The Lost Art of Poster Art

Remember when you were a kid and you used to hang around in your local video store (mad props to Terry at Gelli Video!), scanning the shelves for hours, taking in all the titles and making lists of the movies you were going to watch, and in what order? No? Surely not just me?



Anyway, back in those days, (and I’m talking about the 80’s/early 90’s here...again), the poster or cover artwork of a film that I’d never heard of, never read the synopsis to, never heard of the star, could bend my mind to the point of obsession. Maniac Cop 2 (below) was a personal favourite!



Let’s jump straight to the point here. I guess what I’m getting at is that the art of poster art is dead. Since Photoshop reared its ugly head, every gimp with a Mac is a ‘graphic designer’. What happened to the illustrator’s man? The guys that used to create those kooky old movie posters that seem to make the heroes more heroic, monsters more terrifying, turn ladies in to vixens. Here’s an example. Check out how great Bridget Nielsen looks on the poster to Red Sonja (bad remake coming soon folks!!) compared to what she looks like in the movie. She’s the bomb in Rocky 4 tho!



And check out this poster for the film Madman, which had me shitting my pants as a kid. The thought of Madman Marz sitting in a tree outside my bedroom window turned me into a sobbing little fool!



But when he finally appears in the film, check out the shit make up job we’re landed with. He looks like Santa in a K Hole. What a jip!



The actual quality of the film doesn’t matter; we’re talking about the artwork here. If great artwork on an album can coerce you in to buying it, an aural medium which can never represent the art on the sleeve, then you know a great film cover will have you snatching it from the racks.

Look at the poster for the blockbuster vampire flick Twilight.



Now check out the poster for 80’s vampire love story Near Dark. It’s not an illustration, but I think I’ve illustrated my point. Which would you rather see?



Back in the day, good artwork sold films. Now we have access to trailers on TV, online, even on our phones. I guess this kinda negates the need for eye catching posters. Boo-Hoo for us!

Jesus, I’ve gone off on one completely. This post was intended to shine a light on some classic Sylvester Stallone illustrated posters. Here they are. “Noyce one Slllllllyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy”!