Analysis of a Title Sequence - Iron Man (2008)

A link to the title for Iron Man (2008, Dir, Jon Favreau), on Art of the Title.

For my title analysis I chose Iron Man (2008) due to how it's a superhuman sci-fi film that uses the idea of being a regular person, but acquiring powers, also seen in films like Spiderman, Hulk, and Captain America. This contrasts the opposite in superhuman films like Superman, Thor, and the X-Men franchise.

During the original Iron Man, the focus was very much on the idea of the 'suit of armor' that gives way to the iconic Iron Man iconography, and explained where the transition of Tony Stark to Iron Man came from, and it's reflected in the title sequence. The whole sequence is CGI, and goes through a neon wire-frame of the Iron Man suit with cast and crew members credits being shown alongside this in the similar neon wire-frame styling, as well as showing what would become the villains Iron Man suit. The CGI wire-frame is reflective of the technological themes of the film, and how Tony Stark is not only the hero, but also the inventor of the armour, showing his ability to understand technology. The title is being shown with 'Iron Man' by Black Sabbath, both because it's featured in the film, as well as the obvious title.
 

It begins with a still frame from the film, which transitions into the wireframe CGI in the same position. This shows how Stark has properly become the Iron Man alter ego. The sequence then begins to animate and shows a fly-through of the Iron Man helmet, and showcasing credits beginning with the director, Jon Traveau.

 

The sequence then uses the same transition to similar images to transition to the next sequence of credits, going from the inside of the helmet to the 'ear' part on the outside. The majority of cuts are either through this, or simply are fly-throughs to the different parts of the armour. It can be noted again in the below sequence in which it transitions from symbols to the barrel of a gun, crediting Ramin Djawadi.

The camera then goes to the side of the gun to show the credit Dave Jordan. In the sequence the gun is spinning, and the credit is tracked to follow the gun's movement, which shows an interaction and helps bring the credits into the sequence, instead of having them be static.

The title sequence finishes by showing the film 'glitching out', but having elements of an actual 35mm film flickering, this can be seen as a homage to traditional film making while also having the technological elements.