Posterized: Weekend, Drive, Like Crazy, I Don't Know She Does It
Wednesday, August 10, 2011 at 1:29PM How 'on message' are the crop of posters that have been harvested recently to announce the fall movie slate? Let's take a look starting with this lovely hazy poster for Weekend (2011). I'll ask you first what you feel about it at first glance before I talk about the movie after the image. The poster was shot by Quinford + Scout a couple who have been documenting their own relationship in photographs.
Andrew Haigh's romantic drama follows a quiet gay man (Tom Cullen) through a one night stand with a political artist (Chris New) and watches as it stretches into the next morning and beyond in ways that surprise both of them. The film has won festival awards at SXSW, OutFest and Nashville (yours truly was on that last jury) and when it finally arrives in the fall it will undoubtedly draw comparisons to Before Sunrise for the surface reasons that it's a small, talky, mostly two character romance (though otherwise its quite different). The deeper similarity is that it's actually very, very good. I think this poster is exceptional at conveying that you're in for a mood piece, something memorable to hang on to like a faded treasured photograph and as such I think it's great. But I've actually seen the film. Maybe it won't say much if you haven't?
Two other new posters are also going for moods that verge on nostalgia if more traditionally warm and golden: another romantic drama Like Crazy which will attempt to convert its Sundance buzz to Oscar hype on October 28th, and a film I'd never heard of called Tanner Hall about a girl's boarding school starring Rooney Mara. Ah, that's why. It was filmed in 2009 but it's coming September 9th now that Mara's star is in the process of ascending.
Am I forcing trends now?
Sarah Jessica Parker, Brad Pitt and Ryan Gosling after the jump
Here's two GREEN posters for I Don't Know How She Does It (September 16th) and Moneyball (September 23rd) And sure it looks like I paired them for that reason. But they arrived within a day of each other so it was hard not to notice. Moneyball has another poster that's mostly type and the baseball field but I used this one for star symmetry. Not that I'm suggesting that SJP & Pitt should pair up.
Baseball fields are green so that poster choice was a gimme. But why the green for IDKHSDI? Perhaps it's subliminal. Spend money on this movie! [trailer discussions: IDKHSDI and Moneyball]
Finally, here are the three posters we've seen thus far for Nicolas Winding Refn's DRIVE...
The first two, seen in France, do a better job of conveying that it's a hip movie --possibly about clothes -- with an electric current star. The American poster with the pink lettering is a movie that could literally be about anything. It's opting to sell Ryan Gosling and Ryan Gosling alone. Of course we're looking up at him like he's the new golden god of movies. But maybe the team looked at the online fever generated by that Crazy Stupid Love trailer this past spring ("seriously?! it's like you're photoshopped") and decided. When you've got him, flaunt him.
♫ When you got 'im, flaunt 'im
Step right up and strut his stuff
People tell you modesty's a virtue
But for movie stars modesty can hurt you
When you got 'im, flaunt 'im
Show his assets, let them know you're proud
His goodies you must push
Stick out his chest, shake his tush
When you got it, shout it out loud ♩
....Now Gosling drive!
Reader Comments (14)
Something feels off on the Weekend poster. It seems like it should have an Oprah's book club sticker on it because it looks like a poorly designed book cover.
I kind of agree with James...
They all are too airbrushed and glossy. Are they selling movies or perfumes? And the greens ones are just awful!
I quite like the Weekend poster. I think the font kerning and symmetry of the layout against the dreamy haziness of the photo work for me compositionally. I've also been looking forward to this film.
Side note: I checked out the Quinnford and Scout page and I want to be in an artsy sexy cute bearded Brit gay couple. Sigh.
I'm excited to see Drive, and Tanner Hall, but thats because I'm an Amy Sedaris worshiper, and I'll watch her in anything. None of the posters are particularly intriguing to me, the green ones are actually pretty heinous. I wish film posters were interesting like they used to be. The Criterion Collection commissions beautiful artwork for their dvd releases. I wish theatrical posters were that inventive, but I guess thats gone and not coming back.
Oh why did they have to put the "I Miss You" on top? The "Like Crazy" poster reminds me of the song from The Moffats now.
Otherwise, and I'm a voice in the choir, but the Drive posters are the best and plugs the movie I can't wait to see. The pink font at the one on the right seems jarring (?) but it also feels more creative.
I've only seen small versions of the American drive poster with the pink font - it doesn't fit the mood of the trailer I saw (the other posters do a much better job of matching it), and at that size image Gosling looks to me like Daniel Craig. And I have NEVER misidentified Gosling as Craig before.
Why does SJP look like she's trying to seem as less Carrie as possible?
By the way, I like green. Green is good :p
The US drive poster reminds me of the Dirty Dancing poster/image - what with the pink type and all. You'd think they could have at least made the font look like chrome or something that invokes a car instead of putting baby in the corner.
I am glad to see Drive.
1. The American DRIVE poster seems somewhat 70ish and retro. I'm not sure how accurate that is.
2. I actually gasped out loud when I saw that WEEKEND poster. So many good qualities, so I'll focus on three
a). That the two men are feature from behind. It has the feeling of a memory receding where the details are a little fuzzy (of course the whole image is a little fuzzy).
b) The color. It has that old, slightly off photograph feel about it. Feels spontaneous even if it's deeply thought.
c) The spacing of the words. The whole thing implies space - to percolate, to breathe, to roam.
Love it.
Moneyball’s poster looks like it’s actually titled BRAD PITT. Maybe they have to tone it down and learn from DRIVE to make a stylish poster while still selling the shit out of Brad Pitt.
Good for DRIVE’s middle poster to have Cannes’ stamp on it since it reminds me of Nic Cage’s Drive Angry. Gosling also really looks like Daniel Craig on that last poster.
Like Crazy and Weekend’s posters are using the same technique: the fading soft color with some light and the hip font style. Is it Helvetica?
James - probably because SJP will be fighting that for the rest of her career.
I like the "Weekend poster" because it actually uses the space, which a lot of indie films refuse to do, and because the colours are so rarely seen to that degree.
I actually like the American poster much more than the other two because it reminds me of "American Gigolo"'s poster and that's a great poster, too.
Whenever I see a green like that, I can't help but think of Maggie Smith's improv in Gosford Park: "Difficult color green." I like the IDKHSDI poster much better than the Moneyball poster; Brad Pitt looks far too photoshopped for my tastes. That's actually my problem with the American Drive poster as well. Why on earth with stars as beautiful as Brad Pitt and Ryan Gosling would you choose to alter them in any way? Weekend looks lovely. Hazy like memories. By contrast, the Tanner Hall poster is forgettable, and the Like Crazy poster, while cute, looks poorly executed. That said, Like Crazy has one of the best teaser trailers I've seen all year. I'd love to hear your take on it.