Film Poster

National Treasure

This poster engages the audience straight away and lets them know the genre of the film by the colours, actors displayed in the centre of the poster showing that they are main characters and are the focus of the poster. However, Nicolas Cage is located on the left, as an audience we read from left to right therefore we see him first, he is also positioned higher than the female staring down at her while she glances up, connoting that he is the most important and dominant character. The boy and girl characters can imply that there is going to be a romance in this movie therefore this action genre can appeal to women as well as men widening the target audience. Nicolas Cage has a map on his back which implies that he will be going on an adventure and the female will be tagging along, again playing a less important role.

We then have the illumi background; the dark orange/black at the bottom is effective as it allows the poster to create the mood of danger linking in with the bright orange which looks like fire. As well as this being eye catching to the audience it shows that this action/adventure is going to be packed with intense action such as fights, traps and mysteries. The background also helps the characters to stand out. We can see Nicolas Cage is wearing a suit implying that he is high skilled and professional.

We then have the title of the film displayed at the bottom of the poster. This is engaging as it is big and bold and stands out from the dark background; the title is placed on a pyramid image which is effective as it is constantly reminding you all the adventure that we are going to see in this movie. Underneath we then have the release date in white, again standing out from the black. It is successful to place it below the title as it is what we will look at straight after. This is important on a poster as it tells the audience when the film will be coming out which can increase the amount of people that go and watch it. Below we then have the conventional red colour of the action against a dark background saying “the greatest adventure history as ever revealed” this then finally completely gives away the genre of the movie. The superlative ‘greatest’ is successful as the adjective implies that there is no adventure film better than this one enticing the audience. This links with the lexis ‘history’ implying this is not just the greatest film in the country at the moment but in the whole world.

Nicolas Cages name is displayed at the top of the poster and isn’t that much smaller than the title. This is successful as Nicolas Cage is a well-known actor that is usually shown in adventure/action films therefore having him in this movie is a unique selling point. Therefore you want to make this feature recognised so having it in white standing out from the bright orange background is a successful technique for this poster. 

Film Poster

Les Miserables

The girl nearly covers the whole photo, implying that she is a main character in this movie and allowing the audience just to focus on her in the foreground. Her deep blue enhanced eyes draw in the audience’s attention; eyes are a successful feature to entice the audience as it is very persuading towards the audience’s feelings. For example, her eyes which the editor has clearly enhanced to have that effect, connotes sadness but also creates that atmosphere of softness and courage. We get that sense of courage and determination by the direct address of the young character staring straight at us. This is effective as it would engage the audience making them feel like this girl is trying to tell them something. Our eyes then adjust to the whole of her face where we can tell by her facial expression that she is in misery and has had a lot of pain in her life. The audience may also be intrigued by the age of this girl as she looks very young and fragile. As well as this we can tell that she experienced a very struggling and challenging journey as she has dirt on her face, implying she does not have the facilities to wash which can relate to the theme of this film which was meant to be back in the war times.

The poster is slightly shadowed on the right side of her face; this can connote the darker times in her life whereas the gradient of the colour gets lighter can connote the positivity in her life. The way her hair is formed blowing over her face adds an eerie atmosphere and creates mystery. The black on the right hand side can connote death and danger and in general the dark gloomy colours helps set the tone of sadness and misery but also makes the young girl stand out with the light shining on her from the left angle. This is when enigmas would be added, who is she? What role does she play?

We then have the title ‘Les Miserable’ which is displayed big and bold in gold writing. The colour gold is effective when used in this poster as it stands out from the dark background as well as this the gold connotes success and triumph. And as we look at this poster we can imply that this film will be successful as Gold gives off that rich effect and makes it seem that this film will be high quality. As well as this the triumph links in as we have the slogan ‘fight, dream, hope, love’. This is successful as the single words creates a bigger emphasis affecting how the audience feel. These words can relate to being triumphal as it suggests you should be determined in life to succeed your goals. It is quite motivating to read and can suggest again that this film is going to be powerful and emotional therefore aimed towards a female audience. This can also be due to the word ‘love’ as females enjoy a romance in the movie. We then move on to the top of the poster which some of the actors names are displayed. Anne Hathaway is an actress in this movie therefore having her name on the poster is a unique selling point for the movie as it will widen the target audience by having Anne Hathaway fans as well as a musical genre fan base. We also have the other 3 which are recognised actors which will increase the popularity of the movie even more. At the bottom we have the release date which s successful they have on the poster as it tells the audience when to come and watch the movie. The fact I is released on Christmas day implies that it could be a film to go and see with your family as Christmas day is a day to spend with their families. It is a successful date to release the film as families will go and see it instead of staying indoors all day.

Film Poster

The Last Song

The film poster is easily identified as a romance, this is because of the photographs, scenery and colours used. This is successful when advertising a film as you want it to appeal to the right target audience who will enjoy it and be satisfied from a move like this. In this case it would mainly be females aged from 14-37. It can be used to entertain, escape reality and just a film to cry to.

