You searched for: Leo%2520G.%2520Carroll

North By Northwest / quad / 2009 BFI re-release / UK

18.05.11

Poster Poster
Title
North By Northwest
AKA
Intrigo internazionale [International intrigue] (Italy) | The Man in Lincoln's Nose (USA - working title)
Year of Film
1959
Director
Alfred Hitchcock
Starring
Cary Grant, Eva Marie Saint, James Mason, Leo G. Carroll, Jessie Royce Landis, Martin Landau, Philip Ober, Josephine Hutchinson, Adam Williams, Patrick McVey, Ed Platt
Origin of Film
USA
Genre(s) of Film
Cary Grant, Eva Marie Saint, James Mason, Leo G. Carroll, Jessie Royce Landis, Martin Landau, Philip Ober, Josephine Hutchinson, Adam Williams, Patrick McVey, Ed Platt,
Type of Poster
Quad
Style of Poster
BFI re-release
Origin of Poster
UK
Year of Poster
2009
Designer
Unknown
Artist
--
Size (inches)
30" x 40"
SS or DS
DS
Tagline
--

North By Northwest / screen print / Jeff Kleinsmith / USA

17.05.11

Poster Poster
Title
North By Northwest
AKA
Intrigo internazionale [International intrigue] (Italy) | The Man in Lincoln's Nose (USA - working title)
Year of Film
1959
Director
Alfred Hitchcock
Starring
Cary Grant, Eva Marie Saint, James Mason, Leo G. Carroll, Jessie Royce Landis, Martin Landau, Philip Ober, Josephine Hutchinson, Adam Williams, Patrick McVey, Ed Platt
Origin of Film
USA
Genre(s) of Film
Cary Grant, Eva Marie Saint, James Mason, Leo G. Carroll, Jessie Royce Landis, Martin Landau, Philip Ober, Josephine Hutchinson, Adam Williams, Patrick McVey, Ed Platt,
Type of Poster
Screen print
Style of Poster
--
Origin of Poster
USA
Year of Poster
2007
Designer
Jeff Kleinsmith
Artist
Jeff Kleinsmith
Size (inches)
23 5/16" x 32 10/16"
SS or DS
SS
Tagline
--

Shame / one sheet / USA

07.10.13

Poster Poster
Title
Shame
AKA
--
Year of Film
2011
Director
Steve McQueen
Starring
Michael Fassbender, Hannah Ware, James Badge Dale, Nicole Beharie, Alex Manette, Hannah Ware
Origin of Film
UK
Genre(s) of Film
Michael Fassbender, Hannah Ware, James Badge Dale, Nicole Beharie, Alex Manette, Hannah Ware,
Type of Poster
One sheet
Style of Poster
--
Origin of Poster
USA
Year of Poster
2011
Designer
Mark Carroll
Artist
--
Size (inches)
27 1/16" x 40"
SS or DS
DS
Tagline
--

A simple yet striking design on this poster for Shame, director Steve McQueen‘s 2011 portrait of a sex addict in New York City. Starring Michael Fassbender as Brandon, a 30-something office worker whose regimented diet of erotic activity is thrown into disarray with the arrival of his estranged and emotionally disturbed younger sister, Sissy (Carey Mulligan). Fassbender’s performance is something to behold and was certainly up there with the best of 2011 and McQueen cemented himself as a director of note, this having followed on from his stunning debut film Hunger (2008). It’s worth noting that this is the only poster in my collection that features an NC-17 rating.

The designer of this poster is a freelance American designer called Mark Carroll, who has worked on a number of other excellent posters for recent films including Tree of Life and Martha Marcy May Marlene. I’ve struggled to find much out about the man himself – I don’t believe he has website, for example – but IMPAwards has a gallery of some of his other designs. If anyone has any more information about him, and other posters that he’s worked on, please get in touch.

Family Business / B2 / Japan

17.05.11

Poster Poster
Title
Family Business
AKA
--
Year of Film
1989
Director
Sidney Lumet
Starring
Sean Connery, Dustin Hoffman, Matthew Broderick, Rosanna DeSoto, Janet Carroll, Victoria Jackson, Bill McCutcheon, Deborah Rush
Origin of Film
USA
Genre(s) of Film
Sean Connery, Dustin Hoffman, Matthew Broderick, Rosanna DeSoto, Janet Carroll, Victoria Jackson, Bill McCutcheon, Deborah Rush,
Type of Poster
B2
Style of Poster
--
Origin of Poster
Japan
Year of Poster
1990
Designer
Unknown
Artist
--
Size (inches)
20 6/16" x 28 15/16"
SS or DS
SS
NSS #
--
Tagline
--

