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Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone / one sheet / Drew Struzan version / USA

21.07.11

Poster Poster
Title
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
AKA
Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (UK)
Year of Film
2001
Director
Chris Columbus
Starring
Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, Emma Watson, Richard Harris, Robbie Coltrane, Maggie Smith, Alan Rickman, Ian Hart
Origin of Film
USA | UK
Genre(s) of Film
Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, Emma Watson, Richard Harris, Robbie Coltrane, Maggie Smith, Alan Rickman, Ian Hart,
Type of Poster
One sheet
Style of Poster
--
Origin of Poster
USA
Year of Poster
2001
Designer
Unknown
Artist
Drew Struzan
Size (inches)
27 1/16" x 40"
SS or DS
DS
NSS #
--
Tagline
Let The Magic Begin.

After eight films and close to 150 posters (according to the IMPAwards), this poster for the first film in the Harry Potter franchise is the only one I’m happy to add to my collection, and features art by the incomparable Drew Struzan. Perhaps the most frustrating thing is that it was originally intended to be the first in a series of Struzan designs; Drew was told he’d be doing a poster for each of the subsequent films. This design is featured in his must-buy book ‘The Art of Drew Struzan’ and he talks about the plans:

Hearkening back to Back to the Future and Indiana Jones, they wanted a consistent technique and style they could perpetuate through a series of posters. I watched the movie on a monitor, got the stills – it was everywhere. I’d never read the books, but fans felt the movie poster captured the spirit, the mystery and sense of adventure.

We were going to be treated to a new Struzan poster for every film release, but this was not to be and the studio changed its plans:

Warner Bros. got a new head of worldwide advertising. And whenever you get a new guy, he wants to flush everything approved by the prior regime.

A hugely disappointing move since Drew was (and is) the perfect artist to capture the magic and fantasy of the Harry Potter films, yet the studio felt photographic images were the only way to sell the films to the public. Drew was as disappointed as the rest of us:

I had been preparing to live with Harry Potter for six movies; I was really getting into it. At the point they killed me, I couldn’t let it go and went ahead and painted the finished version of the sequel for my own satisfaction. I had to complete it.

The Art of Drew Struzan features his design for the second film and it’s another superb poster, as expected. We can only imagine what the rest of the posters would have looked like, if only the studio had stuck with their plans…

British film website The Shiznit has collected all of the posters together and rightly awarded best poster of the series to this one.

The Sword And The Sorcerer / one sheet / style B / USA

17.05.11

Poster Poster
Title
The Sword And The Sorcerer
AKA
La spada a tre lame [The sword of three blades] (Italy)
Year of Film
1982
Director
Albert Pyun
Starring
Lee Horsley, Shelley Taylor Morgan, Kathleen Beller, Simon MacCorkindale, George Maharis, Richard Lynch, Richard Moll, Anthony De Longis, Robert Tessier, Nina Van Pallandt, Anna Bjorn, Jeff Corey, Joe Regalbuto, Christina Nigra, Earl Maynard, Russ Marin
Origin of Film
USA
Genre(s) of Film
Lee Horsley, Shelley Taylor Morgan, Kathleen Beller, Simon MacCorkindale, George Maharis, Richard Lynch, Richard Moll, Anthony De Longis, Robert Tessier, Nina Van Pallandt, Anna Bjorn, Jeff Corey, Joe Regalbuto, Christina Nigra, Earl Maynard, Russ Marin,
Type of Poster
One sheet
Style of Poster
Style B
Origin of Poster
USA
Year of Poster
1982
Designer
Unknown
Artist
Peter Andrews
Size (inches)
27 1/8" x 41 1/16"
SS or DS
SS
Tagline
A lusty epic of revenge and magic, dungeons and dragons, wizards and witches, damsels and desire, and a warrior caught between.

The Sword and the Sorcerer is a 1982 fantasy film directed by Albert Pyun (in his debut) and was one of several entries in the genre that were released the same year, including Conan the Barbarian and The Beastmaster. Lee Horsley appears in his first film role as Prince Talon the song of a King and Queen who are slain by the evil King Cromwell (Richard Lynch) after he uses the black magic of a sorcerer named Xusia (Richard Moll) to overthrow their kingdom.

Over a decade later, Talon returns to the kingdom as a mercenary leading a band of men on a mission to help rebels overthrow Cromwell. Talon is asked to help free Mikah (Simon MacCorkindale), Cromwell’s war chancellor, who is secretly a double agent and is captured and imprisoned. His sister Alana (Kathleen Beller) begs for help from Talon and the mercenary sets out to Cromwell’s castle where the final showdown with his parents’ murderer takes place.

The film was critically derided at the time but still proved a popular box-office draw, easily recouping its relatively low budget and ending up as the most profitable independent film of 1982.

The artwork on this style B one sheet features the signature Peter Andrew, which has actually been cut short as it belongs to Peter Andrew Jones, a British artist who was born in North London in 1951 and studied at Central St. Martins art school. After graduating in 1974 he began working on book covers for the likes of Philip K. Dick, Arthur C. Clarke and Isaac Asimov. He also painted artwork for the Fighting Fantasy series of books by Steve Jackson and Ian Livingstone, including the cover of the first one published in 1982, The Warlock of Firetop Mountain.

Andrews created covers for video games published by the likes of US Gold and Psygnosis and also worked on magazine covers for Games Workshop that led to him to work on game art for several releases for the company. He only worked on a handful of film posters, which included one for Alligator II and the two one sheets for The Sword and the Sorcerer (style A and style B). These posters were adapted by the artist Brian Bysouth for the UK quad. Andrews continues to paint to this day from his home studio in Shropshire. His official site contains plenty of galleries of his work and links to buy books, prints and more.

