Film Poster Inspirations

Bug (2007)I like this particular poster because it links well with the Psychological genre. The colour palette is blue which is a calming yet a sad colour. I also like the overlapping of faces, it creates an abstract look which suggests what the film could be like. The poster itself is a close up type, a portrait of a female character staring into the audience with no emotion whatsoever, this could make the viewers trust her less and feel disconnected to the person. The title of the poster is in the middle, the font of the title is big and bold whereas other text in the poster is small and thin. Unlike other posters, this poster features quotes from film critics on the top right stating that the actresses performance is outstanding and the storyline is terrifying. The cast names are featured at the top of the posters in capital letters. The magazine layout is memorable, simple and it appears to look organised.

Jacob’s Ladder (1990)The poster is incredibly simple but it is quite memorizing. For example, the main image is a blur of the protagonist’s face, however it portrays mental illness (which in this case is PTSD) quite well. The face is difficult to ‘read’ because most of it is merging with the darkness. Other than that, the protagonist seems to be terrified since his mouth appears to be open. Since the whole image lacks colour, using a vibrant red for the title is a great idea in order to grab attention. Red is a very emotionally intense colour, it has connotation with blood, passion and anger. In order to get more target audience the poster states the fact that it has been made by the director of “Fatal Attraction” which is another thriller/drama film that was produced in 1987, this film also has a psychological story (which is about obsessive stalking and aggressive pursuit). In the middle of the poster, it states that “The most frightening thing about Jacob Singer’s nightmare is that he isn’t dreaming”. This sentence gives the audience a rough idea of what the film is about and what kind of genre it is.

American Psycho (2000)

This is another Psychological Thriller film poster. However, it clearly shows what type of character the protagonist is, judging by what he is holding (knife). The characters expression and the small text next to the knife stating “killer looks” gives us more information about the personality which seems to be narcissistic. The film explores narcissistic personality disorder and this poster clearly showing us the context using a simple photograph. The main colour palette is a desaturated or light red. Light red represents joy, sexuality, passion, sensitivity, and love which is a complete opposite of what the protagonist is. The film title “American Psycho” is located at the bottom of the trailer. The font is sharp, like the knife the character is holding. Cast members and producers names are located below the title in small text.

The Silence of The Lambs (1991)

This poster is extremely recognisable and is quite unique. For example the size ratio appears different than an average poster, it is quite longer making the poster look elongated. The main focus in this image is the moth that has a skull shape on its back. The moth is placed on top of this person’s mouth. Moths have similar symbolisms as butterflies. The moth symbolizes determination, attraction, psychic abilities, and faith. However, since this one has a skull on it’s back, it doesn’t seem as positive as it sounds. The person in the portrait has a similar facial expression to the “Bug (2006)” poster making the viewers feel disconnected. Additionally, the whole photograph looks grainy as if it’s a pencil painting, not an image. The colour palette is simple, orange and blue which are complimentary colours, the blue makes the moth, eyes and the main title pop out of the poster, being more interesting overall. I’ve noticed that the title is written without any capital letters, which is quite interesting. The poster isn’t using any capital letters.