Giant / one sheet / 1983 re-release / USA

17.05.11

Poster Poster
Title
Giant
AKA
--
Year of Film
1956
Director
George Stevens
Starring
Elizabeth Taylor, Rock Hudson, James Dean, Carroll Baker, Jane Withers, Chill Wills, Mercedes McCambridge, Dennis Hopper, Sal Mineo
Origin of Film
USA
Genre(s) of Film
Elizabeth Taylor, Rock Hudson, James Dean, Carroll Baker, Jane Withers, Chill Wills, Mercedes McCambridge, Dennis Hopper, Sal Mineo,
Type of Poster
One sheet
Style of Poster
Re-release
Origin of Poster
USA
Year of Poster
1983
Designer
Sawyer Studios
Artist
--
Size (inches)
27 1/16" x 41"
SS or DS
SS
NSS #
--
Tagline
--

Stanley / B2 / Japan

17.05.11

Poster Poster
Title
Stanley
AKA
--
Year of Film
1972
Director
William Grefe
Starring
Chris Robinson, Alex Rocco, Steve Alaimo, Susan Carroll, Mark Harris, Rey Baumel, Paul Avery, Marcia Knight, Gary Crutcher
Origin of Film
USA
Genre(s) of Film
Chris Robinson, Alex Rocco, Steve Alaimo, Susan Carroll, Mark Harris, Rey Baumel, Paul Avery, Marcia Knight, Gary Crutcher,
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 12/16"
SS or DS
SS
Tagline
--

Stanley / 30×40 / USA

05.09.11

Poster Poster
Title
Stanley
AKA
--
Year of Film
1972
Director
William Grefe
Starring
Chris Robinson, Alex Rocco, Steve Alaimo, Susan Carroll, Mark Harris, Rey Baumel, Paul Avery, Marcia Knight, Gary Crutcher
Origin of Film
USA
Genre(s) of Film
Chris Robinson, Alex Rocco, Steve Alaimo, Susan Carroll, Mark Harris, Rey Baumel, Paul Avery, Marcia Knight, Gary Crutcher,
Type of Poster
30x40
Style of Poster
--
Origin of Poster
USA
Year of Poster
1972
Designer
Unknown
Artist
Unknown
Size (inches)
30 2/16" x 40"
SS or DS
SS
NSS #
72/205
Tagline
Tim has a pet rattlesnake. When Tim gets mad - Stanley gets deadly!

A great tagline for Stanley, a 1972 schlock-fest from the director of such classics as Mako: The Jaws of DeathThe Naked Zoo and Impulse.

I’m not sure who the artist is so get in touch if you have any ideas as to who it should be credited to.

Witness the nutso original trailer on YouTube.

The Jerk / one sheet / USA

17.05.11

Poster Poster

The Watcher in the Woods / quad / UK

13.03.13

Poster Poster
Title
The Watcher in the Woods
AKA
Obserwator (Poland)
Year of Film
1980
Director
John Hough
Starring
Bette Davis, Lynn-Holly Johnson, Kyle Richards, Carroll Baker, David McCallum, Benedict Taylor, Frances Cuka, Richard Pasco, Ian Bannen
Origin of Film
USA | UK
Genre(s) of Film
Bette Davis, Lynn-Holly Johnson, Kyle Richards, Carroll Baker, David McCallum, Benedict Taylor, Frances Cuka, Richard Pasco, Ian Bannen,
Type of Poster
Quad
Style of Poster
--
Origin of Poster
UK
Year of Poster
1980
Designer
Brian Bysouth
Artist
Brian Bysouth
Size (inches)
30" x 39 15/16"
SS or DS
SS
NSS #
--
Tagline
it is not a fairy tale

Another of Disney’s forays into live-action filmmaking (this was actually the studio’s second PG-rated film after 1979’s The Black Hole), The Watcher in the Woods is an eerie mystery thriller that absolutely terrified me when I first watched it as a child in the 1980s. An Anglo-American co-production, the film was helmed by John Hough and English director who had proved his horror chops with the adults-only The Legend of Hell House (1973) and was chosen by the American producer Ron Miller to work on this film. Legendary Hollywood actress Bette Davis was lined up to star and the year of production coincided with her 50th in the business.

