Film Posters

Film Poster Comparison

I thought it would be helpful to look at two different genres of film poster, as we are producing a comedy,I thought it best to look at at a comedy poster and then compare with a contrasting genre such as horror. I have picked a comedy that 'shows respect' to previous comedies made such as 'Some like it hot' as we have a similar but more light hearted storyline.

This poster of Big Momma's House is a bold one; the story line is quite obvious even from the poster. We the audience can see that the person in the dress (whose face we can't see) is the same person in the small picture attatched to the bag and for an important reason is part of the FBI and is wearing a dress! The house is slightly faded as not not draw the focus away from the main character.

However this also lets us know that this is going to be a main location in the film. Only one actor’s name is presented on the poster and we know that this is the main person as he is the most known actor in the film. So the directors and producers are using his fame to promote the film.

The Big Momma’s House poster is light, bright and eye catching; showing that although there is an FBI agent in disguise the storyline is not going to be too serious.

However in I Am Legend the colours are dark and brooding, very neutral and lifeless which gives a good overall impression of the film.

This poster of the action/thriller is a lot harder for a viewer to figure out, there is only a small clue to indicate what is happening in the film “ The last man on earth is not alone” this is a statement that will make viewers think before they see the film it will intrigue them.

Similar to the Big Momma’s House poster, there is one central character that is the main focus, his expression is blank and anxious and he is staring into the camera which would make a viewer feel he was looking at them.

Again like Big Momma’s House there is only one name printed on the front of the poster ‘Will Smith’ however there could be a different reason for printing only one name, as he is the only person left in the film, so the meaning could be paralleled.

The background is also faded like the comedy person, however the background, the sky, the buildings look transcendental, which shows that this is not a realistic film and audiences should be ready for a ‘jumpy’ watch!

The writing on each poster is also relevant to the film, I Am Legend has spaced out, clear, white writing, and the spaced out letters could suggest his distance from the rest of the world, whereas Big Momma’s House has bold, quirky, bright red writing, red is a warning colour, a colour that usually represents danger, in this case it could be a warning for Martin Lawrence’s character to get out of the situation he gets into.

Jessica :)