 

The Sword And The Sorcerer / one sheet / style A / USA

17.05.11

Poster Poster
Title
The Sword And The Sorcerer
AKA
La spada a tre lame [The sword of three blades] (Italy)
Year of Film
1982
Director
Albert Pyun
Starring
Lee Horsley, Shelley Taylor Morgan, Kathleen Beller, Simon MacCorkindale, George Maharis, Richard Lynch, Richard Moll, Anthony De Longis, Robert Tessier, Nina Van Pallandt, Anna Bjorn, Jeff Corey, Joe Regalbuto, Christina Nigra, Earl Maynard, Russ Marin
Origin of Film
USA
Genre(s) of Film
Lee Horsley, Shelley Taylor Morgan, Kathleen Beller, Simon MacCorkindale, George Maharis, Richard Lynch, Richard Moll, Anthony De Longis, Robert Tessier, Nina Van Pallandt, Anna Bjorn, Jeff Corey, Joe Regalbuto, Christina Nigra, Earl Maynard, Russ Marin,
Type of Poster
One sheet
Style of Poster
Style A
Origin of Poster
USA
Year of Poster
1982
Designer
Unknown
Artist
Peter Andrew Jones
Size (inches)
27" x 41"
SS or DS
SS
NSS #
--
Tagline
A lusty epic of revenge and magic, dungeons and dragons, wizards and witches, damsels and desire, and a warrior caught between.

The Sword and the Sorcerer is a 1982 fantasy film directed by Albert Pyun (in his debut) and was one of several entries in the genre that were released the same year, including Conan the Barbarian and The Beastmaster. Lee Horsley appears in his first film role as Prince Talon the song of a King and Queen who are slain by the evil King Cromwell (Richard Lynch) after he uses the black magic of a sorcerer named Xusia (Richard Moll) to overthrow their kingdom.

Over a decade later, Talon returns to the kingdom as a mercenary leading a band of men on a mission to help rebels overthrow Cromwell. Talon is asked to help free Mikah (Simon MacCorkindale), Cromwell’s war chancellor, who is secretly a double agent and is captured and imprisoned. His sister Alana (Kathleen Beller) begs for help from Talon and the mercenary sets out to Cromwell’s castle where the final showdown with his parents’ murderer takes place.

The film was critically derided at the time but still proved a popular box-office draw, easily recouping its relatively low budget and ending up as the most profitable independent film of 1982.

The artwork on this style A one sheet features the signature PAJ and this belongs to Peter Andrew Jones, a British artist who was born in North London in 1951 and studied at Central St. Martins art school. After graduating in 1974 he began working on book covers for the likes of Philip K. Dick, Arthur C. Clarke and Isaac Asimov. He also painted artwork for the Fighting Fantasy series of books by Steve Jackson and Ian Livingstone, including the cover of the first one published in 1982, The Warlock of Firetop Mountain.

Andrews created covers for video games published by the likes of US Gold and Psygnosis and also worked on magazine covers for Games Workshop that led to him to work on game art for several releases for the company. He only worked on a handful of film posters, which included one for Alligator II and the two one sheets for The Sword and the Sorcerer (style A and style B). These posters were adapted by the artist Brian Bysouth for the UK quad. Andrews continues to paint to this day from his home studio in Shropshire. His official site contains plenty of galleries of his work and links to buy books, prints and more.

The Sword and the Sorcerer / quad / UK

30.01.15

Poster Poster

The Sword and the Sorcerer is a 1982 fantasy film directed by Albert Pyun (in his debut) and was one of several entries in the genre that were released the same year, including Conan the Barbarian and The Beastmaster. Lee Horsley appears in his first film role as Prince Talon the song of a King and Queen who are slain by the evil King Cromwell (Richard Lynch) after he uses the black magic of a sorcerer named Xusia (Richard Moll) to overthrow their kingdom.

Over a decade later, Talon returns to the kingdom as a mercenary leading a band of men on a mission to help rebels overthrow Cromwell. Talon is asked to help free Mikah (Simon MacCorkindale), Cromwell’s war chancellor, who is secretly a double agent and is captured and imprisoned. His sister Alana (Kathleen Beller) begs for help from Talon and the mercenary sets out to Cromwell’s castle where the final showdown with his parents’ murderer takes place.

The film was critically derided at the time but still proved a popular box-office draw, easily recouping its relatively low budget and ending up as the most profitable independent film of 1982.

This quad was painted by the British designer and artist Brian Bysouth who I interviewed for this site in 2012, There is also a quad for Willow featuring the same artwork. Brian is one of my favourite artists and worked on multiple classic posters from the 1960s to the 1980s, including the final painted poster for a James Bond film, The Living Daylights. The other posters I’ve collected by Brian can be seen by clicking here.

This poster takes elements from both the Style A US one sheet as well as the Style B one sheet, both credited to the artist Peter Andrew Jones.