The story sees an Anglo-American family move to a manor house surrounded by thick woodland that is owned by Mrs. Aylwood (Davis). One of the daughters, Jan (played by Lynn-Holly Johnson, the real-life figure-skater who would appear in For Your Eyes Only soon after), is told she bears a striking resemblance to Mrs Aylwood’s daughter Karen who went missing 30 years earlier. Jan begins to see strange apparitions in the forest and suffers a series of unexplainable phenomena. After discovering an abandoned church in the middle of the woods, Jan finds that there’s more to Karen’s disappearance than she’s been told and it’s not long before the secret behind the ‘Watcher’ is revealed.

This British quad features an illustration of the scene that terrified me the most when I first saw the film, which is the moment that a ritual is carried out inside the church during a violent thunderstorm. It also features an image of the Watcher in the form seen in the final release, but as the Wikipedia article on the film details there had originally been an alternative ending to the film that showed it in a much different form. The first ending apparently went down disastrously with test audiences and critics because of the poor quality of the creature effects and the studio took the decision to reshoot a new one without the participation of John Hough. The original ending can be viewed on YouTube.

This poster was illustrated by one of my favourite British artists, Brian Bysouth, who worked on a number of posters for Disney during the 1970s and 1980s, including for several of their animated titles. You can read my extensive interview with the man himself by clicking here. The other posters I’ve collected by him can be seen by clicking here.

The original trailer is on YouTube.

 

The Watcher in the Woods / one sheet / USA

13.11.13

Poster Poster
Title
The Watcher in the Woods
AKA
Obserwator (Poland)
Year of Film
1980
Director
John Hough
Starring
Bette Davis, Lynn-Holly Johnson, Kyle Richards, Carroll Baker, David McCallum, Benedict Taylor, Frances Cuka, Richard Pasco, Ian Bannen
Origin of Film
USA | UK
Genre(s) of Film
Bette Davis, Lynn-Holly Johnson, Kyle Richards, Carroll Baker, David McCallum, Benedict Taylor, Frances Cuka, Richard Pasco, Ian Bannen,
Type of Poster
One sheet
Style of Poster
--
Origin of Poster
USA
Year of Poster
1980
Designer
Unknown
Artist
David J. Negrón
Size (inches)
27 2/16" x 41"
SS or DS
SS
NSS #
800061
Tagline
A masterpiece of suspense!

Another of Disney’s forays into live-action filmmaking (this was actually the studio’s second PG-rated film after 1979’s The Black Hole), The Watcher in the Woods is an eerie mystery thriller that absolutely terrified me when I first watched it as a child in the 1980s. An Anglo-American co-production, the film was helmed by John Hough and English director who had proved his horror chops with the adults-only The Legend of Hell House (1973) and was chosen by the American producer Ron Miller to work on this film. Legendary Hollywood actress Bette Davis was lined up to star and the year of production coincided with her 50th in the business.

The story sees an Anglo-American family move to a manor house surrounded by thick woodland that is owned by Mrs. Aylwood (Davis). One of the daughters, Jan (played by Lynn-Holly Johnson, the real-life figure-skater who would appear in For Your Eyes Only soon after), is told she bears a striking resemblance to Mrs Aylwood’s daughter Karen who went missing 30 years earlier. Jan begins to see strange apparitions in the forest and suffers a series of unexplainable phenomena. After discovering an abandoned church in the middle of the woods, Jan finds that there’s more to Karen’s disappearance than she’s been told and it’s not long before the secret behind the ‘Watcher’ is revealed.

This American one sheet bears the signature of an artist called David J. Negrón whose official website is here and describes him as an American impressionist. Negrón was born in Texas in 1935 and later graduated from the Art Center College of Design in Los Angeles, which allowed him to get a job at Twentieth Century Fox as a storyboard artist and production illustrator. He went on to work on films such as Hello Dolly, Raider’s Of The Lost Ark, Dog Day Afternoon, Back to The Future III, Jurassic Park and others. His website features a gallery of examples of his movie work and includes a great image of King Kong painted for Dino De Laurentiis’ 1976 version.

The original trailer is on YouTube.

 

Shamus / one sheet / USA

08.08.16

Poster Poster
Title
Shamus
AKA
--
Year of Film
1973
Director
Buzz Kulik
Starring
Burt Reynolds, Dyan Cannon, John P. Ryan, Joe Santos, Giorgio Tozzi, Ron Weyand, Larry Block, Beeson Carroll, Kevin Conway
Origin of Film
USA
Genre(s) of Film
Burt Reynolds, Dyan Cannon, John P. Ryan, Joe Santos, Giorgio Tozzi, Ron Weyand, Larry Block, Beeson Carroll, Kevin Conway,
Type of Poster
One sheet
Style of Poster
--
Origin of Poster
USA
Year of Poster
1972
Designer
Unknown
Artist
Unknown
Size (inches)
27 3/16" x 41"
SS or DS
SS
NSS #
72/378
Tagline
Shamus is a pro! He never misses!

