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The Princess Bride / quad / UK

31.03.15

Poster Poster
Title
The Princess Bride
AKA
Princess Bride Story (Japan - English title) | La storia fantastica [The fantastic story] Italy
Year of Film
1987
Director
Rob Reiner
Starring
Cary Elwes, Robin Wright, Mandy Patinkin, Chris Sarandon, André the Giant, Christopher Guest, Peter Falk, Fred Savage, Wallace Shawn, Billy Crystal, Carol Kane
Origin of Film
USA
Genre(s) of Film
Cary Elwes, Robin Wright, Mandy Patinkin, Chris Sarandon, André the Giant, Christopher Guest, Peter Falk, Fred Savage, Wallace Shawn, Billy Crystal, Carol Kane,
Type of Poster
Quad
Style of Poster
--
Origin of Poster
UK
Year of Poster
1988
Designer
Hat Art Ltd.
Artist
Steve Crisp
Size (inches)
30" x 39 15/16"
SS or DS
SS
NSS #
--
Tagline
Heroes. Giants. Villains. Wizards. True Love. Not just your basic, average, everyday, ordinary, run-of-the-mill, ho-hum fairy tale.

This is the UK quad for the 1987 fantasy-adventure film The Princess Bride, featuring artwork unique to the British advertising campaign. Helmed by actor-director Rob Reiner, who was also behind the 80s classics This is Spinal Tap and Stand By Me, the film is based on the 1973 book by legendary author, playwright and screenwriter William Goldman (who also adapted the screenplay). The main story is framed by present day scenes in which an old grandfather (Peter Falk) reads a book to his Nintendo-playing grandson, who is suspicious of being read an old dusty book at first but soon gets into the story. 

Ostensibly a classic fairy tale adventure, the film is based in the Renaissance-era fictional country of Florin in which a beautiful princess named Buttercup (Robin Wright) is set to marry the odious Prince Humperdinck (Chris Sarandon). One day she is kidnapped by a oddly-matched trio of petty criminals, including diminutive gang boss Vizzini (Wallace Shawn), Spanish master fencer Inigo Montoya (Mandy Patinkin) and the giant Fezzik (legendary wrestler André the Giant) who have been hired to start a war between two nations by killing Buttercup and leaving her body on the shore of rival country Guilder.

The trio haven’t counted on the actions of the mysterious Dread Pirate Roberts (Cary Elwes) who pursues them across the sea, eventually freeing Buttercup from the gang. Buttercup discovers that the pirate is in fact her long lost love Westley who disappeared five years earlier whilst on a voyage. Before long, Humperdinck and his nefarious, six-fingered sidekick Count Rugen (Christopher Guest) catches up with the lovers and promises Buttercup that he’ll let Westley go if she’ll return to Florin and marry him. She reluctantly agrees but the prince doesn’t stick to his word and Rugen traps Westley in the underground ‘Pit of Despair’. It’s up to Inigo Montoya, who has a grudge to settle with Rugen, and Fezzik to free Westley and break into the prince’s castle before it’s too late.

The film has a genuinely funny script that is elevated further by some classic performances from Elwes, Patinkin and Guest, with a brilliant cameo from Billy Crystal. It has a pitch-perfect mix of non-cheesy romance, with exciting action and adventure, including an epic swordfight atop a cliff. The Princess Bride has been embraced by generations of film fans and continues to be loved by audiences of all ages, with several of the most quoted lines entering the cultural lexicon.

The design of the poster is credited (in the bottom right) to a company called Hat Art Ltd about whom I’ve been able to discover next to nothing, so if anyone has any information about them please get in touch. The artwork bears a signature of ‘Crisp’, which is short for the British artist Steve Crisp. According to the artist’s profile on a now defunct art website, Crisp was born in Kent in 1955 and started painting as early as 5 years old. He studied at the noted St Martins School of Art in London in the 70s and for the past 30 years has worked on book covers for the likes of Stephen King (11 in total), Ray Bradbury and James Herbert, as well as film posters like this one and home video covers for films like Mad Max.

He’s also noted for his work on illustrated jigsaws and the Jigsaw Junkies website interviewed him in 2016. The resultant article can be read here.