In this poster we have close ups of the characters face, we have Miley facing towards the camera but looking away; even know she is not giving direct address we are still drawn into her facial expression. For example this is a romance yet she looks miserable, adding enigmas for the audience. This is intriguing and adds curiosity as a romance should be full of happiness and love. Her bold and clear image can imply she is the main character and has most prevalence in the movie, this is compared to the attractive boy (drawing in the attention of the target audience) further in the background faded. As well as this he is also faced backwards, where we just see the side of his face; he maintains the same facial expression as Miley. By only seeing half of his face adds mystery to this young good looking boy; the poster overall follows the codes and conventions of a young attractive couple. By their facial expressions and the space between them we can connote that they face many problems throughout their journey of a relationship. However, we are then shown at the bottom half of the poster the characters hugging. This can imply the more romantic and happy side of their relationship. The background of the beach is successful to use for this romance genre as us girls have watched many romance movies and we know the beach is a great place to set it, this is due to us creating an image of the warm sand between our toes and expanding our creativity of a couple kissing in the sea, as well as this is just creates a beautiful scenery. In the image of this poster the waves create a calming and settling atmosphere, with the sun setting reflecting onto the sand giving off that warm feeling that soothes the audience looking at the photo. The orange tones used in this poster helps create and set again a warm feeling. Orange connotes joy and happiness and due to the high visibility of this colour it is eye catching therefore, successful to use in this poster.

The title ‘The Last Song’ is displayed in big bold writing with the colour white standing out from the typical background. The title always adds curiosity to what the film is going to be about which is intriguing and can give an idea to what the film/plot of the film will be about. We then have the date at the bottom of the poster, again in bold writing to stand out. This is effective because it allows the audience to see the release date clearly meaning more people may go and view the film. This is because if the release date was not put on then people may forget about keeping up with the movie to find out in the future when it is going to be released decreasing popularity of the film. In black writing (so not as bright and eye catching) however, still standing out from the background we have “From the Author of The Notebook and A Walk to Remember” Displaying this at the top of the poster is effective as it can target the audience who have previously watched these movies and aims to a specific audience. As well as this these 2 films are well known and popular, so by this film being from the same author of these 2 fantastic romance movies it will attract a wider audience to watch this film, not only the specific target audience who have previously watched them.

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.

Film Poster

Perfume

The poster is immediately imposing by the different contrast of colours. The background contains the colours of black, grey and white. These colours are dull and reflect death and evil. This then gives off an ominous atmosphere. However, the red petals which are used as part of the female’s body are the main feature on this poster. Not only does it give the poster colour but as red is a very emotionally intense colour the way it is used in this poster is crucial. For example, in this poster the emotion it gives off is sadness and loneliness. As an audience we feel this due to the women’s facial expression, the way she looks to the side connotes she can’t face the truth however, it gives off that effect that this film will contain passion, love and desire. This is mainly by using a female as they are known to be more delicate and the way that this female is positioned makes her look fragile. However, we then also get a twist to this poster as the red can connote blood and danger and as we take our eyes to the next engaging thing on the poster, the tag line we see “the story of a murderer” therefore the audience are curious to what the movie is going to be about. Will it be both desire and death? If so this thriller is the one you want to watch. The way petals are positioned along the back of her body is effective as they separate the further they get up, looking like they are flowing away adds an elegant touch this poster and attracts a female target audience. Petals and flowers are normally used in romances where they represent happiness and light so therefore them being used for this genre to makes the audience feel curious and expect a twist for the movie. The female audience would also expect romance and love to be incorporated this movie. For example, the may infer a heartbroken girl. The way we go from dark around the border into light adds the attention of the main feature of the poster, the girl as the light shines around her making the audience draw attention closer to her characterises. The way this female is positioned makes her look more like art standing out her beauty which makes her even more intriguing.

The title is effective as it looks sharp and the light grey is engaging due to it being illuminating. The colour grey connotes mystery, which is successful for the poster as we are shown there is a murder involved so this film will be all about mysteries. The light grey gives off the feminine touch as dark greys are more masculine which is successful at aiming towards their target audience. Its adds light to the poster however is an unemotional colour therefore this being used with red again gives that difference between happiness/light and sadness and loneliness. The actual name of the title ‘perfume’ is intriguing and suits the genre. For example, it can infer that they are going to sniff the murderer out and find them. It also continues to attract the target audience as perfume is a feminine product. It can also mean the sweetness of something which links in with the roses, this makes the women come across much more sweet and victimised. The gap in the female’s body can connote the mystery of the murder, for example that gap won’t be filled until the murderer is found. We then have “Coming Soon” at the bottom in bigger font than the characters. This is effective as it implies to the audience to be aware for the release date and gives them warning for when it will be coming out.

At the top we have “based on the bestselling novel” This is efficacious as it may attract recent fans who like the authors books and as well as this shows him to be successful for him to achieve this award making more people vulnerable to buying this bestselling authors book.