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Topic:
Filmsite's Greatest Film Posters, Disc. Basic Instinct
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Rogue1-and-a-half
Title: Manager: Amphitheatre
Registered:
Nov '00
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Date Posted:
7/8/06 9:05pm
Subject:
Filmsite's Greatest Film Posters, Disc. Basic Instinct
- Date Edited:
11/30 1:38pm (53 edits total)
Edited By:
Rogue1-and-a-half
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The classic film site, filmsite.org, has a listing for the AFI's poster gallery, selected for an art of the movies book. The list itself is apparently defunct on the AFI website, at least if you aren't a member, which I'm not, but filmsite.org has a lengthy list, alphabetized, of what they call the best film posters.
So, in the interest of more visual art, you know what I'm going to do.
Some of the films have several posters on the list, so I'll probably go film by film. That's not important for the first film, which has only one poster on the list.
The Accused (1988)
Foster played a rape victim, McGillis her lawyer and Foster won her first Oscar for this one (second nomination).
I like the poster. The tagline "Her first scream was for help. The second is for justice." neatly encapsulates the story, I guess, but I don't care for the picture in the middle of the poster. There's another version of the poster that omits this bit and moves the text down, but keeps the faces in their places here. I like that one better.
Regardless, I like the bleak simplicity and the two faces. The picture I could do without.
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Without having ever felt sorry for itself.
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Zaz
Title: Manager, The Ampitheatre
Registered:
Oct '98
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Date Posted:
7/8/06 9:12pm
Subject:
RE: Filmsite's Greatest Film Posters (Disc. The Accused)
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Another very good idea for a thread, or it would be if the image had come out, which it didn't...
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Rogue1-and-a-half
Title: Manager: Amphitheatre
Registered:
Nov '00
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Date Posted:
7/10/06 1:05pm
Subject:
RE: Filmsite's Greatest Film Posters (Disc. The Accused)
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Shoot. Let's try again.
-----signature-----
I never saw a wild thing sorry for itself.
A small bird will drop frozen dead from a bough
Without having ever felt sorry for itself.
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Zaz
Title: Manager, The Ampitheatre
Registered:
Oct '98
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Date Posted:
7/10/06 1:08pm
Subject:
RE: Filmsite's Greatest Film Posters (Disc. The Accused)
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Okay, that's better.
Not a great fan of the floating heads style, but if you are going to do it, this is an original way.
And yes, can the boring photo in the middle.
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Forcefire
Registered:
Jul '00
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Date Posted:
7/10/06 6:09pm
Subject:
RE: Filmsite's Greatest Film Posters (Disc. The Accused)
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Oh, how can I not participate in this thread? It's a good poster overall, and I agree with both of you, the photo in the middle has to go. The less is more school of posters has a marked tendency to be better than the everything and the kitchen sink approach.
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"Dear Diary, today I was pompous and my sister was crazy.
Today we were kidnapped by hillfolk, never to be seen again.
It was the best day ever."
Jayne Cobb, the Hero of Canton
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Rogue1-and-a-half
Title: Manager: Amphitheatre
Registered:
Nov '00
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Date Posted:
7/11/06 8:29pm
Subject:
RE: Filmsite's Greatest Film Posters (Disc. The Accused)
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Glad you don't think I'm stomping on your topic. I thought the forum was big enough (the subject is big enough) to allow two threads involving posters at once. 
-----signature-----
I never saw a wild thing sorry for itself.
A small bird will drop frozen dead from a bough
Without having ever felt sorry for itself.
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DarthIshtar
Title: Former CR
Registered:
Mar '01
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Date Posted:
7/12/06 1:38am
Subject:
RE: Filmsite's Greatest Film Posters (Disc. The Accused)
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I like the balance of the images and the tag line.
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"I feel like a more down-to-earth Pink 5 when I'm writing Leah. Same attitude, less lip gloss." ~Me on how to get in the right mindset for Twilight fanfic.
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Smuggler-of-Mos-Espa
Registered:
Jan '02
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Date Posted:
7/12/06 1:03pm
Subject:
RE: Filmsite's Greatest Film Posters (Disc. The Accused)
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It's a somewhat nice poster, but nothing great.
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Rogue1-and-a-half
Title: Manager: Amphitheatre
Registered:
Nov '00
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Date Posted:
7/20/06 11:40am
Subject:
RE: Filmsite's Greatest Film Posters (Disc. The Accused)
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Action in the North Atlantic (1943)
Not a great picture for which I apologize.
I tend not to like these kinds of posters: too busy and also rather hokey. I like the black and red diagonally dividing the poster with black background and Bogart's face in red. Atmospheric.
I don't care for the photographs and the romantic couple below.
Also, the tagline: "A Flag, A Ship and a Woman" is, if you ask me, pretty darn hilarious.
Haven't seen the movie, I should add.
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I never saw a wild thing sorry for itself.
A small bird will drop frozen dead from a bough
Without having ever felt sorry for itself.
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Zaz
Title: Manager, The Ampitheatre
Registered:
Oct '98
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Date Posted:
7/20/06 11:56am
Subject:
RE: Filmsite's Greatest Film Posters (Disc. The Accused)
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I have seen the movie; it's notoriously the last film Huston directed before going into the the services in WWII, and he left Bogart in a huge cliffhanger & told the studio suits to fix it. This reunited the cast from "The Maltese Falcon", but it's nowhere as good.