Sorcerer / one sheet / style A / USA

17.05.11

Poster Poster
Title
Sorcerer
AKA
Il salario della paura [Wages of Fear] (Italy)
Year of Film
1977
Director
William Friedkin
Starring
Roy Scheider, Bruno Cremer, Francisco Rabal, Amidou, Ramon Bieri
Origin of Film
USA
Genre(s) of Film
Roy Scheider, Bruno Cremer, Francisco Rabal, Amidou, Ramon Bieri,
Type of Poster
One sheet
Style of Poster
Style A
Origin of Poster
USA
Year of Poster
1977
Designer
Unknown
Artist
--
Size (inches)
27 1/8" x 41 1/16"
SS or DS
SS
NSS #
--
Tagline
--

Sorcerer / one sheet / style B / USA

17.05.11

Poster Poster
Title
Sorcerer
AKA
Il salario della paura [Wages of Fear] (Italy)
Year of Film
1977
Director
William Friedkin
Starring
Roy Scheider, Bruno Cremer, Francisco Rabal, Amidou, Ramon Bieri
Origin of Film
USA
Genre(s) of Film
Roy Scheider, Bruno Cremer, Francisco Rabal, Amidou, Ramon Bieri,
Type of Poster
One sheet
Style of Poster
Style B
Origin of Poster
USA
Year of Poster
1977
Designer
Unknown
Artist
--
Size (inches)
27 1/16" x 41"
SS or DS
SS
NSS #
--
Tagline
--

Sorcerer / one sheet / style B / signed / USA

17.05.11

Poster Poster
Title
Sorcerer
AKA
Il salario della paura [Wages of Fear] (Italy)
Year of Film
1977
Director
William Friedkin
Starring
Roy Scheider, Bruno Cremer, Francisco Rabal, Amidou, Ramon Bieri
Origin of Film
USA
Genre(s) of Film
Roy Scheider, Bruno Cremer, Francisco Rabal, Amidou, Ramon Bieri,
Type of Poster
One sheet
Style of Poster
Style B - signed
Origin of Poster
USA
Year of Poster
1977
Designer
Unknown
Artist
--
Size (inches)
27 1/16" x 41 1/16"
SS or DS
SS
NSS #
--
Tagline
--

The Stone Killer / quad / UK

29.11.16

Poster Poster
Title
The Stone Killer
AKA
Le cercle noir [The black circle] (France) | América violenta [Violent America] (Spain)
Year of Film
1973
Director
Michael Winner
Starring
Charles Bronson, Martin Balsam, Jack Colvin, Paul Koslo, Norman Fell, David Sheiner, Stuart Margolin, Ralph Waite, Alfred Ryder, Walter Burke, Kelley Miles
Origin of Film
Italy | USA
Genre(s) of Film
Charles Bronson, Martin Balsam, Jack Colvin, Paul Koslo, Norman Fell, David Sheiner, Stuart Margolin, Ralph Waite, Alfred Ryder, Walter Burke, Kelley Miles,
Type of Poster
Quad
Style of Poster
--
Origin of Poster
UK
Year of Poster
1973
Designer
Unknown
Artist
--
Size (inches)
30" x 39 13/16"
SS or DS
SS
Tagline
This cop plays dirty! | Take away his badge and he'd top the Ten Most Wanted list!

This is the British quad poster for the release of the 1973 crime drama The Stone Killer. The film was one of a number that starred action legend Charles Bronson and was directed by Michael Winner. Their most successful collaboration (in box-office terms), Death Wish, was released a year later. The film features a cop who bends the rules to crack a case and was made in the wake of the hugely successful Clint Eastwood film, Dirty Harry (1971). That film also focused on a detective willing to play dirty, as this poster’s tagline shouts.

Bronson plays detective Lou Torrey who has recently been transferred to a Los Angeles beat. After the murder of a former hitman, he uncovers a plot involving the local mafia. The don, Al Vescari (Martin Balsam) has instigated a number of murders in revenge for killings that took place in 1931. This spree saw Sicilian capos executed across the US (a real-life crime dubbed the Night of the Sicilian Vespers). Vescari has decided to use Vietnam vets to carry out the killings and Torrey must race against time to stop the hitmen before the revenge plot is complete.

The stark imagery on this quad also featured on the US one sheet (see here) and the title block and main tagline have also been recycled by the British designer.

Romancing the Stone / B1 / Poland

14.12.12

Poster Poster
Title
Romancing the Stone
AKA
Milosc, szmaragd i krokodyl (Poland)
Year of Film
1984
Director
Robert Zemeckis
Starring
Michael Douglas, Kathleen Turner, Danny DeVito, Zack Norman, Alfonso Arau, Manuel Ojeda, Holland Taylor, Mary Ellen Trainor
Origin of Film
Mexico | USA
Genre(s) of Film
Michael Douglas, Kathleen Turner, Danny DeVito, Zack Norman, Alfonso Arau, Manuel Ojeda, Holland Taylor, Mary Ellen Trainor,
Type of Poster
B1
Style of Poster
--
Origin of Poster
Poland
Year of Poster
1985
Designer
Jakub Erol
Artist
Jakub Erol
Size (inches)
26 2/16" x 37 15/16"
SS or DS
SS
Tagline
--

A brilliant design on this Polish poster for Robert Zemeckis‘ 1984 adventure comedy, Romancing the Stone, which starred Michael Douglas and Kathleen Turner. The latter plays Joan Wilder, a romance novelist who discovers that her sister has been kidnapped in Colombia and, after receiving a mysterious treasure map in the mail, she travels to South America to meet the treasure-hunting criminals responsible and make an exchange. After getting lost in the jungle she meets soldier of fortune Jack Colton (Douglas) who offers to lead her to safety and the pair embark on madcap adventure to rescue Joan’s sister. The film was successful enough to warrant a sequel, The Jewel of the Nile, that was released only a year later.

This poster features artwork by a designer and artist called Jakub Erol who was born in Zamość in 1941 and graduated from the Warsaw Academy of Fine Arts in 1968. He worked as a prolific poster artist for over 25 years and designed several iconic images for both Polish and American films. Some of his other poster highlights include the bizarre image he conjured up for Ridley Scott’s Alien, a striking design for James Cameron’s The Terminator and the excellent poster for Raiders of the Lost Ark.