Fright Night / quad / UK

04.04.14

Poster Poster
Title
Fright Night
AKA
Ammazzavampiri (Italy)
Year of Film
1985
Director
Tom Holland
Starring
Chris Sarandon, William Ragsdale, Roddy McDowall, Amanda Bearse, Stephen Geoffreys, Jonathan Stark
Origin of Film
USA
Genre(s) of Film
Chris Sarandon, William Ragsdale, Roddy McDowall, Amanda Bearse, Stephen Geoffreys, Jonathan Stark,
Type of Poster
Quad
Style of Poster
--
Origin of Poster
UK
Year of Poster
1985
Designer
Unknown
Artist
Peter Mueller
Size (inches)
30 1/16" x 39 15/16"
SS or DS
SS
Tagline
If you love being scared, it'll be the night of your life.

Iconic horror artwork on this British quad for the release of the superior original Fright Night, an excellent vampire flick directed by Tom Holland. Charlie Brewster (William Ragsdale) is an average high school kid who’s a fan of gothic horrors and often stays up late to watch Fright Night, a horror film TV series hosted by ageing actor Peter Vincent (Roddy McDowall), known for playing vampire hunters in the past. One day the mysterious, suave Jerry Dandrige (Chris Sarandon) moves in next door and before long Charlie sees him attacking and biting the neck of a woman leading him to suspect that Jerry is a creature of the night.

After everyone, including the local police, his girlfriend Amy and his best friend ‘Evil’ Ed doubt Charlie’s claims, he visits the TV studio and tries to convince Peter Vincent to help him uncover the truth about Jerry. Although initially dismissing Charlie as a deluded fan, the financially struggling Vincent eventually agrees to help once Amy, worrying about her boyfriend’s sanity, hires him to look into his claims. Soon the pair are engaged in a game of cat and mouse with Jerry who first goes after Ed, biting and converting him into a vampire. When Jerry turns his attentions to Amy, Charlie and Vincent must try to outwit him before it’s too late.

An effective, fun horror film with solid special effects, a creepy atmosphere and memorable characters, Fright Night was a box office and critical hit at the time of release, despite its modest production budget. A middling sequel followed three years later which saw Charlie and Peter Vincent facing off against Jerry’s sister and friends. The poster for the sequel used a very similar design to this one. After wondering for years who was responsible for the artwork on the original poster I was contacted by a fellow poster fan in relation to the Japanese poster (which uses the same art) and was given the name of Peter Mueller as the artist behind the one sheet, done for the design firm B.D. Fox Independent. The quad is a slightly zoomed in reproduction of the same art. I’ve credited it to Mueller but if anyone knows anything different please get in touch.

The Princess Bride / one sheet / international

17.05.11

Poster Poster
Title
The Princess Bride
AKA
Princess Bride Story (Japan - English title) | La storia fantastica [The fantastic story] Italy
Year of Film
1987
Director
Rob Reiner
Starring
Cary Elwes, Robin Wright, Mandy Patinkin, Chris Sarandon, André the Giant, Christopher Guest, Peter Falk, Fred Savage, Wallace Shawn, Billy Crystal, Carol Kane
Origin of Film
USA
Genre(s) of Film
Cary Elwes, Robin Wright, Mandy Patinkin, Chris Sarandon, André the Giant, Christopher Guest, Peter Falk, Fred Savage, Wallace Shawn, Billy Crystal, Carol Kane,
Type of Poster
One sheet
Style of Poster
--
Origin of Poster
International
Year of Poster
1987
Designer
Intralink Film Graphic Design
Artist
John Alvin
Size (inches)
27" x 39 7/8"
SS or DS
SS
NSS #
--
Tagline
Scaling the Cliffs of Insanity, Battling Rodents of Unusual Size, Facing torture in the Pit of Despair. - True love has never been a snap. | It's as real as the feelings you feel

The Nightmare Before Christmas / quad / photo style / UK

13.12.13

Poster Poster
Title
The Nightmare Before Christmas
AKA
Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas (USA - complete title)
Year of Film
1993
Director
Henry Selick
Starring
Danny Elfman, Chris Sarandon, Catherine O'Hara, William Hickey, Glenn Shadix, Ken Page
Origin of Film
USA
Genre(s) of Film
Danny Elfman, Chris Sarandon, Catherine O'Hara, William Hickey, Glenn Shadix, Ken Page,
Type of Poster
Quad
Style of Poster
Photo
Origin of Poster
UK
Year of Poster
1993
Designer
Unknown
Artist
--
Size (inches)
30 1/16" x 40"
SS or DS
SS
NSS #
--
Tagline
--

It’s hard to believe that it’s celebrating its 20th anniversary this year but The Nightmare Before Christmas has lost none of its magic and is a film that I could happily re-watch year after year. The combination of Tim Burton‘s storytelling and character design, with Henry Selick‘s direction and Danny Elfman‘s brilliant songs (and voice) make for one of the best animated films ever made. The story has its origins from the time when Tim Burton was working at Disney as an animator and had just completed the short film Vincent in 1982. After writing a short poem with the same title, Burton played around the idea of adapting it as a television special and a book, but eventually Disney agreed to help him produce it as a short film. 

