Iconic Movie Posters
An aspect of film that many people may not notice is publicity. Getting the audience to get up and drive to the movie theatre is half the battle, while the other half is creating something entertaining enough to hold their attention for a couple of hours. And one of the most common techniques that film makers have used, besides the movie trailer, is the movie poster. Give them an image that captures their attentions and makes them wonder “what’s this movie about?”
Throughout film history ever film has had a movie poster created for it. But there are a small few whose movie posters have turned into iconic images. People see the image and automatically think of that film. They don’t even need the film title on it to know what movie it is talking about. In a way they have become a form of art and some are as recognizable to movie lovers as the Mona Lisa is to art lovers.
Below are, in my opinion, the four most famous and identifiable movie posters in film history. Due to length restrictions of any blog, all of the iconic images from movie poster cannot be listed. Therefore this compilation of movie posters is incomplete but satisfactory enough to prove how these images hold the essence of the films they portray.
Silence of the Lambs
This movie poster is as strange and queer as the film it publicizes. It shows the face of actress Jodie Foster, who stars in the film. The 
decision to make her face black and white, but keep her eyes in color may seem bizarre, however in a way it makes perfect sense. As a police detective, she uses her eyes to look for clues throughout her case. Furthermore the orange-brown color with the blue fits beautifully as two complimentary colors. The death dead hawk moth that fits over her mouth is meant to signify a number of things. The covering of her mouth fits perfectly with the “silence” in Silence of the Lambs. Furthermore the moths play an important part in her character’s discovery of her target who has been abducting young women.Lastly death head hawk moths have a strange but very natural formation on their backs which resembles a skull. This promotes a very uneasy feeling in the viewer, making them realize this is a scary film. Another part of the poster that many people may not realize is the actual skull on the moth’s head in the poster. It is not a natural formation in this case, but actually a minimized version of a painting by Salvador Dali. The picture is of naked women bodies that are laid out to form a skull. This is to signify the women that Buffalo Bill killed for their skin.
Almost Famous
The film Almost Famous can easily be recognized with this iconic poster. It shows the face of Kate Hudson, who plays the character Penny Lane in the film. Her face was chosen, even if she is not the main character of the film, because she personified the magic and freedom of the rock music era in the 60s and 70s. This can be seen throughout the film as she wanders with the band as a sort of musical muse. In the glasses that she wears can be seen an image. This image is of a rock concert, and more importantly the image of Russell, the lead guitar player. This image in her glasses is meant to not only show the audience the rock and roll band, named Stillwater, that this movie follows, but also shows Penny Lane’s eyes resting on Russell. Russell and she have a love affair throughout the film and as it dies, so do the wild and fun times that the band has together.
Pulp Fiction
It can be argued that this image not only holds a place in iconic movie posters, but also holds a place is iconic images as a whole. This
film and the following image of Mia Wallace on a bed hold a special place in film history. Ask any movie lover about Pulp Fiction and they will probably mention this famous picture. The image of Mrs. Mia Wallace on a bed is meant to show the seductive nature of the film. She has a harsh expression on her face showing the violence and callous killing that takes place throughout the film. She is also a personification of Quentin Tarantino’s wild and almost humorous reality where hit men are cool and a quarter pounder is called a royal with cheese. The items in front of her on the bed are just as important as she is herself. The gun by her shows that this film is not 
only sexy, it is bloody. And it’s true, as guns are just as numerous in this film as characters. The cigarettes are another iconic image that Tarantino uses throughout his films. Furthermore the cigarettes that lie in front of Mia are Tarantino’s special and fictional brand called Red Apples. He uses them in almost every one of his films. Last but not least is the book that Mia has her hand on. The entire film that Tarantino has created is meant to harken back to the style of pulp fiction books. All of his films, not just Pulp Fiction, get their blood and energy from pop culture and in this case, pulp fiction carries the film through its gun shots and adrenaline needles.
American Beauty
If you asked someone what the movie American Beauty is about, their answer would most always be “it’s about beauty.” And what is more beautiful than the female body, or a flower? But it means more than that, I promise. When the main character, Lester Burnham, first meets the girl of his dreams, he is immediately smitten with her. She changes his life completely for her and her perfect body. It is her stomach that appears on the movie poster, showing Lester’s lust and the sexiness that she exudes as a character. The purpose of the rose can be seen in the film itself. When Lester first sees her, he envisions rose petals coming out of her chest. When he fantasizes about her, she is always covered in rose petals. The roses show up in many scenes of the film, even if we may not realize it. To Lester, the roses symbolize sex and lust. It isn’t until later in the film that we realize they may mean something else: innocence.
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