The Polishposter.com website features many of his designs, several which are for sale, and the Polish cinemaposter.com website also features three pages of his work. This list of his designs on the same website gives you an idea of how prolific an artist he was.

The Stone Killer / B2 / Japan

17.05.11

Poster Poster
Title
The Stone Killer
AKA
Le cercle noir [The black circle] (France) | América violenta [Violent America] (Spain)
Year of Film
1973
Director
Michael Winner
Starring
Charles Bronson, Martin Balsam, Jack Colvin, Paul Koslo, Norman Fell, David Sheiner, Stuart Margolin, Ralph Waite, Alfred Ryder, Walter Burke, Kelley Miles
Origin of Film
Italy | USA
Genre(s) of Film
Charles Bronson, Martin Balsam, Jack Colvin, Paul Koslo, Norman Fell, David Sheiner, Stuart Margolin, Ralph Waite, Alfred Ryder, Walter Burke, Kelley Miles,
Type of Poster
B2
Style of Poster
--
Origin of Poster
Japan
Year of Poster
1973
Designer
Unknown
Artist
--
Size (inches)
20 5/16" x 28 13/16"
SS or DS
SS
Tagline
--

Dirty Harry / one sheet / 1971 original / USA

17.05.11

Poster Poster
Title
Dirty Harry
AKA
Ispettore Callaghan: il caso Scorpio è tuo [Inspector Callaghan: The Scorpio case is yours] (Italy)
Year of Film
1971
Director
Don Siegel
Starring
Clint Eastwood, Andy Robinson, Harry Guardino, Reni Santoni, John Vernon
Origin of Film
USA
Genre(s) of Film
Clint Eastwood, Andy Robinson, Harry Guardino, Reni Santoni, John Vernon,
Type of Poster
One sheet
Style of Poster
--
Origin of Poster
USA
Year of Poster
1971
Designer
Bill Gold
Artist
--
Size (inches)
27 >1/16" x 41"
SS or DS
SS
Tagline
Detective Harry Callahan. He doesn't break murder cases. He smashes them.

Dirty Harry / one sheet / restrike / USA

17.05.11

Poster Poster
Title
Dirty Harry
AKA
Ispettore Callaghan: il caso Scorpio è tuo [Inspector Callaghan: The Scorpio case is yours] (Italy)
Year of Film
1971
Director
Don Siegel
Starring
Clint Eastwood, Andy Robinson, Harry Guardino, Reni Santoni, John Vernon
Origin of Film
USA
Genre(s) of Film
Clint Eastwood, Andy Robinson, Harry Guardino, Reni Santoni, John Vernon,
Type of Poster
One sheet
Style of Poster
Restrike
Origin of Poster
USA
Year of Poster
Unknown - 1980s?
Designer
Bill Gold
Artist
--
Size (inches)
27" x 41"
SS or DS
SS
NSS #
71/349
Tagline
Detective Harry Callahan. He doesn't break murder cases. He smashes them.

I believe this to be an official restrike/reissue done by Warner Brothers in the late 70s or early 80s. In comparison to the original one I have you can see that the layout changes and several printer marks are missing, yet it measures the correct 27″ x 41″.  The fold lines from the copied original are also visible (see photos).

If anyone has any more information on this please get in touch.

Dirty Harry / B2 / Japan

17.05.11

Poster Poster
Title
Dirty Harry
AKA
Ispettore Callaghan: il caso Scorpio è tuo [Inspector Callaghan: The Scorpio case is yours] (Italy)
Year of Film
1971
Director
Don Siegel
Starring
Clint Eastwood, Andy Robinson, Harry Guardino, Reni Santoni, John Vernon
Origin of Film
USA
Genre(s) of Film
Clint Eastwood, Andy Robinson, Harry Guardino, Reni Santoni, John Vernon,
Type of Poster
B2
Style of Poster
--
Origin of Poster
Japan
Year of Poster
1972
Designer
Unknown
Artist
--
Size (inches)
20 6/16" x 28 13/16"
SS or DS
SS
Tagline
--

Harry in Your Pocket / B2 / Japan

17.06.16

Poster Poster
Title
Harry in Your Pocket
AKA
--
Year of Film
1973
Director
Bruce Geller
Starring
James Coburn, Michael Sarrazin, Trish Van Devere, Walter Pidgeon, Michael C. Gwynne, Tony Giorgio, Michael Stearns, Susan Mullen
Origin of Film
USA
Genre(s) of Film
James Coburn, Michael Sarrazin, Trish Van Devere, Walter Pidgeon, Michael C. Gwynne, Tony Giorgio, Michael Stearns, Susan Mullen,
Type of Poster
B2
Style of Poster
--
Origin of Poster
Japan
Year of Poster
1973
Designer
Unknown
Artist
--
Size (inches)
20 6/16" x 28 14/16"
SS or DS
SS
Tagline
--

This is the Japanese B2 poster for the release of the 1973 crime caper Harry in Your Pocket, which marked the directorial debut of Bruce Geller. A man of many talents, Geller was at various points a screenwriter, producer, lyricist and director. He started out writing scripts for various TV shows during the 1950s and later worked as a co-producer on the successful cowboy series Rawhide. During this period he conceived of a series based around the world of espionage and developed it into what would become Mission Impossible, a TV series that Geller executive-produced (and even appeared in) to great success. The show lasted for seven seasons (though not all had Geller’s involvement) and was shown around the world from 1966 to 1973.

Harry in Your Pocket was Geller’s first feature film as director and The Savage Bees (1976) was his last, although technically that started life as a TV movie. Sadly he died aged 47 when his light aircraft crashed in fog near Santa Barbara, California.

