Research - Poster Analysis

The Last of Us (2013)

This poster is of the ‘horror’ genre. The genre is indicated to me by the bleak colour palette and ‘dirty’ lettering of the title.

‘The Last of Us’ is the title of this video game and I think this is a brilliant title for this type of product. This is because it sounds sort of like a quote that a character might say in the actual product. It is also a very gloomy title that indicates that many people have died.

The title is in a big, bold, white font and is located in the lower left corner of the poster. This is a good placement for the title because it is stylised with one word on the first and second lines, then two on the last – this means that it takes up enough space in the corner to be noticed straight away, but it allows for the key image to take the majority of the space.

The lettering style is ‘dirty’ around the edges, indicating that the product may be violent and unsuitable for children. Violence in films and video games usually make things dirty with blood, mud or similar substances.

The key image in this poster is of the two main protagonists looking determined and at the audience members. This represents the idea that they are on an important (but dangerous) quest and possibly need our help to complete it – by viewing the product in its entirety. The background is a dirty, grey fill (possibly a wall) with many darker and lighter patches all over – showing us that dust and dirt has been kicked up and has stuck to the wall. The characters are also covered in this dust/dirt and this all points to the idea that their journey is a long and potentially dangerous one.

There is a secondary image of the two main characters walking in some kind of field. They look isolated from other people in this secondary image because of the sparsely populated area shown. This presents the enigmas “Why are they so alone? What has happened?”

Ellie is the character shown in the foreground; she is young and so we assume she is also vulnerable. She also looks a little worried. This all adds up to the audience caring about her and wondering why she is worried. Joel is the character behind Ellie, he is looking at the audience head on an looking very determined. His rugged look and unshaven face looks a little threatening, but he isn't doing anything to Ellie so we assume there is a threat of sorts coming from elsewhere.

The main message that I think the poster conveys to me is a simple one. “Help us.” This is because of the worried look from Ellie and the determined look from Joel – they need my help to save ‘The Last of us’.

The poster is a general release poster because it doesn't have any information on the developers. Much like a director of a film, the main star for this video game, is really the developers – Naughty Dog have a track record for making great games. The fact that the Naughty Dog logo isn't on the poster, shows that they have already released other material and there is no need to show the developer’s information or  even a tagline of sorts.

The poster is trying to appeal to fans of Naughty Dog’s work and people who play video games in general – this is because it would have been massive news to gamers when it was first revealed, and fans of previous work will be looking out for these posters and promotional material.

Children of Men (2006)

This poster is within the ‘drama’ genre, but also has elements of the ‘horror’ genre in it. This is due to the bleak colours in the background and the serious expression on the main character’s face.

The title “Children of Men” is quite enigmatic for me. This is because, for me the ‘children’ represent a particular group of people that are seen as lesser than another group – the ‘men’. Therefore I think the film will be about a struggle of power between two social groups (or indeed any other type of group, maybe political?).

However, the film is actually called this because it is a quote from the bible, "Thou turnest man to destruction; and sayest, Return, ye children of men" meaning that something will turn these men to destruction and they will return as lesser people than when they left. I have not come across this quote before, but I imagine that someone who has seen it before may link it to the bible and the Christian undertones from the original book.

As for other text, there is a small back story to the film in the top left corner. It states the year and some of the events that happened before the film starts.

The lettering used is quite big and bold, but also is blurred in some areas. The film title and the actors are in white, while the back story is in red and slightly smaller. The actor’s names are also slightly smaller than the film title – this is so the audience doesn't get confused with what is the film title and what is the extra information included with the poster.

The lettering signifies that some things aren't as they first appear in the film. This is because of the out of focus letters and the faded lettering. It also signifies to me that the things that are structured are starting to crumble (such as the government). This is because the lettering is in a formal font and looks like it has been sprayed onto a wall of sorts, but it is also a little blurry in places and not clear in others.

The key image is of the main character (Theo) looking directly at the audience through a broken window, in a serious way. This represents a determination in his character that is seen throughout the film – giving us an impression of his character for the film. In the foreground, there is a broken window that also helps signify the message of a crumbling society; while in the background, there is a dark wall – conveying the idea of darkness surrounding the characters (similar to horror films).

There is a secondary image of a baby in an eye (in the foetal position). I think this represents the fact that the eyes of the world are looking for hope of a new baby being born (which is the idea that the film is based upon).

Theo is the only character in the poster, and he is looking straight at the audience in determination – this represents his character in the film. His character is determined to help deliver the baby and possibly save the planet and so this determination is conveyed in his emotions in this poster.

The main message in the poster is the back story that it is trying to get across to us. Also the idea of Theo’s determination is a major part of the poster. Both of these entice the audience to go and see the film – the back story sounds like an interesting concept and Theo’s determined face shows the audience the serious side of the film.

Three of the main stars are identified in the poster – they use the same font and colour as the main title, however they are slightly smaller. This is great because the audience members can see that some of their favourite stars are featured in the film and the stars are easily noticed on the poster because of the font and colour being the same as the main title.

The director is also identified, his name is also of the same font and colour of the title, but is slightly smaller (the same as the star names). Similar to the stars, the director is easily noticed because of the similarity between the main title and the director’s name. Due to the fact that both the star names and the director are shown above and below the main title – this also emphasises the film’s title to the audience and they may be fans of the director or certain stars in it.

The producers and distributors are identified in the credit block at the bottom of the poster. This is because a more general viewer won’t necessarily want to know the information on the producers and distributors, but someone who specifically likes a certain producer may have been excited for this film and so can still find this information on the poster.

This poster is a general release poster because it has a lot of contextual information on it. It gives us a back-story, the main title, the director’s name, as well as a lot more information. If it were a teaser, it may just have the film title, or a picture of something to do with the film – not giving much away. The teaser posters for this film included a number of quotes from the film and the film’s title. All of which was on a white background – one of the more popular quotes was “The last one to die please turn out the light”.

The poster offers links to two websites dedicated to the promotion of the film. One of which is the official film website and the other is for the ‘United International Pictures’ website (which is the film’s distributors).

I believe that the poster is trying to appeal to a target audience of 15-25 years. This is because this is the main target audience for many films – due to the high amount of tickets sold for this age bracket. Also, due to the fact that the film carries a 15+ certificate, they won’t be trying to appeal to a younger audience and the film focusses on much more contemporary ideas and so won’t as appealing for a typical, say 60+ year old.