An unusual illustration with a stylised half-finished look features on this US one sheet for the release of the 1973 film Shamus. It was directed by the late Buzz Kulik who spent the majority of his career directing TV shows and TV movies, including several episodes of The Twilight Zone. The film stars Burt Reynolds who had entered a golden period following his breakout performance in the 1972 film Deliverance. For the rest of the 1970s he would star in two or three films a year, cementing his reputation as a rugged action star and cheeky good ol’ boy, with films like Smokey and the Bandit, as well as an off-screen sex symbol (thanks to things like the infamous magazine centrefold image of him lying on a rug).

Set in New York, Reynolds stars as the titular Shamus McCoy, a hard-living private detective who enjoys drinking, gambling and womanising, but is in need of a new case to top up his bank account. One day he’s approached by an eccentric diamond dealer who’s had a stash of diamonds stolen and Shamus is offered $10k to track them down. What seems like a straightforward case turns out to be nothing of the sort and the PI is thwarted at every opportunity, with a beating by a gang of thugs making him realise he’s onto something big. Shamus teams up with his friend Springy as well as Alexis Montaigne (Dyan Cannon), the sister of a nightclub owner who’s involved in the plot. The gang uncover illegal arms dealing activities and are soon confronted by the deadly intentions of the improbably named, corrupt army Colonel Hardcore (John P. Ryan).

I’ve struggled to identify who is responsible for the artwork so if anyone has any ideas please get in touch. Unusually it features both a smaller illustration and a retouched photographic image. Typically posters from around this period might feature a main photographic image with supporting illustrations (see the Cleopatra Jones poster for example).

The Abyss / one sheet / USA

17.05.11

Poster Poster
Title
The Abyss
AKA
--
Year of Film
1989
Director
James Cameron
Starring
Ed Harris, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, Michael Biehn, J.C. Quinn, Kimberly Scott, Leo Burmester
Origin of Film
USA
Genre(s) of Film
Ed Harris, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, Michael Biehn, J.C. Quinn, Kimberly Scott, Leo Burmester,
Type of Poster
One sheet
Style of Poster
Dark credits version
Origin of Poster
USA
Year of Poster
1989
Designer
Unknown
Artist
--
Size (inches)
26 6/8" x 39 6/8"
SS or DS
SS
NSS #
--
Tagline
--

Heart Like a Wheel / A1 / Hungary

30.03.16

Poster Poster
Title
Heart Like a Wheel
AKA
--
Year of Film
1983
Director
Jonathan Kaplan
Starring
Bonnie Bedelia, Beau Bridges, Bruce Barlow, Leo Rossi, Anthony Edwards, Hoyt Axton, Paul Barte, Missy Basile
Origin of Film
USA
Genre(s) of Film
Bonnie Bedelia, Beau Bridges, Bruce Barlow, Leo Rossi, Anthony Edwards, Hoyt Axton, Paul Barte, Missy Basile,
Type of Poster
A1
Style of Poster
--
Origin of Poster
Hungary
Year of Poster
1985
Designer
Futó
Artist
Futó
Size (inches)
22 5/16" x 32 11/16"
SS or DS
SS
Tagline
--

Colourful and unique artwork features on this Hungarian poster for the release of the 1983 biographical drama Heart Like a Wheel. The film is based on the life of Shirley Muldowney who made history by becoming the first woman to compete in the sport of drag racing and who would go on to win an unprecedented three world championship awards. Born in Vermont in 1940, Shirley began amateur drag racing with the help of her then husband in the 1950s and had to battle against the prevailing misogynist views surrounding the ultra-macho sport.

Eventually in 1966, after proving her skills on the speedways and persuading three male drivers to sign a letter agreeing to it, the sport’s official body the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) granted Shirley a licence to compete in the biggest events. Over the following four decades she consistently proved herself on the track, with awards in several of the sports’ categories, including the most prestigious Top Fuel events. The film deals with Shirley’s life on and off the track, including the breakup of her first marriage and a rocky relationship with another race driver called Connie Kalitta (Beau Bridges).