The late James Coburn stars as the eponymous character, a professional pickpocket who works with an older man Casey (Walter Pidgeon) who has started to make mistakes due to excessive drug use. A younger man named Ray (Michael Sarrazin) yearns to be as good as Harry and when his girlfriend Sandy (Trish Van Devere) falls victim to the professional pair, Ray decides to track them down and persuade them to take him under their wing. Harry and Casey eventually agree to let the pair work with them as the ‘stalls’, which means their task is create as much of a distraction as possible so that Harry and Casey can get close to their marks and make ‘the dip’. However, when it becomes clear that Harry has an interest in Sandy, and Ray tires of being only a minor member of the team, the group’s allegiances are tested, putting them all in danger from the law.

Street Trash / B2 / Japan

25.06.13

Poster Poster
Title
Street Trash
AKA
Horror in Bowery Street (Italy)
Year of Film
1987
Director
J. Michael Muro
Starring
Mike Lackey, Bill Chepil, Vic Noto, Mark Sferrazza, Jane Arakawa, Nicole Potter, Pat Ryan, Clarenze Jarmon, Bernard Perlman
Origin of Film
USA
Type of Poster
B2
Style of Poster
--
Origin of Poster
Japan
Year of Poster
1987
Designer
Unknown
Artist
--
Size (inches)
20 6/16" x 28 13/16"
SS or DS
SS
Tagline
--

‘The ultimate melt movie’, the classic 1987 splatter-fest Street Trash is as gore-filled and tasteless as this Japanese B2 poster depicts. A sleazy liquor store owner finds a case of old wine labelled ‘Tenafly Viper’ in his basement and, rather than dispose of it, he decides to offload the case to the local homeless population for a dollar a bottle. It soon becomes clear that Viper is really not fit for consumption and the poor hobos are having literal meltdowns after drinking it. An overzealous cop (Bill Chepil) begins to investigate the deaths whilst two homeless brothers, Fred (Mike Lackey) and Kevin (Mark Sferrazza) learn of Viper’s potency and try to warn others whilst dealing with the machinations of the unhinged homeless Vietnam vet Bronson (Vic Noto).

The blue face at the bottom of the poster is what’s left when the first hobo (pictured to the left) succumbs to the effects of the deadly drink and disintegrates into a toilet bowl, as depicted on the superb US one sheet.

The splendid original trailer can be see on YouTube – “It’s easy to find us…. we’re all over the place.”

Street Trash / one sheet / USA

03.07.11

Poster Poster
Title
Street Trash
AKA
Horror in Bowery Street (Italy)
Year of Film
1987
Director
J. Michael Muro
Starring
Mike Lackey, Bill Chepil, Vic Noto, Mark Sferrazza, Jane Arakawa, Nicole Potter, Pat Ryan, Clarenze Jarmon, Bernard Perlman
Origin of Film
USA
Genre(s) of Film
Mike Lackey, Bill Chepil, Vic Noto, Mark Sferrazza, Jane Arakawa, Nicole Potter, Pat Ryan, Clarenze Jarmon, Bernard Perlman,
Type of Poster
One sheet
Style of Poster
--
Origin of Poster
USA
Year of Poster
1987
Designer
Unknown
Artist
Unknown
Size (inches)
26 6/8" x 39" 15/16"
SS or DS
SS
NSS #
--
Tagline
--

‘The ultimate melt movie’, Street Trash, the classic 1987 splatter-fest, is as gore-filled and tasteless as this American one sheet suggests. The image of the unlucky tramp melting into the toilet was re-used for the multiple VHS and DVD releases and is definitely up there as one of the all-time great horror poster images. I remember reading/hearing who did the artwork but forgot to write it down so if anyone knows could they please get in touch or leave a comment.

It’s interesting that they used a quote from a British radio broadcaster, the late Tommy Vance, for the American poster, but it’s not hard to see why; If that combination of classic titles doesn’t make you want to watch the film then there’s no hope.

The splendid original trailer can be see on YouTube – “It’s easy to find us…. we’re all over the place.”

Here’s the IMDb page for the film. Vaguely interesting bit of trivia: I bought this one sheet from the person who plays the chef in the restaurant scene and only found out after the fact.

The Witches / one sheet / USA

17.05.11

Poster Poster
Title
The Witches
AKA
Chi ha paura delle streghe? [Who's afraid of the witches?] Italy
Year of Film
1990
Director
Nicolas Roeg
Starring
Anjelica Huston, Jasen Fisher, Mai Zetterling, Rowan Atkinson, Jane Horrocks, Bill Paterson, Brenda Blethyn, Charlie Potter, Anne Lambton, Sukie Smith, Rose English, Jenny Runacre, Annabel Brooks, Emma Relph, Nora Connolly, Rosamund Greenwood
Origin of Film
UK | USA
Genre(s) of Film
Anjelica Huston, Jasen Fisher, Mai Zetterling, Rowan Atkinson, Jane Horrocks, Bill Paterson, Brenda Blethyn, Charlie Potter, Anne Lambton, Sukie Smith, Rose English, Jenny Runacre, Annabel Brooks, Emma Relph, Nora Connolly, Rosamund Greenwood,
Type of Poster
One sheet
Style of Poster
--
Origin of Poster
USA
Year of Poster
1990
Designer
Unknown
Artist
Winters
Size (inches)
27" x 41 1/16"
SS or DS
SS
NSS #
--
Tagline
Saving the world from witches is a tall order for a boy they've turned into a mouse!

