Film Poster

The Dark Knight

Jumping into the main feature of this poster which is the logo of the bat on fire on the building is very effective as the background contains dark gloomy colours such as blue and black. These colours could reflect the mood of the film for example black and dark colours are used to connote death and danger. This may make the audience more aware that is in an action genre compared to a romance which would use bright feminine colours as the dark blue and black will attract a male demographic which is successful. Therefore this fire stands out making the poster eye catching which is one of the main aims for a poster. The black starting off at the bottom and gradually getting lighter as we move up the poster is effective as it provides that gradient of colour which posters need. This poster is quite simple, not overpowering anything and making the dominant character which is batman stand out. The dark background helps the traditional white writing stand out on the poster, for example the title shown in the largest and boldest font will stand out the most. This is effective as the poster wants the audience to remember this film to then watch it. This is why the date is shown in a bold large font as it is important for the audience to remember and know the release date of the film so they can go see it in the cinema. Behind the title we have a deeper blue of the bat; again this symbol is frequently shown to remind people of this logo making it well known. The bright blue shining off around the bat adds that light to the poster which is appealing.

The simple poster is effective as batman is already a popular well known film with a recognisable logo therefore using their advantages of this they have taken these features to enhance and stand out to not only attract fans but to attract other audiences. Batman is shown from a low angle representing him as the most powerful and almost showing him as half the size of this tall building. His clenched fists represent that he is ready to fight and shows his strength. And even know we aren’t shown a close up of his face the fact he is looking down to the audience as we stare up to him it shows he is determined and engages the audience again even more without the poster having direct address.

The slogan “welcome to a world without rules” piques the audience’s interest and makes the plot seem intriguing. This can be due to the inviting lexis of ‘welcome’ drawing in the audience and making them feel like this poster was made for them. The catchy slogans are attention grabbing and a world without any rules implies there are no limits to how far this film will go, making people want to watch it. It also helps to set the tone of the mood for example, with the colours and background it makes us feel inferior and gives off quite a dark and eerie atmosphere.

Finally, the characters names which are shown in white to stand out from the background are effective in attracting a wider target audience. They put the characters names there to remind the audience of the big pop stars that are starring this film. As well as this if somebody likes that actor they may be more prone to watching the film widening the target audience and making the film more popular. For example here we have Michael Caine and Morgan Freeman, two extremely famous actors that are known for action genres therefore if the actors are good the film must be.