Top 10 First Scenes In Movies That Were The Best Scenes

WatchMojo

Starting off on top! Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the films that hit their peak early on. Our countdown includes scenes from movies “Trainspotting”, “Drive”, “X-Men Origins: Wolverine” and more!

Transcript

00:00Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're counting down our picks for the films that hit their

00:11peak early on.

00:12We're looking at movies that were both positively and negatively received.

00:16As long as its introductory scene is the movie's highlight, then we're considering it.

00:27Number 10 – Ghost Ship

00:38Believe us, this is the most obscure movie on our list.

00:41The relative obscurity of this campy horror flick, produced by Oscar winner Robert Zemeckis,

00:45better known for directing Back to the Future and Forrest Gump, probably owes to the fact

00:49that, well, it's not particularly well-liked.

00:58In fact, its Rotten Tomatoes consensus reads, with a plot as creaky as the boat, Ghost Ship

01:02fails to deliver the scares.

01:04That said, if Ghost Ship had managed to sustain the cheesy chills of its first scene, it might

01:08have stood a fighting chance as a cult classic.

01:10We won't ruin the surprise, but we can promise that you will not be able to predict where

01:14it's headed.

01:19Number 9 – X-Men Origins Wolverine

01:34The opening entry into a trilogy that's vastly improved with each successive installment,

01:38the first standalone Wolverine film gets off to an encouraging start.

01:41While previous X-Men films had hinted at Logan's dark, painful past, Origins takes

01:45the franchise's best lessons in introducing its central character.

01:53The first X-Men began in a concentration camp, X-2 opened with a jaw-dropping White House

01:58set action sequence, and this film expertly depicts the tragic origin story of Hugh Jackman's

02:03iconic Canadian mutant.

02:05Unfortunately, the rest of the movie fails to live up to its first scene, becoming a

02:08critical and commercial flop.

02:10Later on, it made for an easy target for Ryan Reynolds' Deadpool.

02:25Number 8 – The Empty Man

02:31The only movie on our list to have taken a serious hit from the COVID-19 pandemic, David

02:35Pryor's The Empty Man was released to relatively little fanfare in October of 2020.

02:40And that's a shame, as its literally chilling first scene almost works as a horror short

02:44film in itself.

02:45Set in 1995, and preceding the rest of the events of the film by over 20 years, the scene

02:49depicts a mountaineering trip to Bhutan that goes, like, as wrong as it possibly can.

02:59A chance encounter with an ancient shrine unleashes a mysterious, terrifying curse on

03:04the unsuspecting hikers.

03:05While it takes a hot minute for the scene to hit a narrative payoff, it's definitely

03:09worth the wait.

03:23Number 17 – Miami Vice

03:33Director Michael Mann had previously produced the TV show of the same name, and upon being

03:37encouraged by star Jamie Foxx, revived the quintessentially 80s cop drama as a feature

03:42film.

03:43While the new Miami Vice was critically derided at the time of its release, it has since been

03:46positively re-evaluated, becoming a modern-day cult classic in the process.

04:00Vice follows in its predecessor's tradition of being a pleasure for the senses.

04:04Mann's use of digital cameras offers the film a visceral, immediate vibe that almost

04:08makes the viewer feel like they're in the midst of the action.

04:11The whole film certainly has its moments, but is strongest before being weighed down

04:14by a clunky, somewhat convoluted plot.

04:28Number 6 – Drive

04:40This artsy, meditative action-thriller is chock-full of stuff to love.

04:44One of Oscar Isaac's first major screen roles, a beautifully brooding lead performance

04:48from Ryan Gosling, and shockingly violent elevator fight scenes.

04:52Sorry, we can't really show you that last one.

04:54In any case, the first scene of Danish director Nicholas Winning Refn's American filmmaking

04:59debut stylishly sets the tone.

05:05A badass Gosling instantly commands the viewer's attention as the film's unnamed protagonist,

05:10a highly principled career criminal who's very, very good at what he does.

05:14Drawing from the films of Michael Mann, Martin Scorsese, and Paul Schrader, Refn immediately

05:18let audiences know that this wasn't quite Fast and Furious.

05:29Number 5 – Purple Rain

05:31Look, we're not saying that the rest of Purple Rain isn't deserving of heaps of

05:42praise.

05:43It's just that its first scene is a blast of energy that perfectly captures Prince's

05:46spirit as a pioneering force of pop culture.

05:49Even if, for some reason, you're not a fan of the purple one, you can't help but marvel

05:53at the sheer showmanship on display.

06:02Director Craig Brewer, helmer of such films as 2011's Footloose remake and the Eddie

06:05Murphy vehicle Dolemite Is My Name, has sung the praises of Purple Rain, particularly highlighting

06:11then-recent film school grad Albert Magnoli's direction, calling him

06:15a hands-on editor with a bold vision.

06:25Number 4 – Trainspotting

06:27Audiences' introduction to Ewan McGregor and future Oscar-winning director Danny Boyle's

06:41mainstream breakthrough immediately told them everything they need to know.

06:45Trainspotting is quite literally off to a running start, memorably and electrically

06:49soundtracked by punk legend Iggy Pop's late-70s anthem, Lust for Life.

07:03McGregor's breakneck internal monologue outlines his and his fellow addicts' apathetic,

07:07nihilistic mindset, illustrating their inability to conform to even the most basic societal

07:12expectations.

07:13We get a clear, intuitive sense of our leads, as well as of Boyle's characteristic kinetic

07:17filmmaking style.

07:18If nothing else, you're assured that you're in for a wild ride.

07:32Number 3 – Scream

07:45Arguably director Wes Craven's magnum opus, is it fair to say that Scream boasts possibly

07:49the best horror movie intro of all time?

07:51While the jury's still out on that one, there's no denying that it was immediately

07:55iconic.

07:56Following Casey Becker, one of the Ghostface killer's first victims, the scene expediently

08:00sets up Ghostface's modus operandi, as well as Craven's goal of obscuring the slasher

08:05genre, which he felt had gone stale.

08:13Scream screenwriter Kevin Williamson has since stated that this scene was inspired by Janet

08:17Lee's Marion Crane and Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho.

08:20That is to say, casting a major star, in this case Drew Barrymore, and killing her off early

08:25to throw audiences for a loop.

08:39Number 2 – Top Gun Maverick

08:54Even the most cynical movie lover would find themselves at the edge of their seat from

08:57the outset of this long-delayed legacy sequel.

09:00True to his character, Tom Cruise's infamous Pete Maverick Mitchell reminds audiences of

09:05just what made him such a bad boy to begin with.

09:07Maverick's initial mission is to prove that the fictional Dark Jet planes meet expectations.

09:12Clearly it doesn't end there.

09:20Against the odds, and the wishes of his superiors, Cruise's character manages to take the

09:24vehicle to Mach 10.

09:25When this scene is on, you already know that Maverick will come out on top, you just want

09:29to know how he's going to get there.

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09:50Number 1 – Jaws

09:58With the help of a legendary, instantly recognizable score, an abundance of filmmaking prowess

10:03from a young Steven Spielberg, and captivating performances, Jaws is a stone-cold classic

10:08that begins in only the way a stone-cold classic can.

10:12Spielberg uses cinematic language to its full potential, proving that he not only had the

10:16goods that define a master of the art, but a long, bright future ahead of him.

10:30This iconic introduction would work even without dialogue.

10:33You could show it to folks who don't speak English, and they'd likely have an idea

10:36as to what's going on.

10:37Jaws is the rare blockbuster that starts strong and then keeps the momentum going.

10:46Which movie do you find kicks things off just right?

10:49Don't hesitate to let us know in the comments below!

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