Big Bad John / one sheet / USA

18.05.11

Poster Poster

The Enforcer / B2 / style B / Japan

23.10.13

Poster Poster
Title
The Enforcer
AKA
Dirty Harry 3 (Japan - English title) | Cielo di piombo, ispettore Callaghan [Lead sky, Inspector Callaghan] (Italy)
Year of Film
1976
Director
James Fargo
Starring
Clint Eastwood, Harry Guardino, Bradford Dillman, Tyne Daly, DeVeren Bookwalter
Origin of Film
USA
Genre(s) of Film
Clint Eastwood, Harry Guardino, Bradford Dillman, Tyne Daly, DeVeren Bookwalter,
Type of Poster
B2
Style of Poster
Style B
Origin of Poster
Japan
Year of Poster
1976
Designer
Unknown
Artist
--
Size (inches)
20 4/16" x 28 12/16"
SS or DS
SS
Tagline
--

A classic image of Clint Eastwood brandishing his giant magnum pistol as detective Harold ‘Dirty Harry’ Callahan in The Enforcer, the third instalment of the series that was instrumental, along with his roles in a series of westerns, in cementing the actors position as a movie megastar. Set three years after the events in Magnum Force, the story sees Harry taken off detective duties following his decision to end a liquor store robbery by driving his car through the front window before shooting the protagonists. Whilst working for personnel and interviewing prospective recruits to enter the detective division he learns that three new detectives will be women, including Kate Moore (Tyne Daly), much to his bemusement (he is a 1970s, misogynist dinosaur let’s not forget)

When a terrorist group calling themselves the People’s Revolutionary Strike Force (PRSF) start a rampage of robbery and bombings, one of which sees his old partner killed in action, Harry is allowed back into the field and is reluctantly paired with Detective Moore to try and put a stop to the group’s actions. After stealing several arms caches, the PRSF then boldly kidnaps San Francisco’s mayor and demands a $2 million ransom, but the detectives are quickly onto their location and the scene is set for a final, explosive showdown.

This image of the smashed car window was photographed especially for the marketing campaign and ended up being used for posters around the world, including the American half sheet, the British quad and this Japanese B2. There is also a style A B2 that can be viewed here.

Videodrome / quad / UK

18.05.11

Poster Poster
Title
Videodrome
AKA
--
Year of Film
1982
Director
David Cronenberg
Starring
James Woods, Deborah Harry, Sonja Smits, Peter Dvorsky, Leslie Carlson, Jack Creley
Origin of Film
Canada
Genre(s) of Film
James Woods, Deborah Harry, Sonja Smits, Peter Dvorsky, Leslie Carlson, Jack Creley,
Type of Poster
Quad
Style of Poster
--
Origin of Poster
UK
Year of Poster
1983
Designer
Red Square
Artist
Harry Wilson
Size (inches)
30 1/16" x 39 15/16"
SS or DS
SS
Tagline
First it controlled her mind, then it destroyed her body

This is the British quad for the release of cult Canadian director David Cronenberg’s Videodrome. Like much of the director’s output, Videodrome is definitely not for the faint of heart and contains some utterly unforgettable moments of Cronenberg’s patented body-horror mutations. James Woods stars as Max Renn the sleazy CEO of a minor cable TV station who is constantly on the lookout for cheap exploitation fare to broadcast. Renn is told about Videodrome, a new and mysterious signal apparently being broadcast out of Malaysia which purports to depict real ‘snuff’ movies of victims being tortured and killed.

Renn decides to start pirating the show and broadcasting it to his audience. This soon attracts widespread attention that puts him into contact with sadomasochistic psychiatrist Nicki Brand (Debby Harry) and Professor Brian O’Blivion (Jack Creley). When he discovers that the signal is actually being broadcast out of Pittsburgh, Renn decides to investigate further and he plunges into a nightmarish conspiracy that goes deeper than he ever imagined. As the American tagline says ‘First it controls your mind. Then it destroys your body’. Fans of Cronenberg’s proclivity for unnatural cavities and the melding of flesh with inorganic substances are not left disappointed, and the gun on this poster hints towards the finale.

This British quad features artwork unique to this poster by Harry Wilson, about whom I’ve been able to discover very little. The designer is credited as Red Square, again something of a mystery so if you have any further details about either party please get in touch.

In addition to the quad I also have the American one sheet and the Japanese B2.

The Enforcer / B2 / style A / Japan

17.05.11

Poster Poster
Title
The Enforcer
AKA
Dirty Harry 3 (Japan - English title) | Cielo di piombo, ispettore Callaghan [Lead sky, Inspector Callaghan] (Italy)
Year of Film
1976
Director
James Fargo
Starring
Clint Eastwood, Harry Guardino, Bradford Dillman, Tyne Daly, DeVeren Bookwalter
Origin of Film
USA
Genre(s) of Film
Clint Eastwood, Harry Guardino, Bradford Dillman, Tyne Daly, DeVeren Bookwalter,
Type of Poster
B2
Style of Poster
Style A
Origin of Poster
Japan
Year of Poster
1976
Designer
Unknown
Artist
--
Size (inches)
20 6/16" x 28 12/16"
SS or DS
SS
Tagline
--

Platoon / one sheet / international

10.07.15

Poster Poster
Title
Platoon
AKA
--
Year of Film
1987
Director
Oliver Stone
Starring
Charlie Sheen, Willem Dafoe, Tom Berenger, Richard Edson, Keith David, Forest Whitaker, Kevin Dillon, Johnny Depp
Origin of Film
USA
Genre(s) of Film
Charlie Sheen, Willem Dafoe, Tom Berenger, Richard Edson, Keith David, Forest Whitaker, Kevin Dillon, Johnny Depp,
Type of Poster
One sheet
Style of Poster
--
Origin of Poster
International
Year of Poster
1986
Designer
Unknown
Artist
Mike Bryan
Size (inches)
27 2/16" x 41"
SS or DS
SS
NSS #
--
Tagline
--

An iconic image on this one sheet for the release of Oliver Stone‘s Academy Award-winning Vietnam war classic, Platoon, one of a three films that the director made on the subject (the others being Born on the Fourth of July and Heaven & Earth). The script, which was written by Stone, is based on his own experiences as an infantryman who served in tours of duty during the Vietnam war. He had signed up in 1967 after dropping out of Yale University and specifically requested to see combat in the war that had seen the first ground troops sent to the country two years earlier. Stone served in two different divisions for over a year and was wounded twice,  receiving several medals, including a Purple Heart.

