Top 10 Poster artwork for 2006: Part II

Before we head on over to the top 5 out of my top 10 poster designs for the year that was, I’d like to give kudos to the art of the “teaser” poster. The marketing heads over at Lionsgate films continue to both impress, and have fun with this form of early marketing. The Tyler Perry films seem to have benefited from the early exposure – Madea's Family Reunion set of teasers (you can view them over at IMP Awards. Another set worry of mention was the blood red fivesome of posters for Palm Pictures’ 13 Tzameti – rather simple in design, but what was fun was the chaptered narrative – view them (here). And now my top 5.

5. The Road to Guantánamo

Distributor: Samuel Goldwyn Films
Comments: No this is not the official one sheet for the Winterbottom documentary, the MPAA slapped the distribs on the wrist and changed the final version – (they cropped it up a bit). It’s strong, bold, packs a punch, and evokes plenty of miserable thoughts about U.S. foreign policy.

4. Dave Chappelle's Block Party

Distributor: Rogue Pictures
Comments: Touches into colors psychedelic 70’s, with a tad Motown-ish album covers and perhaps a Bill Cosby’ Fat Albert and Friends appeal. Dave with a megaphone in the bottom lures us in even more.

3. The Devil and Daniel Johnston

Distributor: Sony Pictures Classics
Comments: If you haven’t seen the film or don’t know Mr. Jonhston is, then one might think this is a bad contemporary rip off of a B sci-fi film from the 50’s. Some might say this taps into the dementia of a sick person, others like me might say there is more of an artist in Daniel’s pinky than in my entire artistic being.

2. Hard Candy

Distributor: Lionsgate films
Comments: Last week, the Poster blog site Posterwire crowned this as their best. Lionsgates’ advertising campaigns are helped tremendously by the folks at print advertising folks Art Machine. You’ve got the little red riding “hood” motif going on here, you’ve got the trap and it is one of those rare posters not trying to sell the merits of the film with the features of a recognizable star, but on the themes of the storyline.

1. Half Nelson

Distributor: THINKFilm
Comments: It was great fun peering into my uncle’s record collection as a kid, but his copy of Peter Gabriel’s third album horrified me. The pastel watercolors look retains the film’s theme of how drug addiction washes out a person’s soul. Anthony Mackie cameo in the classroom door.