Paralleling/Contrasting Movie Posters and DVD Covers

This is mostly inspired by a topic on posters in the Classic Trilogy forum, where I brought up my idea about how the DVD covers could match in a way, just so that it's consistent with how the movies all parallel and contrast each other. Also, I think that with the new releases of the movies that new posters should be made in a similar style. Maybe they could get the person who's made the prequel posters to make posters for the originals. Anyway, here's my idea on the DVD covers.

I think that each dvd cover should have a different person holding a lightsaber, and be careful so that the same person isn't on a cover twice, except for Obi-Wan, because he's really the connection between the two trilogies; the constant. So, let's see if I can work out a way to do this.

1. Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace - Qui-Gon Jinn with green lightsaber with green background.

2. Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones - Darth Tyranus with red lightsaber with blue background.

3. Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith - Obi-Wan Kenobi with blue lightsaber with red background.

4. Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope - Obi-Wan Kenobi with blue lightsaber with red background.

5. Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back - Darth Vader with red lightsaber with blue background.

6. Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi - Luke Skywalker with green lightsaber with green background.

I think this works the best in terms of parallels and contrasts between the movies and who's most prominently involved in the stories. Also, it can pretty easily be inferred that each movie has a type of shade that goes along with the mood of the movie. I think green goes with The Phantom Menace and Return of the Jedi, blue goes with Attack of the Clones and The Empire Strikes Back, and red goes with Revenge of the Sith and A New Hope. Please discuss and contribute to how you think this could best be done.

 

It's an interesting idea, but it sort of leaves out of the character who aren't Jedi, which is unfair. A main, unlying theme in SW is that while the Jedi carry most of the heavy plots, the "normal" cast is just as important. Also, SW posters are already somewhat parallel because they're mostly all designed in the fashion of older, noir-ish style where most of the main cast is shown together in a collage where all are posed dynamically. It's easier to see the thread through some of the more recent posters, but if you take a look around AllPoster.com, there's actually alot of what you're referring to as well:

[image=http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v76/chaotic_serenity/one.jpg] [image=http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v76/chaotic_serenity/two.jpg] [image=http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v76/chaotic_serenity/three.jpg]
[image=http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v76/chaotic_serenity/four.jpg] [image=http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v76/chaotic_serenity/five.jpg] [image=http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v76/chaotic_serenity/six.jpg]


Personally, my favorite posters are the more subtle, evocative ones, like Episode I's Anakin/Vader shadow poster or episode II's Anakin/Padme or this fairly obscure ROTJ one.

 

Well, I just meant the people Force-users; that was the only specific thing. Of course there should still be the other 3 characters plus some vehicles or something on the cover. And, by the colored background, I mean that like, iris of light you see in the back, on the black backdrop, not just completely blue or red or whatever. It should be similar to how it is now.

 

Note: I am a mostly spoiler-free fan, but still know a few things about the events of Episode III. However, I am very sensitive to non-spoiled fans? desire to stay spoiler-free, whether they are partly spoiled like me or know nothing but the title of the film. I?ve blacked out things I think could be spoilery, but everything is pretty minor, in my opinion. If you?ve seen the theatrical or teaser trailer for Episode III, you?ve seen everything I make reference to.

I love posters, DVD covers, and Star Wars art in general. Chaotic_Serentiy, the three posters you specifically pointed out happen to be three of my very favorites (though I prefer the banner version of the Episode I teaser, where Vader?s shadow is on the sand rather than the wall). Here are a few ideas.

Episode I
Green background
Qui-Gon with green lightsaber
Supporting: Obi-Wan, Queen Amidala, Anakin
Anakin and Sebulba's Podracers
Comments: I feel that this is the happiest of the films, thus all heroes go on this one. Qui-Gon is an extremely important character for the future of the saga. Anakin is the smallest of the supporting section because he is just being discovered and his future is very uncertain. The podrace has important implications also, since it frees Anakin.

Episode II
Blue background
Anakin with blue lightsaber
Supporting: Padmé, Obi-Wan, Jango
Gunships
Comments: Anakin really gets to start to show off his abilities here, and this story has two main parts ? his development and the start of the Clone War. The most important thing to the saga is Anakin, in my opinion, so he is featured over the war. Padmé has the most influence on Anakin in this film, so she is the featured supporting character. Jango is present as the progenitor of the clones and represents the war. The Gunships also represent the war?s beginnings.