The film follows Charlie Sheen‘s army grunt Chris Taylor (a proxy for Stone) who is serving as part of Bravo Company, 25th Infantry Division near the Cambodian Border. Taylor is fresh into the field and is treated with disdain by the more experienced soldiers (an incredible ensemble of acting talent, including Willem Dafoe, Tom Berenger, Keith David and Forest Whitaker) who have all been in country for months, and he is quickly made aware that his presence is inconsequential. After a few skirmishes in which some members of the division are killed, Taylor is eventually accepted into the group and discovers the grinding boredom and rampant drug use amongst his fellow soldiers. Tensions between two sergeants, the ill-tempered, battle-scarred Barnes (Berenger) and the pleasant, more reasonable Elias (Dafoe) reach breaking point following an incident involving innocent villagers. Upon returning to base, the issue of a court-martial for illegal killing is raised and when the division is sent out on their next patrol, things reach boiling point, leaving Taylor fighting to survive against the enemy as well as members of his own team.

This one sheet features a shot from a pivotal scene in the film where Elias is left behind during an evacuation to escape from advancing Vietcong troops. The shot was used on most posters for the film’s release across the board, but not on the US one sheet. This poster is in fact a one sheet printed for use in English-speaking international countries (note the lack of MPAA rating). It most commonly appears without the white border and measuring 25″ x 39″ but this is the full-size 27″ x 41″ bordered version.

I had always assumed the image was a photograph but I only recently discovered it’s the work of the American artist Mike Bryan who also painted the fantastic and iconic Robocop one sheet. Heritage auction house sold the original paintings for both posters in March 2014 and included with each was a note from Bryan himself. The platoon one can be read here.

Platoon / Thailand

20.04.15

Poster Poster
Title
Platoon
AKA
--
Year of Film
1987
Director
Oliver Stone
Starring
Charlie Sheen, Willem Dafoe, Tom Berenger, Richard Edson, Keith David, Forest Whitaker, Kevin Dillon, Johnny Depp
Origin of Film
USA
Genre(s) of Film
Charlie Sheen, Willem Dafoe, Tom Berenger, Richard Edson, Keith David, Forest Whitaker, Kevin Dillon, Johnny Depp,
Type of Poster
Thai
Style of Poster
--
Origin of Poster
Thailand
Year of Poster
1986
Designer
Unknown
Artist
Kwow
Size (inches)
21 7/16" x 30 12/16"
SS or DS
SS
Tagline
--

This is the original Thai poster for the release of Oliver Stone‘s Academy Award-winning Vietnam war classic, Platoon, one of a three films that the director made on the subject (the others being Born on the Fourth of July and Heaven & Earth). The script, which was written by Stone, is based on his own experiences as an infantryman who served in tours of duty during the Vietnam war. He had signed up in 1967 after dropping out of Yale University and specifically requested to see combat in the war that had seen the first ground troops sent to the country two years earlier. Stone served in two different divisions for over a year and was wounded twice,  receiving several medals, including a Purple Heart.

The film follows Charlie Sheen‘s army grunt Chris Taylor (a proxy for Stone) who is serving as part of Bravo Company, 25th Infantry Division near the Cambodian Border. Taylor is fresh into the field and is treated with disdain by the more experienced soldiers (an incredible ensemble of acting talent, including Willem Dafoe, Tom Berenger, Keith David and Forest Whitaker) who have all been in country for months, and he is quickly made aware that his presence is inconsequential. After a few skirmishes in which some members of the division are killed, Taylor is eventually accepted into the group and discovers the grinding boredom and rampant drug use amongst his fellow soldiers. Tensions between two sergeants, the ill-tempered, battle-scarred Barnes (Berenger) and the pleasant, more reasonable Elias (Dafoe) reach breaking point following an incident involving innocent villagers. Upon returning to base, the issue of a court-martial for illegal killing is raised and when the division is sent out on their next patrol, things reach boiling point, leaving Taylor fighting to survive against the enemy as well as members of his own team.

The artwork on this Thai poster is by the artist who signs his work Kwow, about whom I’ve been able to discover little beyond other titles he worked on. The figure kneeling with his arms up references one of the most iconic scenes of the movie, which also appeared on several international posters for the film and was painted by Mike Ryan (the original artwork was sold at auction in 2014).