Bonnie Bedelia, perhaps best known as Holly McClane in Die Hard 1 and 2, was chosen to play Shirley, although the Muldowney apparently didn’t approve of the casting and had wanted Jamie Lee Curtis to depict her. 

The artwork on this poster features the signature of ‘Futó’, a Hungarian artist about whom I’ve been able to discover nothing. If anyone has any information about him or her please get in touch.

The Long Good Friday / Thailand

16.12.15

Poster Poster

This is the original poster for the Thai release of the classic British gangster film The Long Good Friday, starring the late, great Bob Hoskins. The story focuses on Harold Shand (Hoskins), an underworld kingpin whose grand plans to develop the London Docklands, with the backing of the American Mafia, start to go awry when a series of bombs kill his associates and undermine his credibility. Harold needs to discover who is behind the killings and exact revenge before the deal is lost.

The film is notable for its use of real London locations and it’s a thrill to watch the film now and see how much of the capital has changed. It was only made 33 years ago but the city is barely recognisable compared to today.

The film had a fairly tumultuous time getting into cinemas and was saved from being cut to shreds and offloaded as a TV special after its original production company (ITC) weren’t happy with the results. Helen Mirren was friends with Eric Idle who saw the film and recommended it to George Harrison who had just started up Handmade Films. Harrison saw commercial potential and was able to purchase the rights for less than the original production cost. The film went on to be a solid success for Handmade.

There is a signature on this artwork, which is unique to the Thai poster, that apparently belongs to the artist Kwow. I’ve been able to discover very little about him so please get in touch if you have any details about him.

The original trailer can be viewed on YouTube.

21 Grams / B1 / Japan

01.07.15

Poster Poster
Title
21 Grams
AKA
--
Year of Film
2003
Director
Alejandro González Iñárritu
Starring
Sean Penn, Naomi Watts, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Benicio Del Toro, Danny Huston, Clea DuVall, Eddie Marsan, Melissa Leo
Origin of Film
USA
Genre(s) of Film
Sean Penn, Naomi Watts, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Benicio Del Toro, Danny Huston, Clea DuVall, Eddie Marsan, Melissa Leo,
Type of Poster
B1
Style of Poster
--
Origin of Poster
Japan
Year of Poster
2003
Designer
Unknown
Artist
--
Size (inches)
28 14/16" x 40.5"
SS or DS
SS
Tagline
--

Mexican director Alejandro González Iñárritu’s 21 Grams is the second film in his so-called ‘Trilogy of Death’, following on from his breakout debut hit Amores Perros (2000), with Babel completing the trilogy in 2005. Like the first film, 21 Grams features three main characters and plot lines that interweave around a fatal car accident and its consequences. Sean Penn plays Paul Rivers, a mathematics professor who is close to death from heart failure after years of smoking and abusing his body, and his wife Mary (Charlotte Gainsbourg) is desperate to conceive a child before he dies. Benicio Del Toro plays Jack Jordan, a reformed criminal who has spent many years in jail and is now trying to go straight by helping out at church and counselling kids who are on a similar path that he took. Naomi Watts plays Cristina Peck, a former drug addict who has settled down into suburban life with husband Michael (Danny Hustonand two daughters.

One fateful day, Jack accidentally hits Michael and the kids with his car, putting Michael into a coma and killing the daughters instantly. A grief-stricken Cristina returns to her drug-taking past but not before agreeing to have her husband’s organs donated. Jack is given Michael’s heart and eventually decides to track down the donor with the aid of a private detective. The rest of the film deals with the encounters between the characters. The title refers to the early 20th-century research of an American doctor called Duncan MacDougall who attempted to prove the existence of the human soul by recording a small loss of weight immediately after death. His methods detected varying amounts but 21 grams, or three quarters of an ounce, was the first recorded instance. The original marketing campaign compared this weight to a ‘stack of nickels’, a chocolate bar and a hummingbird and this explains why the creature appears on this poster.

The film was very well critically received and was a success with worldwide audiences, although today it’s IMDb rating doesn’t quite match that of the first film in the trilogy. This poster design is unique to the Japanese marketing campaign.

