Analysing Movie Posters

Posters occupy a space between art and advertising. They have a clear commercial purpose - to promote an event or product - but they also have artistic value. People buy them and hang them on their walls. Museums have whole galleries devoted to poster art. When analysing a poster it is important that you evaluate both how well it fulfils its purpose (ie promotion) as well as its aesthetic value.

First steps

When analysing a poster, you should consider the following broad questions before you start to focus on the details:

Given that all movie posters have the same purpose - to get audiences to go see a movie - what persuasive techniques are used by the poster?

• Which genre conventions are referred to?
• Is a star used as a USP?
• Are "expert witnesses" (ie critics) quoted?
• What pleasures (gratifications) are promised by the poster?
• How is attention gained (humour, shock, surprise familiar face of a star)?
• How does the tagline work? (humour, pun, alliteration etc?)
  

Institution

The poster can also give you important information about the production context of the movie:

• How much does the poster tell you about the institutional context of the movie's production?
• How important is this information on the poster (think about information hierarchies)?
• How important a part of the whole marketing campaign is the poster? Where is the poster placed?
• How expensive was this poster to produce?

Critical Evaluation

Finally, you have to pass judgement on the poster.

• Is it a good poster?
• Does it communicate effectively with the audience?
• Are there any alternative readings which might harm the message of the marketing campaign?
• Is the poster offensive in any way? e.g. representation

Further Reading

• The Secrets Behind Hollywood's Greatest Movie Posters - The Hollywood Reporter
• 8 Actors Who Look Exactly The Same in Every Movie Poster - Cracked