Episode III
Red background
Darth Sidious with red lightsaber
Supporting: Anakin (dark appearance), Obi-Wan, Yoda
Jedi Starfighters
Comments: Evil is often represented by red (and the Sith have red lightsabers). Sidious is the one that?s been planning the revenge and is the essence of evil throughout the saga, so he gets to shine here. Anakin is obviously very important to this story and is in most ways the focus of the film, so he is prominent (and ?dark? ? perhaps hooded). Obi-Wan is the most important hero in this story. The Jedi Starfighters represent the end of the Republic and the beginning of the Empire as they closely resemble TIE fighters fighting for the good guys.


Episode IV
Blue background
Obi-Wan with blue lightsaber
Supporting: Luke, Leia, Han
Death Star
Comments: Happy times return, sort of. Obi-Wan ties the two trilogies together and is important in getting Luke, like Qui-Gon was important in getting Anakin (Obi-Wan?s and Qui-Gon?s positions parallel one another). But since Luke is more prominently featured in this film than Leia and Han and because he is the centerpiece of the next three movies, he is larger than Anakin was for Episode I. We need to introduce an almost entirely new cast of characters, and the heroes are the focus of this film. The Death Star is iconic and represents the continuing presence of the evil in the galaxy.

Episode V
Red background
Darth Vader with red lightsaber
Supporting: Stormtrooper, Yoda, Boba
AT-ATs
Comments: The bad guys take center stage. Anakin/Vader gets multiple featured appearances because he is, in my opinion, the center of the saga. He also looks quite different now than he did in Episode II ? so it parallels without being redundant. Perhaps he could be in a stance similar to the one he had for Episode II. The Stormtrooper is the most minor character to be on any of them since he is so nonspecific, but he represents the Empire here (and I do not feel Palpatine?s holographic appearance is substantial enough to warrant an appearance here). Yoda is more important at this time in the overall story than any other, in my opinion, so he is chosen as the only representative of good in

 

great topic in my opinion


i would go with:

ANH - OBI1 with lightsaber, also luke, solo, leia
minor pics of droids & chewie
x-wings attacking death star

TESB- vader with lightsaber, also luke, boba fett, yoda
minor pics of lando & solo
AT-ATs on hoth

ROTJ - luke with lightsaber, also leia, vader & emporer
minor pics of ewoks, stormtroopers etc
Falcon approaching death star

TPM - darth maul with lightsaber, also qui-gon, obi1, amaidala & anakin
minor pics of droids, trade federation, sidious, yoda
Naboo pilots attacking TF station

AOTC - yoda with lightsaber, also anakin, amidala, obi1
minor pics of dooku, clones, mace windu, jango
Battle of geonosis

ROTS - POSSIBLE VERY VERY MINOR SPOILERS BELOW...























sidious with lightsaber, also anakin, obi1, yoda
minor pics of amidala, windu, grivious
battle of coruscant


I really hope we get matching DVD covers with no inconsistencies in the set of six that are bound to be released

 

I like the present DVD covers very much. They all fit well together.
The original posters are also great, but to have this certain continuity I would replace the three original Eps IV to VI ones with the SE ones, which look like the prequel posters.
I would nevertheless include the original ones as a second cover printed on the back of the SE ones in the DVD boxes, so that the fan can decide which ones to use.

 

the problem with the SE posters is they feature pictures from the wrong films eg the duel on the ROTJ poster is from TESB.

As ive said before the thing i dont like about the PT DVD covers is they feature only heroes & no villains

 

Maul's eyes in the poster of TPM and a huge Vader in ROTS, plus Jango in AOTC.

 

they are posters, not DVD covers

 

Oh..... right. That's a point...

 

Padme-Wan, I think the problem with your dvd cover suggestions is that there really isn't any pattern with them. It goes green, blue, red, blue, red, green, whereas I think my suggestion of green, blue, red, red, blue, green is just neater and more consistent. The colors mirror each other. Also, I didn't put blue lightsaber with blue background or red lightsaber with red background because for the original trilogy dvds, they put the blue lightsaber with the red background and the red lightsaber with the blue background, so I wanted to keep that.

Also, someone suggested that the movies match I-IV, II-V, and III-VI. This is both true and false. Episode I opens like Episode VI but closes like Episode IV. Episode II, however, opens and closes like Episode V. Following this trend, I would assume that Episode III opens like Episode IV and closes like Episode VI. So, since I've established this, I think that we can reach a compromise with who the background characters should be on the boxes.

