×
  • remind me tomorrow
  • remind me next week
  • never remind me
Subscribe to the ANN Newsletter • Wake up every Sunday to a curated list of ANN's most interesting posts of the week. read more

Forum - View topic
The 1960s Graphic Designer Who Inspired Your Favorite Anime OPs




Note: this is the discussion thread for this article

Anime News Network Forum Index -> Site-related -> Talkback
View previous topic :: View next topic  
Author Message
dm
Subscriber



Joined: 24 Sep 2010
Posts: 1359
PostPosted: Wed Nov 29, 2023 1:05 pm Reply with quote
Thanks for this article. I recognized the style, but didn’t have a name to associate it with (I probably would have guessed Milton Glaser).
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
LightningComet



Joined: 10 Jan 2021
Posts: 48
PostPosted: Wed Nov 29, 2023 4:50 pm Reply with quote
Some of Saul and Elaine Bass' greatest sequences I think came out of their collaborations with Martin Scorsese late in their careers. I was suprised to not see them mentioned in this article, but that's fine; it just means I can gush here Very Happy .

The Age of Innocence is already one of the most visually stunning period films (up there with Barry Lyndon) and its opening perfectly encapsulates its story: beautiful, meticulously crafted embroidered flowers painstakingly trying to bloom and flourish amidst the darkness.

Casino is also remarkable in its opening, basically a descent into a neon-lit hellscape while The Passion of St. Matthew blares away in the background. It's all at once beauiful to look at, sexy in its enticing glamour, and existentially horrifying. If that doesn't perfectly encapsulate the mafia's exploits in Las Vegas during the 70s and 80s, I don't know what does.

The Bass' also worked on GoodFellas (pretty minimalistic opening, if memory serves) and Cape Fear (which while visually engaging, doesn't really do much to comment further on the film's themes of human vs animal nature). It's The Age of Innocence and Casino that really stick in my mind as some of their best work, though.


Last edited by LightningComet on Wed Nov 29, 2023 9:34 pm; edited 1 time in total
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
a_Bear_in_Bearcave



Joined: 14 Jan 2019
Posts: 512
Location: Poland
PostPosted: Wed Nov 29, 2023 7:01 pm Reply with quote
I had no idea about Saul or Elaine Bass, and about his title sequences, though I did watch "Catch me if you can" and rewatching it gives me new appreciation for its OP, so I'm really glad I saw and decided to read this article.

I found a link to Nozaki-kun's opening, Italian (I think) subtitles though.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
rizuchan



Joined: 11 Mar 2007
Posts: 975
Location: Kansas
PostPosted: Thu Nov 30, 2023 1:23 pm Reply with quote
The more jazzy, bright color on black style like Cowboy Bebop ones are a little more obvious, but (assuming I understand the assignment) looking at the examples from Nozaki and Eizokuken, the first thing that came to mind for me was Kimi ni Todoke, which puts simplified versions of the main character Sawako on stationary-esque backgrounds, and then Youtube's recommendations reminded me of Wotakoi as well.

Actually I bet this is a really common design trend in shoujo romance anime openings, just with pastels instead of the more vivid primary colors.

Edit: Would be remiss to not mention Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei. (Both openings and endings, actually. Or just Shaft in general from that era)
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Visit poster's website My Anime My Manga
njprogfan
Collector Extraordinaire



Joined: 08 Feb 2007
Posts: 1161
Location: A River Named Toms
PostPosted: Fri Dec 01, 2023 10:36 am Reply with quote
The Bass's were geniuses. My fav is this from Hitchcock's North by Northwest:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ON67uYwGaw

The fade to live action is brilliant, and the movie isn't half bad Smile
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message My Anime My Manga
Triltaison



Joined: 03 Jul 2011
Posts: 724
PostPosted: Fri Dec 01, 2023 6:57 pm Reply with quote
Hmm... The Big O, Kemonozume, and Kokkoku openings come to mind for me.

Edit: Links for those curious.

Big O

Kokkoku

Kemonozume
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
poltroon



Joined: 26 Sep 2018
Posts: 104
PostPosted: Sat Dec 02, 2023 10:59 pm Reply with quote
Thanks for this, I enjoyed the article and the chance to tie together all these traditions.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Display posts from previous:   
Reply to topic    Anime News Network Forum Index -> Site-related -> Talkback All times are GMT - 5 Hours
Page 1 of 1

 


Powered by phpBB © 2001, 2005 phpBB Group