After meeting Selick, a fellow animator at the same studio, he came close to realising his original vision before development stalled, apparently after Disney felt the project was ‘too weird’. Several years passed which saw Burton strike box-office gold with Beetlejuice and Batman, before he discovered that Disney still owned the rights to the film. He and Selick committed to the idea of developing the project into a feature length animation and because of commitments to directing Batman Returns (1992) it was agreed that the latter would direct.

Utilising 20 sound stages and 120 animators, Selick set about bringing to life the story of Jack Skellington, the Pumpkin King, and organiser of Halloweentown’s annual party. Fed up of the same routine year after year, Jack is walking in the forest and discovers a series of doors leading to other holiday-based worlds. Upon entering the Christmas door Jack is enchanted by everything he sees and vows to take on the role of Santa for the next Christmas day. Each member of Halloweentown is given a task to prepare for the big event, but their penchant for all things ghoulish isn’t compatible with the jollity of Christmas and Jack’s dream is in danger of unravelling completely.

The quality of the stop-motion animation and character design is first-rate and Elfman’s songs are unforgettably great. The Nightmare Before Christmas has a legion of fans and a 3D re-release occurred in 2006 which further increased its popularity, and a seemingly endless stream of merchandise has been released over the past two decades.

This is the photo style (photo in the sense that it’s a posed still from the film) British quad that was printed for the original release of the film and there is also another quad which features an illustration and that can be seen here. This design is effectively the landscape format version of the US one sheet.

The Nightmare Before Christmas / quad / illustration style / UK

13.12.13

Poster Poster
Title
The Nightmare Before Christmas
AKA
Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas (USA - complete title)
Year of Film
1993
Director
Henry Selick
Starring
Danny Elfman, Chris Sarandon, Catherine O'Hara, William Hickey, Glenn Shadix, Ken Page
Origin of Film
USA
Genre(s) of Film
Danny Elfman, Chris Sarandon, Catherine O'Hara, William Hickey, Glenn Shadix, Ken Page,
Type of Poster
Quad
Style of Poster
Illustration
Origin of Poster
UK
Year of Poster
1993
Designer
Unknown
Artist
Unknown
Size (inches)
30 1/16" x 40"
SS or DS
SS
NSS #
--
Tagline
--

It’s hard to believe that it’s celebrating its 20th anniversary this year but The Nightmare Before Christmas has lost none of its magic and is a film that I could happily re-watch year after year. The combination of Tim Burton‘s storytelling and character design, with Henry Selick‘s direction and Danny Elfman‘s brilliant songs (and voice) make for one of the best animated films ever made. The story has its origins from the time when Tim Burton was working at Disney as an animator and had just completed the short film Vincent in 1982. After writing a short poem with the same title, Burton played around the idea of adapting it as a television special and a book, but eventually Disney agreed to help him produce it as a short film. 

After meeting Selick, a fellow animator at the same studio, he came close to realising his original vision before development stalled, apparently after Disney felt the project was ‘too weird’. Several years passed which saw Burton strike box-office gold with Beetlejuice and Batman, before he discovered that Disney still owned the rights to the film. He and Selick committed to the idea of developing the project into a feature length animation and because of commitments to directing Batman Returns (1992) it was agreed that the latter would direct.

Utilising 20 sound stages and 120 animators, Selick set about bringing to life the story of Jack Skellington, the Pumpkin King, and organiser of Halloweentown’s annual party. Fed up of the same routine year after year, Jack is walking in the forest and discovers a series of doors leading to other holiday-based worlds. Upon entering the Christmas door Jack is enchanted by everything he sees and vows to take on the role of Santa for the next Christmas day. Each member of Halloweentown is given a task to prepare for the big event, but their penchant for all things ghoulish isn’t compatible with the jollity of Christmas and Jack’s dream is in danger of unravelling completely.

The quality of the stop-motion animation and character design is first-rate and Elfman’s songs are unforgettably great. The Nightmare Before Christmas has a legion of fans and a 3D re-release occurred in 2006 which further increased its popularity, and a seemingly endless stream of merchandise has been released over the past two decades.

This is the illustration style British quad that was printed for the original release of the film and there is also another quad which I’ve dubbed the photo style (photo in the sense that it’s a posed still from the film) and that can be seen here. I’m unsure who’s responsible for this artwork so please get in touch if you have an idea.