I think that my suggestions for the lightsaber wielders are good, except for maybe having Anakin on the Episode III box instead of Obi-Wan. I'm not sure, but this could be seen later, when comparing, that by Episode IV, Obi-Wan has the Qui-Gon role, by Episode V, Vader has the Tyranus role, and by Episode VI, Luke has the Anakin role. I still am slightly partial to the one I suggested before because first you'd have Anakin on the Episode III box and then Vader on the Episode V box and it doesn't really match right. If you have Obi-Wan on the Episode III box and the Episode IV it's almost a perfect reflection, despite the 19 year difference.

As for supporting characters, Episodes I and IV should be left as they are; with Qui-Gon in Episode I and Obi-Wan in Episode IV, both wielding lightsabers and sharing the same spot, Obi-Wan on Episode I and Luke on Episode IV should share the same spot, Padme and Leia, Anakin and Han. As for the vehicles, I think that Episode I should have Naboo Starfighters to match Episode IV's X-Wings and the Trade Federation Control Ship to match the Death Star.

Episode II, as it is now, still only has good characters on it, whereas Episode V has two bad characters and two good characters. I think the latter is a better decision to go with, since both of these movies feature the character growth of the villains and of minor characters. So, I think that Yoda should be on both of these covers and in the same spot on both. Mace should be on Episode II and Lando on Episode V, and Jango should be on Episode II and Boba on Episode V, both helmeted, maybe brandishing their weapons, pointed towards the viewer. I think that Republican walkers should be featured on the Episode II cover, and Imperial walkers on the Episode V cover. Offers a nice little contrast huh? Also, that Star Destroyer on the Episode V cover should be kept, and add one of those early Star Destroyer-types you see after Geonosis onto the Episode II cover. I think these movies contrast each other beautifully.

Ah, now we come to the most important movies; Episode III and Episode VI. Episode VI has Palpatine, Vader, and Yoda as supporting characters. I think that's perfect as it is. I think that these supporting characters should be the same for Episode III, and in the same places. However, I'm torn between whether I think Vader should be suited or not for the the Episode III cover. I'm leaning towards not, just to contrast with the Episode VI cover. I think that since we see the Millennium Falcon on the Episode VI cover, we should see the Naboo Cruiser that has been used throughout the Prequels on the Episode III cover. Also, since we see the Second Death Star on the Episode VI cover, maybe we could have the Death Star being constructed on the Episode III cover. But this raises a problem with the Death Star appearing three times, and it doesn't match as well overall. So, maybe we could have Mustafar on the Episode III cover to contrast with the Death Star. Or Mustafar and Endor, or Coruscant and Endor.

 

"Padme-Wan, I think the problem with your dvd cover suggestions is that there really isn't any pattern with them. It goes green, blue, red, blue, red, green, whereas I think my suggestion of green, blue, red, red, blue, green is just neater and more consistent. The colors mirror each other. Also, I didn't put blue lightsaber with blue background or red lightsaber with red background because for the original trilogy dvds, they put the blue lightsaber with the red background and the red lightsaber with the blue background, so I wanted to keep that."
I know. You may not have read it, because I had it blacked out, but I said:
"The background colors simply match the colors of the lightsabers being brandished by the main character for each film. I feel that the best correlations between the films are I-IV, II-V, and III-VI, and I know the colors don?t match up this way, but I simply feel that having the background match the lightsaber looks better than it being the other way around. Another option would be to have all the backgrounds either silver or gold (this could be either I-III gold and IV-VI silver or all one color or the other). The background colors would be sort of glow effects like on the DVD covers now, perhaps with starry backgrounds."
The background color choices I made were just for cosmetic reasons. I totally appreciate the efforts for parallelism and consistency - I tried to incorporate that somewhat also - but it has to look good too. And it's my personal opinion that matching colors (or colors that don't match any sabers, such as silver or gold) look better than something like blue background/red lightsaber, where you have a color representative of another lightsaber in the background.

"Also, someone suggested that the movies match I-IV, II-V, and III-VI."
That was me. I didn't really explain my reasoning there, so I'll clarify what I meant. I and IV are the setup movies for the two trilogies, and are both pretty happy overall. I ends with evil rising and IV ends with good rising, which is appropriate since the PT has evil taking over and the OT has good triumphing. II and V have darkness taking over. III and VI are the resolutions to both trilogies, and obviously different sides are victorious, but again it deals with the PT=bad wins/OT=good wins theme. Also, I and IV have similar endings, as do II and V (I do not know what III's ending sequence is).