The Last Dragon / B2 / Japan

09.02.15

Poster Poster
Title
The Last Dragon
AKA
--
Year of Film
1985
Director
Michael Schultz
Starring
Taimak, Vanity, Christopher Murney, Julius Carry, Faith Prince, Leo O'Brien, Mike Starr, Jim Moody, Glen Eaton, Ernie Reyes Jr.
Origin of Film
USA
Genre(s) of Film
Taimak, Vanity, Christopher Murney, Julius Carry, Faith Prince, Leo O'Brien, Mike Starr, Jim Moody, Glen Eaton, Ernie Reyes Jr.,
Type of Poster
B2
Style of Poster
--
Origin of Poster
Japan
Year of Poster
1986
Designer
Unknown
Artist
Seito
Size (inches)
20 5/16" x 28 14/16"
SS or DS
SS
Tagline
--

The Last Dragon is a martial-arts cult classic from the 1980s that (at least in the US) stands alongside films like The Goonies and Back to the Future as a defining youth-oriented film of the era. It’s definitely less well known in the UK and I think that has something to do with the fact that it was released with a ’15’ rating over here, meaning it was out of bounds for the younger audience it clearly attracted in the US (with a PG rating).

That it was rated 15 was probably to do with the video nasties situation of the time and the passing of the Video Recordings Act of 1984 that meant all home video had to be classified by the British Board of Film Classification, designated by the government as the upholders of film ratings. Martial arts films were seen as an undesirable genre as they were (stupidly) thought to have a strong potential to cause cases of copycat violence in school children across the nation. In addition to being given a 15 rating, the film had cuts made totalling almost 2 minutes for the cinema and subsequent home video releases.

To say this action by the BBFC was excessive would be an understatement as, aside from a couple of moments of profane language, the film is really quite mild, with none of the fight scenes being at all brutal. The film was produced by the founder of Motown records Berry Gordy and was intended to mix musical numbers (predominantly hip-hop) with the popular (at the time) martial arts genre. The lead role of Leroy Green (AKA Bruce Leroy), a young warrior who wishes to attain the ultimate level of martial arts skill known as ‘The Glow’, was given to the 20-year-old, single-monikered Taimak, a martial artist who apparently learned to act whilst on the set of the Last Dragon.

Leroy leaves his master on the quest to find Master Sum Dum Goy whom he believes will teach him the final lessons needed to attain The Glow. Along the way he must battle with the malevolent Sho’nuff (a hilarious performance from Julius Carry) another martial artist who sees Leroy as standing in the way of total domination, as well as deal with the machinations of the twisted video arcade mogul Eddie Arkadian (Christopher Murney). Laura Charles (Vanity, single-monikered protege of Prince) the VJ of a popular music video channel is kidnapped by Arkadian’s men in an attempt to convince her to play his girlfriend’s awful music video. Leroy sets out to rescue her and romance soon blossoms between them. He soon learns the truth about attaining The Glow and the final fight with Sho’nuff features the use of rotoscoped special effects.

The film contains a few almost full-length music videos, including the DeBarge song, ‘Rhythm of the Night‘. The fight scenes are all well choreographed and entertaining, with Taimak clearly having skills in that area (if not so much as a thespian). The excellent Last Dragon Tribute site features a recent letter from the man himself in which he explains why he’s not starred in many films since then. It’s not hard to see why the film was so popular as it played to the adolescent fantasy of many a young male teen who dreamed of using martial arts to win the heart of a girl.

This Japanese poster is rather excellent and the artwork is unique to the Japanese campaign. Seito is one of my favourite Japanese artists who was responsible for several fantastic illustrated posters during the 1970s and 1980s. Little is known about the man himself, even in his native country.

To see the other posters I’ve collected by Seito click here.

Godzilla vs Mechagodzilla / 1993 version / B1 / Japan

12.04.13

Poster Poster
Title
Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla
AKA
Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II (alternative title) | Gojira VS Mekagojira (Japan - original title)
Year of Film
1993
Director
Takao Okawara
Starring
Masahiro Takashima, Ryoko Sano, Megumi Odaka, Yûsuke Kawazu, Kenji Sahara, Akira Nakao, Kôichi Ueda, Leo Meneghetti, Daijiro Harada, Tadao Takashima
Origin of Film
Japan
Genre(s) of Film
Masahiro Takashima, Ryoko Sano, Megumi Odaka, Yûsuke Kawazu, Kenji Sahara, Akira Nakao, Kôichi Ueda, Leo Meneghetti, Daijiro Harada, Tadao Takashima,
Type of Poster
B1
Style of Poster
Artwork
Origin of Poster
Japan
Year of Poster
1993
Designer
Unknown
Artist
Noriyoshi Ohrai
Size (inches)
28 12/16" x 40.5"
SS or DS
SS
Tagline
--

A colourful montage on this Japanese B2 poster for Godzilla vs Mechagodzilla, which was the 2oth film in the series featuring the King of the Kaiju (giant monsters) and was marketed as the 40th anniversary of the series. The film was also the fifth release in the second generation of Godzilla films, which were part of the Heisei era of Japanese monster movies (daikaiju eiga). The monster movie eras are named after the Japanese emperor at the time, so the first generation of Godzilla films were part of the Shōwa era. Despite sharing the same title with a 1974 film, this is neither a remake or a re-imagining of the earlier version.

