Movies That Didn’t Live Up to Their Opening Scenes
Updated: Nov 2, 2019

There are countless films created with the goal of a huge box-office success. Famous
actors and well-known directors sign up for these movies hoping to meet and surpass
audience expectations. Yet sometimes the plot, script, directing or execution of some
elements of the movie destroy the potential they have for greatness, and leave
audiences with an insipid experience usually hard to get over!
The most disappointing ones are perhaps the films which begin with an impressive
opening sequence and then, sort of, drop from their high place. It isn’t until the first few
minutes or so, that the audience begins to realize that their investment of time, money
and expectation is half-way down the drain! Here are a few movies that didn’t live up to
their opening scenes:
Die Another Day (2002)
Receiving a review of six out of ten on IMDB, this Bond film (Pierce Brosnan) wasn’t as
successful as its predecessors. With a disappointing villain, a limping script, and weak
special effects, the expectations of a Bond experience weren’t completely met. This
doesn’t change the fact that the opening scene was characteristically Bond-like and
significantly better than the rest of the movie. It begins with outstanding camera work as
Bond and his team come surfing in on massive sea waves. On shore, he proceeds with
characteristic calm to, almost nonchalantly, steal a helicopter delivering diamonds to a
North Korean base. In the diamond case he sets an explosive to be triggered by his
watch when the moment comes. The tension builds in this over twelve-minute prologue
as they quickly get news that he is a spy. They commander instantly destroys the
helicopter and before he can kill bond, all hell breaks loose. Bond triggers his bomb,
jumps onto one the military vehicles and destroys the entire base as he escapes. The
chase that follows is truly epic Bond action ending with his re-capture as the credits
begin; giving us a powerful prologue worthy of the James Bond legacy.
Sucker Punch (2011)

Also earning a six out of ten on IMDB and a 22% on Rotten Tomatoes, Sucker
Punch was a disappointing failure. But the opening scene doesn’t fail to deliver the
intensity and convey the dark theme expected in this film. The background music, the
setting, the style of shots, and the dream like quality combine to make a pithy opening
scene. It begins with a dramatic shot into the main character, Baby Doll’s, life beginning
with the death of her mother. This scene switches to the desperation of the funeral and
revelation of the cruelty of Baby Doll’s stepfather, who later drunkenly attempts to abuse
Baby Doll’s younger sister. Her attempts to save her younger sister are captured in an
intense sequence in which her bullet misses her stepfather and kills her sister instead.
She runs away in anguish and fear, is later apprehended and sent to an asylum. The
rest of the movie, though with a unique plot and great potential, fails to sustain the level
of the prologue, and fizzles out quickly into a below average film.
X-Men Origins: Wolverine (2009)

While this movie nearly led to the end of a franchise, its first sequence throughout the
opening credits misleads viewers into believing they're in for something truly
outstanding. Intense war scenes, excellent camera work, pounding music, superb action
and the introduction of Logan and his mutant brother Victor set expectations high. This
sequence quickly reveals their past, their bond, the villainy of Victor as he turns violent,
sadistic, and vane; killing innocents and getting rid of a commanding officer and almost
enjoying each battle and victory. This opening sequence lays out Victor’s character and
Logan’s backstory very effectively all in just about three minutes – until it leads the
audience through a botched-up plot and a weak script which got it merely a 37% rating
on Rotten Tomatoes.
While we can certainly applaud these Directors’ and scriptwriters for their vision
captured so well in the opening scene, we wonder how with just a few lapses, they ram
the film straight into an iceberg; leaving audiences with a movie that had great potential
but just couldn’t live up!