Whether it comes at the very beginning of a movie or after a cold open, the title sequence can be one of the most memorable parts of a film. Here are ten films currently on Netflix Instant that will thrill you AND fill you in on who made the movie.

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1. CASA DE MI PADRE

In addition to having one of the most cartoonishly violent gun massacres in film history, “Casa De Mi Padre” also features a stylish and head-bopping title song sung by Christina Aguilera that taps into the center of your brain as stylized images of the film’s cast parade by. These aren’t your padre’s opening credits.

2. BARBARELLA

The first thing you notice when “Barbarella” comes on is floor to ceiling shag carpeting. Then Jane Fonda shows up in a space suit and does a zero G strip tease that is almost a cold open unto itself. Discarded articles of clothing and the letters of the credits float freely as the title song by the Glitterhouse sets the stage for a space adventure as mod as it is campy.

 

3. SKYFALL

The James Bond films have always been known for their peerless title sequences, and no exception is the most recent entry, “Skyfall”. In sophisticated fashion, it starts with the film’s gut punch of a cold open and then manages to tease virtually every beat of the film until you are screaming out to be granted the relief of seeing those coy references pay off in the film’s narrative.

 

4. THE NAKED GUN

They used to know how to make parody films, and “The Naked Gun” was one of the best. After Frank Drebin beats up every foreign despot who was giving the US trouble in the late ‘80s, the opening credits see the siren of a police cruiser taking us on a tour of increasingly improbable places for a motor vehicle to be (at one point riding a wooden roller coaster). It’s amazing stuff.

 

5. ADVENTURES IN BABYSITTING

Any guy who hit puberty in the 80’s (or, thanks to home video, in the 90’s) probably had a crush on Elizabeth Shue. You have the opening credits from “Adventures In Babysitting” to thank for that. As they hit the screen in cheerful yellow and blue font, a profoundly excited Shue dances and lip-syncs to “And Then He Kissed Me”, mostly before she’s finished dressing. It’s a great moment, and a great movie.

 

6. EASY RIDER

When Dennis Hopper and Peter Fonda made “Easy Rider“, the standard thing was to use classical compositions for film scores. They used popular music, and while ‘Born To Be Wild’ may be something of a cliche now, it was anything but when these guys took their motorcycles onto the open highway in the opening credits of this classic.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j-OWEDge0BM

7. THE GOOD, THE BAD AND THE UGLY

The title sequence for “The Good, The Bad and The Ugly” is unforgettable for the music of Ennio Morricone alone, but when you throw in the images- animated figures along with period photographs and shots of our stars getting painted various garish colors- it’s a hell of a way to jump into a western that was epic when that word still meant something.

 

8. HEAVY METAL

The opening credits of “Heavy Metal” play a little like the opening of a Star Wars movie, but then a spaceman driving a convertable falls out the bottom of the ship and drives home as “Radar Rider” by Riggs plays. For that musical moment to have lasting effect given all the other classic tracks featured in the film sure says something.

 

9. NEW YEAR’S EVIL

Maybe no slasher movie is more fit for December 31st viewing than “New Year’s Evil”, and one of the best parts involves no killing at all. The opening credits play over footage of dangerously overloaded cars of MTV-grade punks racing to a TV studio in order to celebrate New Year’s. The titular song is honestly and truly very catchy, and it’ll stay with you longer than any of the gore.

http://youtu.be/Yl6y6k_1X6Q?t=3m53s

 

10. TOP SECRET

If the opening credits sequence of “Top Secret!” were a video making the rounds today all by itself, it would unquestionably be one of the most popular popular, and would be much better known than the film as a whole is. A killer Beach Boys-style song along with the hysterical spectacle of surfers shooting skeet with shotguns make these credits life-changingly funny.