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What would a film look like without a poster? As well as being a part of marketing, movie posters have grown into an artistic expression in their own right, showcasing the work of the world’s best illustrators, designers, combining their ingenuity with bold and creative ideas.
From ingenious designs to iconic stills to student favorites, we’ve rounded up 30 of the best movie posters of all time, enough to dazzle a movie theater’s wall windows – see if we’ve got what you’re thinking of.
30. ” Little Miss Sunshine “
From the movie itself to its marketing, the color palette of this poster is a great example. Whether it’s a Paul Dano T-shirt or a cute but battered VW camper, yellow spills out of the trailer and poster of this heartwarming Sundance hit. The poster showcases a key element of the film—the RV doesn’t drive smoothly, so the whole family has to run and jump into it—with a sense of movement, family and humor.
29. ” The Graduate “
Anne Bancroft’s half-stockinged leg seduces everyone who gazes at the poster and immortalizes the famous seduction sequence in film history. But it wasn’t Anne Bancroft’s leg that was on the poster. Forty-six years after the film’s release, model Linda Gray, who starred in “Golden Row,” confessed that it was her leg on the poster because Bancroft couldn’t finish filming. She was paid $25 for it–good work, good work.
28. Lord of War
Lord of War’s arms-dealing story features Nicolas Cage with the face of Lord Kitchener in its cleverly simple poster. At first glance, this is just a close-up of the head. Take a closer look and it’s not just Nicolas Cage’s head, bullets and casings make up every part of his head. It’s a mosaic of militarism so fine-grained that it couldn’t be more apt.
27. The Thing
The title of the poster reads “Ultimate Alien Horror,” and it’s one of Drew Sturzan’s best posters ever — at least among his horror posters. Perhaps the best thing about the poster is that it doesn’t directly reference any scenes from the film. This is a typical Sturzan way: After understanding the most concise task introduction, without knowing the content of the movie, the work was rushed within 24 hours. When the courier got the poster, the paint on it was still dry.
26. ” Social Networking “
The trend of posters with capital letters on people’s faces wasn’t started by The Social Network, but this poster is the most memorable and effective. A giant tagline—in David Fincher’s favorite Futura font—is placed uncharacteristically on the right-hand side of the film’s title, a parody of the Facebook icon and search bar. Like all of Fincher’s films, the marketing process is full of his traces.
25. ” Scream “
The movie could have used the villain’s grimace, or an Edward Morton painting as a poster. But the designer opted for a close-up of Drew Barrymore’s face, her eyes visibly glowing blue. Wes Craven employs the same trick Hitchcock used 36 years earlier in “Psycho,” putting the most famous star at the center of the action, only to kill off her character at the beginning of the film.
24. ” Moon “
Reminiscent of the psychedelic and dizzying lines of Saul Bass, Duncan Jones’ debut poster is a striking piece from London-based creative agency AllCity, who have produced some fun and creative posters in recent years (La La Land, The Death of Stalin). The poster is minimal but visual, and Sam Rockwell’s character needs to face the exile life on the moon, which evokes a sense of loneliness and paranoia.
23. ” Moonlight panicked “
Robert Gleeson’s diabolical nightmares in acrylic paint are unrivaled in the world of horror posters, and even a humble pumpkin is menacing. We can only see Michael Myers’ hand on the poster, but his appearance in the slogan is quite special, and the italicized “He” implies too much.
22. A Clockwork Orange
For many years, this poster was the only image of A Clockwork Orange that audiences could see, after Stanley Kubrick banned his own film from being released in 1973 following a media turmoil. Philip Custer almost drowns the protagonist in the pyramid design, holding a knife menacingly, and there is a jaw-dropping slogan. Watch it, little brother.
21. ” The Exorcist “
Prolific poster artist Bill Gold suddenly made a fortune with this instant fame silhouette poster. The poster is taken directly from the scene where Father Maureen, played by Max von Sydow, prepares to start the exorcism for the first time. Showcasing director William Friedkin’s love of German Expressionist light and shadows and gothic horror, the film quickly became a student dorm hit.
20. ” Gone with the Wind “
The poster for Gone with the Wind’s 1967 re-release is haunted by the glories of old Hollywood and the visual allure of violating the Hayes Code. It’s hard to tell whether it’s Rhett Butler’s slightly parted blouse or Vivien Leigh’s plunging dress, or Atlanta in flames, or the unceremonious storm (the poster reads: Most Spectacular Film Ever!).
19. ” Field Platoon “
Oliver Stone’s war movie posters are quite classic because of two points: the bold capitalized title of the film, with two letters replaced by military identification tags; Willem Dafoe, covered in blood, kneeling on the ground, when he found himself abandoned and cornered under the pursuit of the Viet Cong, he raised his hands to the sky in despair. The posters cemented the powerful imagery of the film’s most famous scenes and inspired many imitations (eg, “Condor Condor 2”).
18. ” Full Metal Jacket “
Stanley Kubrick was an incorrigible perfectionist who was in control of everything from directing screenings to catering for the crew and, of course, marketing his own films—you can see that in this poster. The poster featured the minimalism Kubrick favored, with blank spaces, bold graphics and bold typography, and of course the poster tagline of the time.
17. Blade Runner
Illustrator John Alvin has appeared in this list more than once, and his “Blade Runner” posters are classic and extraordinary, as beautiful as the C-rays passing through the dark cosmic space of Tannhauser’s Gate. The trail of smoke in Sean Young’s hand reveals the film’s noir atmosphere, and the cityscape and Harrison Ford’s futuristic gun hint at a cyberpunk future.