Child’s Play / one sheet / USA

18.05.11

Poster Poster
Title
Child's Play
AKA
De pop (Netherlands) | Chucky - Die Mörderpuppe (West Germany)
Year of Film
1988
Director
Tom Holland
Starring
Catherine Hicks, Chris Sarandon, Alex Vincent, Brad Dourif
Origin of Film
USA
Genre(s) of Film
Catherine Hicks, Chris Sarandon, Alex Vincent, Brad Dourif,
Type of Poster
One sheet
Style of Poster
--
Origin of Poster
USA
Year of Poster
1988
Designer
Unknown
Artist
--
Size (inches)
26 7/8" x 40"
SS or DS
SS
NSS #
--
Tagline
Something's moved in with the Barclay family, and so has terror.

The Nightmare Before Christmas / B2 / Japan

17.05.11

Poster Poster
Title
The Nightmare Before Christmas
AKA
Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas (USA - complete title)
Year of Film
1993
Director
Henry Selick
Starring
Danny Elfman, Chris Sarandon, Catherine O'Hara, William Hickey, Glenn Shadix, Ken Page
Origin of Film
USA
Genre(s) of Film
Danny Elfman, Chris Sarandon, Catherine O'Hara, William Hickey, Glenn Shadix, Ken Page,
Type of Poster
B2
Style of Poster
--
Origin of Poster
Japan
Year of Poster
1993
Designer
Unknown
Artist
--
Size (inches)
20 6/16" x 28 14/16"
SS or DS
SS
Tagline
--

The Nightmare Before Christmas / B1 / Japan

17.05.11

Poster Poster
Title
The Nightmare Before Christmas
AKA
Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas (USA - complete title)
Year of Film
1993
Director
Henry Selick
Starring
Danny Elfman, Chris Sarandon, Catherine O'Hara, William Hickey, Glenn Shadix, Ken Page
Origin of Film
USA
Genre(s) of Film
Danny Elfman, Chris Sarandon, Catherine O'Hara, William Hickey, Glenn Shadix, Ken Page,
Type of Poster
B1
Style of Poster
--
Origin of Poster
Japan
Year of Poster
1993
Designer
Unknown
Artist
--
Size (inches)
28 11/16" x 40.5"
SS or DS
SS
Tagline
--

The Nightmare Before Christmas / one sheet / advance / 3D re-release / USA

17.05.11

Poster Poster
Title
The Nightmare Before Christmas
AKA
Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas (USA - complete title)
Year of Film
1993
Director
Henry Selick
Starring
Danny Elfman, Chris Sarandon, Catherine O'Hara, William Hickey, Glenn Shadix, Ken Page
Origin of Film
USA
Type of Poster
One sheet
Style of Poster
Advance - 3D re-release
Origin of Poster
USA
Year of Poster
2006
Designer
Unknown
Artist
--
Size (inches)
27" x40"
Tagline
--

The Nightmare Before Christmas / one sheet / USA

17.05.11

Poster Poster
Title
The Nightmare Before Christmas
AKA
Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas (USA - complete title)
Year of Film
1993
Director
Henry Selick
Starring
Danny Elfman, Chris Sarandon, Catherine O'Hara, William Hickey, Glenn Shadix, Ken Page
Origin of Film
USA
Genre(s) of Film
Danny Elfman, Chris Sarandon, Catherine O'Hara, William Hickey, Glenn Shadix, Ken Page,
Type of Poster
One sheet
Style of Poster
--
Origin of Poster
USA
Year of Poster
1993
Designer
Unknown
Artist
--
Size (inches)
27" x 39 15/16"
SS or DS
DS
NSS #
--
Tagline
--

Fright Night / B2 / Japan

17.05.11

Poster Poster
Title
Fright Night
AKA
Ammazzavampiri (Italy)
Year of Film
1985
Director
Tom Holland
Starring
Chris Sarandon, William Ragsdale, Roddy McDowall, Amanda Bearse, Stephen Geoffreys, Jonathan Stark
Origin of Film
USA
Genre(s) of Film
Chris Sarandon, William Ragsdale, Roddy McDowall, Amanda Bearse, Stephen Geoffreys, Jonathan Stark,
Type of Poster
B2
Style of Poster
--
Origin of Poster
Japan
Year of Poster
1985
Designer
Unknown
Artist
Peter Mueller
Size (inches)
20 6/16" x 28 15/16"
SS or DS
SS
Tagline
--