The poster is a good example of Warner's basic style in the 40's.
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Forcefire
Registered:
Jul '00
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Date Posted:
7/20/06 2:25pm
Subject:
RE: Filmsite's Greatest Film Posters (Disc. "Action in the North Atlantic" (1943) )
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Rogue1-and-a-half posted:
I thought the forum was big enough (the subject is big enough) to allow two threads involving posters at once.
I agree. And besides, this gives me a chance to look at a whole new set of posters with a new perspective, because my thread has really forced me to refine my tastes (I've come around on the off-center black on the Chinatown poster, for example).
Zaz posted:
The poster is a good example of Warner's basic style in the 40's.
Right, I've never seen this poster before, but kind of feel like I have.
Y'know, it's strange that I (and I think most people who give the subject much thought) find the floating head style to be boring most times, but the giant Bogart head here is the most interesting aspect of the poster, probably due to the red. Atmospheric is a good word, Rogue
-----signature-----
"Dear Diary, today I was pompous and my sister was crazy.
Today we were kidnapped by hillfolk, never to be seen again.
It was the best day ever."
Jayne Cobb, the Hero of Canton
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Zaz
Title: Manager, The Ampitheatre
Registered:
Oct '98
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Date Posted:
7/20/06 6:46pm
Subject:
RE: Filmsite's Greatest Film Posters (Disc. "Action in the North Atlantic" (1943) )
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Damn! I think I confused this with "Across the Pacific". In which case, I haven't seen it. 
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Rogue1-and-a-half
Title: Manager: Amphitheatre
Registered:
Nov '00
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Date Posted:
7/25/06 1:40pm
Subject:
RE: Filmsite's Greatest Film Posters (Disc. "Action in the North Atlantic" (1943) )
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Adam's Rib (1949)
Well, not a favorite. One wonders why they didn't just go ahead and use the pants for the A in 'Adam's' since that's what they seem to imply? Why not just go for it?
The conceit, of the two pulling at the pants like a wishbone, is not a bad one, but the execution is not great, in my opinion. I don't like the yellow lines, I don't like the picture at the top, I don't like the drawings. The heads and the hands don't seem to really match.
Quibbling? Maybe, but I don't care for this one.
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I never saw a wild thing sorry for itself.
A small bird will drop frozen dead from a bough
Without having ever felt sorry for itself.
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Zaz
Title: Manager, The Ampitheatre
Registered:
Oct '98
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Date Posted:
7/25/06 4:09pm
Subject:
RE: Filmsite's Greatest Film Posters (Disc. "Adam's Rib" (1949) )
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It's very 50's, isn't it? And not really in a good way. They've overdone the cutesiness, because this poster has an idea or two.
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Rogue1-and-a-half
Title: Manager: Amphitheatre
Registered:
Nov '00
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Date Posted:
8/2/06 11:51am
Subject:
RE: Filmsite's Greatest Film Posters (Disc. "Adam's Rib" (1949) )
- Date Edited:
8/2/06 11:53am (1 edits total)
Edited By:
Rogue1-and-a-half
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The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938)
This is the first film to have more than one poster on the list. It has, in fact, eight!
Because of my inability to find decent images of some of these posters, there are a few links in this post that will lead you to Filmsite's gallary.
Poster 1
Predictable and fairly bland. I like the Robin drawing the arrow from his quiver.
Now, here's a real bad one: the romantic duo in the middle seem a little off, perhaps because she's swooning and he's constipated. And the action scene beneath them; well, it looks good at first blush, but check out Rathbone is just frozen in a totally ludicrous pose. No action here.
Poster 3
Only images I could find were very small, so here's a link.
This one is, again, very classically styled.
Ignore the Chicago bit. Again, the desire to create a poster that feels active, they've gone to far. Consider that Robin Hood is stepping forward down the flight of stairs and still managing to cross swords with Rathbone, who is behind him. I rather doubt that's one of the main positions of sword fighting.
By far the most famous poster, the one popularized by some video releases and the soundtrack release. Fitting. It's also close to the best poster for this movie. Flynn's pose is both dynamic and active; the sharp diagnol of the bow gives the picture of action.
No cheesy image left unrecycled. The rearing horse from poster #3 gets dropped into a different poster and looks like he's falling through the air instead of rearing.
Poster 7
Another good one. I like Flynn's pose and the long bow once again serves brilliantly as a bisecting line. Rather like the colors too.
And I like this one too. Using unadorned stills often don't work, but this one does, I think. It's got a nice balance. Lots of empty space, the massive door, the disappearing staircase and our two opposing forces opposite each other, seperated by a great distance. This is probably the best of the bunch really.
The sharp lines of bow and sword contrasting with the rounded edges of the door and the staircase, the opposing forces, even the way the logo for the movie tilts inward . . . it all gives a real feeling of depth and distance.
So, eight posters for this one and I think we can easily dispose of 1, 2, 3, 4 and 6. The others are okay; 8 is the best.
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I never saw a wild thing sorry for itself.
A small bird will drop frozen dead from a bough
Without having ever felt sorry for itself.
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Zaz
Title: Manager, The Ampitheatre
Registered:
Oct '98
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Date Posted:
8/2/06 11:59am
Subject:
RE: Filmsite's Greatest Film Posters (Disc. The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938)
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I think five is the best of the lot; it's rather good, but not great.
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