16. ” The Truman Show “
Photo mosaics are not surprising nowadays (estimated to consist of several thousand photos), but in the quiet late nineties, this was a design pioneer. The poster also perfectly conveys the life of Truman Burbank visually, being continuously monitored by real TV cameras, and conveying a single image to the audience with a complex composition.
15. ” Goodfellas “
Ignore the fact that Robert De Niro replaced the film’s real star, Ray Liotta, in the lead position on the poster, which may explain why De Niro was nominated for Best Actor at the Oscars but Liotta didn’t get one. Anyway, it’s a standout poster, with the three Mafiosos positioned above their victims, lurking in the shadows like Italian-American ghosts. “I love this story: A dog goes one way, another dog goes another way, and the guy says, what do you want me to do?”
14. ” Trainspotting “
Best British movie poster ever? This poster is a rare combination of a national mood, a subculture, a generation and a film at the same time. Trainspotting’s signature orange color, character-focused cast poses, and high-profile references to a movie magazine all secured its place in poster history.
13. The Usual Suspects
Rumor has it that Bryan Singer and Christopher McQuarrie wanted to shoot a poster of “a group of suspects meeting at the police station,” which led to the idea for The Usual Suspects. The idea behind this is brilliantly realized and cements the film’s most famous scene in a straightforward and effective manner. (In 1995, when the film was released, the movie poster became insanely famous when vandals revealed the real identity of Caesar Sur on a billboard.)
12. Pulp Fiction
The poster itself showcases a Pulp Fiction book (its cover has creases, corners, and a 10-point price tag), a design that not only captures the film’s inherent coolness, but also became one of the most ubiquitous images of the mid-nineties. By 1994, you couldn’t be in a student dorm anywhere in the country without seeing Uma Thurman give you the cold shoulder.
11. ” The Godfather “
The image of Marlon Brando as Don Corleone certainly stands out—his black tuxedo blends into the all-black backdrop—but in fact, the poster’s image is an instantly recognizable “Muppet Man” logo, lifted directly from the cover of a book by Mario Puzo and designed by legendary graphic designer S. Neil Fujita. In a simple black and white arrangement, it tells us everything we need to know.
10. ” Back to the Future “
This poster is still the work of poster master Drew Sturzan, who has maintained a consistent tone in the posters of the two sequels. He’s left all of the film’s iconic images (the Martin, the DeLorean car, the burning tire tracks) and combine them into one stunning image. Also, he’s looking at his watch, of course because he’s time traveling.
9. American Beauty
When Kevin Spacey’s Lester Burnham, Mena Suvari’s schoolgirl Angela, has a petal-filled sexual fantasy, deliberately provocative, it becomes the most memorable scene in the film. Interestingly, the belly button in the poster is not actually Suvari’s, but that of double Chloe Hunter. In fact, it (and her) also make an appearance in “Ghost 5: Hip-hop.”
8. ” The Silence of the Lambs “
The pale Jodie Foster photo poster is more famous and powerful than the version with the red Hannibal image. The hawkmoth dominates the central focus, with a skull on its back made up of naked female figures (taken from Salvador Dali’s In Voluptas Mors). You can pick out all sorts of symbolism in the colours, details and placement of the moths, but otherwise it’s a chilling image.
7. Jurassic Park
There is no bluff in this poster, nor is it necessary. The Jurassic Park logo stands against a simple black background with the provocative tagline “An adventure 65 million years ago.” This poster is highly recognizable and conveys all the information in a simple and elegant way. It turns out that sometimes, less is more.
6. ” Alien “
The poster echoes Ridley Scott’s creepy space terrorism, even though it looks nothing like the alien egg featured in the final film. A simple visual image — a cracked egg, eerily glowing, with the texture of an alien creature — is paired with sporadic, bold typefaces that ooze ominous beauty and end with a chilling movie tagline. Not bad for an egg made of plaster.
5. ” Vertigo “
Title and poster design guru Saul Bass has created many unique poster designs. This dazzling poster for Hitchcock’s Vertigo is arguably his finest work. It uses the spiral of the Lissajous curve to reproduce the intuition of the film’s theme, a simple and effective image that doubles as a film’s opening title.
4. ” ET Aliens “
Based on Michelangelo’s “Creation of Adam” on the Sistine Chapel ceiling, ET’s hand is used instead of God, and Elliot’s (actually poster designer John Alvin’s daughter) hand is used in place of Adam. It’s an apt reflection of the film’s religious overtones, and an indelible image for fans. In later posters, it was replaced by Amblin’s current logo, the flying bike, but this first attempt is still the most impressive.
3. Star Wars
Tom Jung imitated the style of artist Frank Frazetta and designed this striking movie poster for Star Wars. The sword raised in the air is easily reminiscent of Frazetta’s “Conan” image. Jung worked around the concept of “good versus evil,” and he used the unusual lightsaber cross pattern alongside Vader’s helmet to convey the film’s moral struggle. The style of the title is also a direct echo of the crawling subtitles at the beginning.
2. Raiders of the Lost Ark
Another Richard Amsel creation, this poster perfectly captures the childlike adventure and adventurer’s excitement. This is actually the poster for the 1982 re-release of the film, and when the film was originally released, Amsel’s poster featured a simpler, less dynamic image: a whip slung over one of Indy’s shoulders.
1. ” Jaws “
This is the most visually stunning poster ever made. The giant white monster slowly emerges from the water in Jaws, swallowing its unsuspecting victims in one gulp. This horror image is a simple yet stimulating visual merchandising. From the monstrously large beast to the jagged-toothed maw, it’s a horrifying image that has terrorized swimmers around the world and pushed a generation off beaches.
Original: The 30 Best Movie Posters Ever
By John Nugent, James Dyer
Translator: Zhu Puyi
Proofreading: Issac
Source: Empireonline
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