The story sees the United Nations Godzilla Countermeasures Center (UNGCC) created in order to stop the legendary monster. Two machines are manufactured from the salvaged parts of Mecha-King Ghidorah, a mechanised abomination last seen in 1991s Godzilla vs King Ghidorah; one is a flying gunship called Garuda and the other is the titular Godzilla-like robotic beast. When a mysterious egg is discovered on an island in the Bering sea, both Godzilla and Rodan – the irradiated pteranodon seen in several previous films in the series – appear and battle over it, allowing a team to escape to a research centre in Kyoto. When the egg hatches it is revealed to be Baby Godzilla (AKA Godzilla Junior) and once again the legendary Kaiju is summoned to Japan by its psychic powers. The UNGCC decide to mobilise their new defence weapons and both Rodan and Godzilla are pitched against the metallic foes.

The artwork on the poster is by Noriyoshi Ohrai who is something of an enigma, even in his native Japan. I’ve been unable to find much about him beyond a few pages like this one on the Star Wars Wookiepedia. He’s responsible for a number of Star Wars posters, including this lovely 1982 B2 to celebrate the release of the Japanese dubbed version of the original film and the brilliant design for The Empire Strikes Back.

Ohrai painted a poster for each of the Heisei era of Godzilla films, which were always accompanied by a photographic-style poster. I will be adding more of the Ohrai Godzilla posters over the coming weeks.

The other Ohrai posters I’ve added to the site so far can be seen by clicking here.

The Long Good Friday / one sheet / international

08.02.12

Poster Poster

Ron Fenton is the artist behind this exciting montage for the classic British gangster film, starring Bob Hoskins in arguably his best film role. The poster features Hoskins alongside great portraits of Helen Mirren, the late Eddie Constantine (perhaps most famous for his role in Alphaville) and P.H. Moriarty (as the psychotic Razors).

The film focuses on Harold Shand (Hoskins) an underworld kingpin whose grand plans to develop the London Docklands, with the backing of the American Mafia, start to go awry when a series of bombs kill his associates and undermine his credibility. Harold needs to discover who is behind the killings and exact revenge before the deal is lost. The film is notable for its use of real London locations and it’s a thrill to watch the film now and see how much of the capital has changed. It was only made 33 years ago but the city is barely recognisable compared to today.

The film had a fairly tumultuous time getting into cinemas and was saved from being cut to shreds and offloaded as a TV special after its original production company (ITC) weren’t happy with the results. Helen Mirren was friends with Eric Idle who saw the film and recommended it to George Harrison who had just started up Handmade Films. Harrison saw commercial potential and was able to purchase the rights for less than the original production cost. The film went on to be a solid success for Handmade.

I’ve had no luck finding any other poster art that can be attributed to Ron Fenton, but Sim Branaghan (British Film Posters) has confirmed that he did work on other posters around this time. I’ll update the article if any more information comes to light. The artwork was used as a DVD cover for certain releases of the film.

This international one sheet is vastly superior to the rather terrible quad. This particular copy is not in perfect condition, as is obvious from the pictures, but it’s one of those posters that hardly ever shows up so I was more than happy to add it to my collection.

The original trailer can be viewed on YouTube.

The Fall / one sheet / USA

17.05.11

Poster Poster
Title
The Fall
AKA
--
Year of Film
2006
Director
Tarsem Singh
Starring
Catinca Untaru, Lee Pace, Justine Waddell, Daniel Caltagirone, Marcus Wesley, Robin Smith, Jeetu Verma, Kim Uylenbroek, Leo Bill
Origin of Film
USA | India
Genre(s) of Film
Catinca Untaru, Lee Pace, Justine Waddell, Daniel Caltagirone, Marcus Wesley, Robin Smith, Jeetu Verma, Kim Uylenbroek, Leo Bill,
Type of Poster
One sheet
Style of Poster
--
Origin of Poster
USA
Year of Poster
2006
Designer
The Arterie
Artist
--
Size (inches)
27 1/8" x 40 1/16"
SS or DS
DS
NSS #
--
Tagline
A Little Blessing In Disguise.

