Film Poster Analysis Part 2

 

  [1]

The Blair Witch Project (1999)

There is a powerful use of black on this poster, and this is used to create an atmosphere of mystery and darkness. The main focus is the top half of a figure’s head, which is not clearly visible through the shadows. There is a paragraph of writing above the figure, explaining briefly what the film is about, this allows the audience to understand the background of the film prior to seeing it, which could result in being more frightened. There is also no mention of actors names, which supports the idea that the film is made by an independent company and is not a movie blockbuster. Although the film was released in 1999, it was a new film of its time, as no major film previously had used the idea of a handheld camera in a horror film, and it therefore started a revolution. This poster is important as it was a huge independent film when it was released, and the difference at the time in the film as well as the poster, need to be noted.

 

 [2]

The Cellar Door (2007)
The first thing to note about this poster is that it is has won awards at film festivals which means it is more than likely an independent film. The film does not use actor’s/actresses’ names, and this is more than likely because they are not well know names, and they want to create a sense of mystery, as the to figures depicted in the poster are not shown clearly; the man at the top is hidden in shadows and the women at the bottom is trapped behind an enclosure. The poster uses the same font for all the major parts; the movie title; the positive quote and the slogan. The mention of previous films and how this film is like them entices the audience to watch it. It lets the audience have feelings about how the film will be before they actually watch it. It is also useful to gaining a wider audience because the other successful horror films would have their own fans which the production team hopes will want to watch this film.



Conclusion
Although I’ve only briefly looked at 4 film posters, I can see the differences in each. All of the film covers are clearly shown to be horror films or thrillers, and this is created by using the right colour saturation and by using certain lighting on the figures or objects on the poster. They each display something different, but all show a situation that may arise in the films. For example, in The Strangers’ film poster, you are shown two figures, and this is a screen shot of what happens in the actual film. This is used so that the audience who view the poster, can feel part of the scene, and also feel tension between the characters before the film starts.
From looking at and evaluating film posters, I have decided that I will use some of the ideas used in the posters and I will look at a couple of film trailers in my next post so I can gain a further insight into how the poster links to the film.


[1] http://www.elistmania.com/images/articles/260/Original/The_Blair_Witch_Project.jpg
[2] http://www.rapidsharecollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/12/the_cellar_door_movie_poster.jpg