I agree with all of your lightsaber wielder choices except for two, and here's why.
Darth Tyranus for Episode II - I just don't think he has a big enough part. He's an important character, no doubt. But he doesn't appear until more than halfway through the movie and has limited screen time. As I said, I feel that II's story is mostly about Anakin, so the art should reflect his story more.
Obi-Wan for Episode III - Obi-Wan is extremely important, no question. But as I said, I feel the story is about Anakin, so he is the only one that warrants more than one featured appearance. I chose Obi-Wan for Episode IV rather than III because III is more about the Dark Side, and because as you said, in IV his role parallels Qui-Gon's in I.

"I think that Republican walkers should be featured on the Episode II cover, and Imperial walkers on the Episode V cover. Offers a nice little contrast huh?"
I thought of this also, and am not opposed to it. The only reason I chose Gunships over walkers for II is because they seem to be more readily associated with the Clone Wars, based on fan reactions I have seen, merchandising, etc.

I appreciate your comments and the thought you put into the subject. The only thing I think you may be doing wrong is trying to draw too many parallels, and including too many things. As I said earlier, it still has to look good. A lot of this comes down to personal opinion about which characters are more appropriate for which film's art, and how much can be included before they start to feel messy. Apparently, you feel more can be put into each one than I do, which is fine. I have been approaching this mostly as a DVD

 

Heh, y'know, looking back at the poster images I linked, I just realized that Anakin is the only one who shows up in all six posters, four of which he makes an appearance as Vader. Kinda helps to emphasize just how much of a presence and influence he really is.

 

Well, I'm really glad to see this has generated such discussion. Now I'm ready to move onto poster art.

Since George Lucas is going to be releasing all of the movies in theaters again, I think that the artist who created the Prequel posters (Drew Struzan?) should make new posters for the Originals that line up better with the Prequel posters, which I think are perfect as they are. What I'm suggesting is that, using the Prequel posters as a template, the new posters for the Originals would go something like this.

For Episode IV, it should have Luke standing where Anakin is on the Episode I poster, Han with his pistol out, toward the viewer, where Obi-Wan is, Chewbacca where Jar-Jar is, R2 and 3PO in the same spot, the Millennium Falcon where the Naboo Cruiser is, Obi-Wan where Qui-Gon is, Leia where Padme is, and Darth Vader's face in the background like Darth Maul's is. They should also be painted in a similar style and in similar situations.

For Episode V, it should have Boba where Jango is, 3PO and R2 in the same spot, Rebel Soldiers in place of Clone Troopers, Snowspeeders in place of Gunships, AT-AT's in place of Spider Droids, and Snowtroopers in the background, and different Imperial Troopers, in place of all the different droids, Lando should be where Mace is, with a Stormtrooper rifle, Yoda in the same spot. Now, the trickiest part comes here. I'm not sure whether Luke should be where Anakin and Padme are, and Han and Leia should be where Obi-Wan is, or vice versa. I was originally going with Han and Leia where Anakin and Padme are, but that part really dominates the poster, and Episode V really deals with Luke mostly. So, I'm leaning more towards Luke having the dominant spot of the poster.

Episode VI: Luke's face should be where Anakin's is on the Episode III poster, Han's where Obi-Wan's is, Leia's where Padme's is. Yoda should be in the same spot, and Lando in place of Mace. Palpatine should be in the same spot. TIE Interceptors should be in place of the Jedi Starfighters. Vader and Luke should be battling like Anakin and Obi-Wan, with Vader on the left still and Luke on the right, with their lightsabers clashing in a similar style. Also, where Vader's face is seem looming in the back, Anakin's face should be.

 

i wonder, would it be possible for some1 to make mock versions of these proposed DVD covers/posters and post them in this thread?

 

EpisodeI
Qui-Gon Jinn Wielding a lightsaber
Supporting: Obi-Wan,Anakin,Padme, Darth Maul,Jar Jar the droids

EpisodeII
Yoda wielding a lightsaber
supportingbi-Wan, Anakin, Padme, Count Dooku, Mace Windu,the droids

Episode III
Darth Sidious wielding a lightsaber
supportingbi-Wan, Anakin, Padme, Yoda, Bail Organa, the droids

Episode IV
Obi-Wan Kenobi Wielding a lightsaber
supporting: Darth Vader, Luke, Leia, Han, Chewbacca, the droids

Episode V
Darth Vader Wielding a lightsaber
supporting:Luke,Han, Yoda, Boba Fett, Lando,the droids

Episode VI
Luke wielding a lightsaber
supporting:Vader,Emperor,Yoda,Han, Leia, the droids

 

I like all the original poster, I think they should be the dvd box art