The Abyss: Special Edition / quad / UK

18.05.11

Poster Poster
Title
The Abyss: Special Edition
AKA
--
Year of Film
1989
Director
James Cameron
Starring
Ed Harris, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, Michael Biehn, J.C. Quinn, Kimberly Scott, Leo Burmester
Origin of Film
USA
Genre(s) of Film
Ed Harris, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, Michael Biehn, J.C. Quinn, Kimberly Scott, Leo Burmester,
Type of Poster
Quad
Style of Poster
Special Edition re-release
Origin of Poster
UK
Year of Poster
1993
Designer
Unknown
Artist
--
Size (inches)
30" x 40 1/16"
SS or DS
SS
Tagline
--

The Abyss / quad / advance / UK

18.05.11

Poster Poster
Title
The Abyss
AKA
--
Year of Film
1989
Director
James Cameron
Starring
Ed Harris, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, Michael Biehn, J.C. Quinn, Kimberly Scott, Leo Burmester
Origin of Film
USA
Genre(s) of Film
Ed Harris, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, Michael Biehn, J.C. Quinn, Kimberly Scott, Leo Burmester,
Type of Poster
Quad
Style of Poster
--
Origin of Poster
UK
Year of Poster
1989
Designer
Unknown
Artist
--
Size (inches)
30" x 40"
SS or DS
SS
Tagline
There's everything you've ever known about adventure and then there's...

Silent Night, Deadly Night / one sheet / USA

16.12.11

Poster Poster
Title
Silent Night, Deadly Night
AKA
Slayride (production title)
Year of Film
1984
Director
Charles E. Sellier Jr.
Starring
Lilyan Chauvin, Gilmer McCormick, Toni Nero, Robert Brian Wilson, Britt Leach, Nancy Borgenicht, H.E.D. Redford, Danny Wagner, Linnea Quigley, Leo Geter, Randy Stumpf
Origin of Film
USA
Genre(s) of Film
Lilyan Chauvin, Gilmer McCormick, Toni Nero, Robert Brian Wilson, Britt Leach, Nancy Borgenicht, H.E.D. Redford, Danny Wagner, Linnea Quigley, Leo Geter, Randy Stumpf,
Type of Poster
One sheet
Style of Poster
--
Origin of Poster
USA
Year of Poster
1984
Designer
Unknown
Artist
--
Size (inches)
27 1/16" x 41"
SS or DS
SS
NSS #
840133
Tagline
You've made it through Halloween, now try and survive Christmas | He knows when you've been naughty

This infamous holiday-themed slasher film caused major controversy upon its US release in 1984 and was withdrawn from cinemas a short time after. Because of the film’s subject matter (a degenerate spree-killer dressed as Santa Claus) and the fact that it was released at Christmas, there was condemnation from a number of different sources, including the American Parent Teacher Association who lobbied to have it removed from cinemas.

The film critics Siskel and Ebert infamously blasted the film and read out the names of the people and studios involved in its making followed by saying ‘shame on you’. Apparently there were also protests at cinemas around the US. Eventually the distributor of the film relented and started by pulling all print ads for the film, before withdrawing the film entirely.

Two years later it was re-released by a small distributor called Aquarius Films. The poster for that release was poor in comparison to this original design.

Here in the UK the film was never submitted to the BBFC and so wasn’t released at the cinema back in the 1980s. Independent distributors Arrow Films released it uncut on DVD in 2009.

This original release US poster surely ranks up there with one of the best slasher posters of all time. The tagline is something of a classic and neatly references the earlier holiday-themed slasher Halloween.

Here’s the superb original trailer on YouTube.

Ryan’s Daughter / one sheet / style B / USA

17.05.11

Poster Poster

Kids / one sheet / USA

17.05.11

Poster Poster
Title
Kids
AKA
--
Year of Film
1995
Director
Larry Clark
Starring
Leo Fitzpatrick, Justin Pierce, Chloë Sevigny, Rosario Dawson, Jon Abrahams, Harold Hunter, Harmony Korine
Origin of Film
USA
Genre(s) of Film
Leo Fitzpatrick, Justin Pierce, Chloë Sevigny, Rosario Dawson, Jon Abrahams, Harold Hunter, Harmony Korine,
Type of Poster
One sheet
Style of Poster
--
Origin of Poster
USA
Year of Poster
1995
Designer
Tarhan Creative
Artist
--
Size (inches)
27" x 40"
SS or DS
SS
NSS #
--
Tagline
--

Innocent Blood / quad / UK

18.05.11

Poster Poster