Best start to a film?

[Castiel]

A Clockwork Orange, the opening is fittingly sinister.

Alien (original), when I first saw this it scared the sh*t out of me from the beginning.  The opening sequence really set the tense atmosphere continued throughout the movie.  I wish they still made horror (or scifi) movies with such elegance, in stead of relying on wowing us with special effects.

 

[ForeverCarefree]

The Dark Knight bank robbery scene



Beautifully shot on IMAX cameras and a wonderful introduction to the madness that is Heath Ledgers The Joker. 

 

[Spudulike]

saving private ryan

Good choice. I must have seen that start over twenty times and it remains dramatic, shocking. The frames where you get a German machine-gunner's view as he fires his MG42 into the open ramp of the landing craft is appalling but feels real. The film peaked there for me - the remainder wasn't bad but it couldn't live up to that start.

 

[fishCFC]

from the land of ice cream, a cure for unruly behaviour

 

[bluedave]

For pure sensory overload, the opening credits for Enter The Void can't be beaten.

 

[Adam]

I love it when Waltz pulls out his pipe which is ridiculously larger than the dairy farmers. 

My 1st thought when I saw this thread was Inglorious Basterds. Waltz's performance is one of the best I've seen in any film, gripping and hilarious at the same time.