crimson Bolt as he violently took down criminals, which highlighted the imaginative nature of the main character's real fight against crime.
Santa Claus Tries To Deliver Gifts In National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation
1989's National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation rejoined the Griswold family as they celebrated the holidays at home while experiencing the typical pitfalls and situations that made the Vacation franchise such a hit among fans.
Christmas Vacation opens with a short animated story that follows Santa Claus on Christmas Eve as he attempts to deliver presents to the Griswolds. Unfortunately, poor Santa is forced to deal with a number of similar comedic mishaps that lead Chevy Chase deals with throughout the franchise, making it a hilarious but dangerous stop for Santa.
Catch Me If You Can Features A Retro Minimalist Animated Opening
Famed director Steven Spielberg's 2002 adaptation of Catch Me If You Can told the true story of con man Frank Abagnale and the FBI agent who hunted him across the world after he became a pioneer in forged checks, which eventually led to Abagnale's work with the FBI.
The movie opened with a retro homage to similar classic animated openings that featured minimalistic takes on Abagnale and the FBI agent as they played a game of cat-and-mouse across the country while the title cards were revealed to a fabulous score from John Williams.
It's A Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World Opens With An Iconic Saul Bass Intro
Saul Bass was an iconic graphic designer and filmmaker who won many awards for his amazing title sequences that appeared in a number of movies while also designing some recognizable corporate logos that are still in use today.
Bass' memorable animated opening for 1963's It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World featured an animated globe and title cards that were manipulated by the globe's inhabitants with a number of sight gags. While it isn't really connected to the movie, it perfectly set up the frenzied comedy of It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World.
The Pink Panther's Opening Credits Launched A Successful Cartoon Series
1963's The Pink Panther was the first movie to feature French inspector Jacques Clouseau as he attempts to stop a notorious jewel thief from stealing the priceless diamond known as "The Pink Panther." The movie's animated title sequence introduced fans to the actual character of the Pink Panther who was being hunted down by an animated Clouseau.
The Pink Panther character proved to be so popular that he soon starred in 1964's The Pink Phink cartoon serials before reaching new levels of popularity as an ongoing animated series that aired for decades.