I wanted to find a good poster for the movie while I was talking about it, so I did a Google image search and found these:
So after looking at these two posters, what do you think the movie's about? I don't know about you, but when I look at each of these posters individually I get a completely different vibe. This got me thinking: who knew the movie poster had such an influence on the movie its advertising? It kind of makes you appreciate the art of movie poster design a little, doesn't it?
I did a search and found a few examples of good movie posters that are excellent representations of the movies they're advertising:
Each gives off a certain impression that doesn't lead to disappointment when watching the movie. If someone had looked at one of these posters then gone to see the movie, I would be shocked to hear them say, "Well, that poster completely misrepresented that movie."
Good Will Hunting's classic sepia tone means we're going into something dramatic and serious, but the two main actors are laughing so it can't be all bad. Smokin' Aces: I see guns, cards, guns, a woman's legs, and more guns. Those images combined with the bright colors says this movie's probably fun and action-packed (I've never seen it but I've heard good things). For me, Juno's different costumes with the orange and green colors (and tons of stripes) gives off an off-centered youthful vibe. Finally, Jaws... Seriously? It's terrifying.
Finding a poster that gives off the wrong impression was hard to do, but I think I managed it:
M. Night Shymalan's The Happening. Have you seen this movie? If you haven't, don't. If you have, I'm sorry. This movie's terrible! I like Mark Wahlberg and I like Zooey Deschanel but damn they act horribly in this. Here's a hilarious clip that I quote very often: What? No!
Anyway, check out this poster. It looks creepy - the buildings are a little bent inward (what does that mean, I don't know, but it worked for Inception), the streets are abandoned, Mark and Zooey are protecting a little girl from something... what could it be? Who knows, but it looks like something really scary and dangerous... [Head's up: I'm about to ruin the movie for anyone who hasn't seen it...]
It's the trees. And I don't mean like the Wizard of Oz trees that talked and threw rocks, or the Lord of the Rings trees that walked around and held meetings and stuff. I'm talking about the trees you see when you open your front door. Stationary, non-talking, blowing in the wind trees. In The Happening, trees are killing people off. How this movie was ever made I'll never understand, but it was, and this was the movie poster. There's not even one single tree in the poster! If they're going to make the killer something we see every day, then put it in the poster so later I can look at it and be like "wow I didn't see that the first time, that's cool that they put that in there" or something. Definitely misleading - and just a sidenote, Shymalan could use a few lessons from Hitchcock. Hitchcock made a movie about birds killing humans and called it The Birds and he even put birds on the poster. Sometimes direct is the way to go.
So back to The Company Men. Look at the first poster:
I actually get a vibe similar to that of Smokin' Aces - they don't have guns, but they look suspicious as hell and like they're ready to pull weapons out at any second. The font choice and the tagline 'For them, business is anything but usual' also contribute to this gritty, bank heist feel it gives off.
Here's the second poster:
This gives off a thought-provoking vibe. It looks way less action and much more dramatic. The art at the top of businesspeople on tightropes suggests we're going to be dealing with the struggle of the modern professional. And that's exactly what we're dealing with here.
I don't know where that first poster came from, but this second one hits The Company Men on the head. That ends my rant on movie posters, but I'll definitely be analyzing them a little more now that I've thought about the art behind them. Just thought of a new blog post - check back soon to hear about minimalistic movie posters.
Watch the trailer for The Company Men and you'll see that each of those four names on the poster are Academy Award winners. Not bad, eh? The story's laid out really well in the trailer, and I think it's worth watching so I won't ramble on with a summary, just quick commentary.
I can't wait to see this movie. The story looks timely and the cast is phenomenal, and my favorite part? I have a feeling they'll be a healthy dose of inspiration served with this one. I get chills at the end when Affleck yells the self-help mantra he reluctantly recited early on:
"I will win. Why? Because I have faith, courage and enthusiasm."I hear something like that and think of optimism, confidence and hope. Things each of us can use especially when things aren't going our way.
Next time I'm feeling down, I'll think of these three words:
I will win.
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