Platoon / one sheet / USA

13.08.14

Poster Poster
Title
Platoon
AKA
--
Year of Film
1987
Director
Oliver Stone
Starring
Charlie Sheen, Willem Dafoe, Tom Berenger, Richard Edson, Keith David, Forest Whitaker, Kevin Dillon, Johnny Depp
Origin of Film
USA
Genre(s) of Film
Charlie Sheen, Willem Dafoe, Tom Berenger, Richard Edson, Keith David, Forest Whitaker, Kevin Dillon, Johnny Depp,
Type of Poster
One sheet
Style of Poster
Final
Origin of Poster
USA
Year of Poster
1986
Designer
Bill Gold
Artist
Unknown
Size (inches)
27 2/16" x 41"
SS or DS
SS
NSS #
860115
Tagline
The first casualty of war is innocence

An iconic image on this one sheet for the release of Oliver Stone‘s Academy Award-winning Vietnam war classic, Platoon, one of a three films that the director made on the subject (the others being Born on the Fourth of July and Heaven & Earth). The script, which was written by Stone, is based on his own experiences as an infantryman who served in tours of duty during the Vietnam war. He had signed up in 1967 after dropping out of Yale University and specifically requested to see combat in the war that had seen the first ground troops sent to the country two years earlier. Stone served in two different divisions for over a year and was wounded twice,  receiving several medals, including a Purple Heart.

The film follows Charlie Sheen‘s army grunt Chris Taylor (a proxy for Stone) who is serving as part of Bravo Company, 25th Infantry Division near the Cambodian Border. Taylor is fresh into the field and is treated with disdain by the more experienced soldiers (an incredible ensemble of acting talent, including Willem Dafoe, Tom Berenger, Keith David and Forest Whitaker) who have all been in country for months, and he is quickly made aware that his presence is inconsequential. After a few skirmishes in which some members of the division are killed, Taylor is eventually accepted into the group and discovers the grinding boredom and rampant drug use amongst his fellow soldiers. Tensions between two sergeants, the ill-tempered, battle-scarred Barnes (Berenger) and the pleasant, more reasonable Elias (Dafoe) reach breaking point following an incident involving innocent villagers. Upon returning to base, the issue of a court-martial for illegal killing is raised and when the division is sent out on their next patrol, things reach boiling point, leaving Taylor fighting to survive against the enemy as well as members of his own team.

This one sheet was designed by the great Bill Gold who is best known for his working relationship with Clint Eastwood that has lasted over four decades. He worked on the iconic one sheet for Dirty Harry and went on to design the American poster for every Eastwood film since, which includes the brilliant one for Clint’s last Western,Unforgiven (1992). Gold has also designed posters for some of Hollywood’s greatest directors, including the likes of Stanley Kubrick (A Clockwork Orange, with artwork by Philip Castle) and Alfred Hitchcock (Dial M For Murder).

Born in New York City in 1921, Gold studied illustration and design at the Pratt Institute before starting his professional design career in 1941 in the publicity department for Warner Brothers. One of his earliest designs was for the classic Humphrey Bogart filmCasablanca and within a few years he went on to become the head of the studio’s poster department. In 1962 he started Bill Gold Advertising in New York and then spent the next four decades creating hundreds of memorable poster designs and collaborating with some of the best illustrators in the business, including the brilliant Bob Peak.

Gold started to design less posters towards the end of the 1990s, with only a handful of posters for Eastwood films being credited to him. His last poster was for the 2011 film J. Edgar (directed by Eastwood), which Gold agreed to work on after an unsuccessful period of retirement following the poster he worked on for Mystic River in 2003. He continues to live in Upstate New York and in 2011 a book was released to coincide with his 90th birthday called Bill Gold Posterworks, which features 450 pages worth of his incredible designs and details his creative process. Unfortunately, it has an eye-watering price tag that has prevented me picking a copy up but I hope that one day a more affordable version will be released.

Nico / one sheet / international

05.12.12

Poster Poster
Title
Nico
AKA
Above The Law
Year of Film
1988
Director
Andrew Davis
Starring
Steven Seagal, Pam Grier, Sharon Stone, Daniel Faraldo, Henry Silva
Origin of Film
USA | Hong Kong
Genre(s) of Film
Steven Seagal, Pam Grier, Sharon Stone, Daniel Faraldo, Henry Silva,
Type of Poster
One sheet
Style of Poster
--
Origin of Poster
International
Year of Poster
1988
Designer
Unknown
Artist
David Grove
Size (inches)
27 1/16" x 40 6/16"
SS or DS
SS
Tagline
He's a cop who believes no one is above the law.

Nico (AKA Above the Law) was the debut film of the infamous action star Steven Seagal who was apparently persuaded to make the film by talent agent Michael Ovitz, a pupil at the martial arts school in Los Angeles that he ran during the 1980s. Seagal had become the first foreigner to run an aikido dojo in Japan and had reached 7th dan level before returning to America where he began to work as the martial arts coordinator for several Hollywood productions, such as The Challenge and A View to a Kill. After appearing in Nico, Seagal would go on to make several other action films, including Hard to Kill and Marked for Death, before gaining international success with 1992s Under Siege.

Nico sees Seagal’s ex-CIA police detective Nico Toscani uncover information about an illegal arms-deal that implicates a shady figure from his past. His determination to uncover the truth and place the criminals behind bars puts his wife (Sharon Stone) and kids in jeopardy, and Nico must use his martial arts skills to put a stop to the operation before it’s too late.

The artwork on this international one sheet is by the American illustrator David Grove who worked on several film posters, including the brilliant international one sheet for Pale Rider and the striking poster for Something Wicked This Way Comes. Grove had an incredible skill at using gouache and acrylic paints to create striking, stylised images of his subjects, which are full of energy and feature brilliant use of colour washes, shading and clever brush strokes.

It appears that the illustrator sadly passed away in October this year and the website of Artist Partners London (where he apparently worked for a while in the 1960s) features a gallery and information on him, including an obituary that was originally printed in the San Francisco Chronicle. Greg Newbold’s Life Needs Art blog features a great piece on Grove, which includes several images of his other film posters.

This is arguably the best Steven Seagal poster ever printed, although the Japanese poster for the film with artwork by Noriyoshi Ohrai comes very close.