Codes and conventions of Film posters

A typical code and convention of a poster for a film is to be eye catching this can be achieved in numerous ways, but it is important that it is done so that it will attract an audience. The focal point of the image is usually the main actor with in the film, the popular movie star who in turn will help market the film himself by being well renowned in other films. Audiences are often drawn to see films because their favourite actor plays a role, therefore it is important they know he/she is featured in the film.

Within my example we see Christian Bale is our main focal point of the poster clearly showing him along with the title of the movie 'American Psycho'. As well as this the poster seems to have a artistic essence to it, containing a dark Gothic theme. This is evident due to the dark colours used, the consistency of red and black throughout. 

We can also see that there has been editing done to the image, the colour has been corrected to make it feel more dramatic as well as the contrast has been lifted. A filter has also been applied which makes the image feel less realistic or possibly because it was taken on a older camera subtly suggesting what time the film is set in. The knife on the poster connotes violence anger and death, this provides a great contrast with the plain look upon his face giving the poster a chilling vibe. The knife is reflecting the image of his face showing that he is everything the knife connotes although because it is a reflection it also shows that this knowledge that he is a dangerous man can not be seen in plain sight. 

There is also a pun added on the poster saying 'killer looks' which can be interpreted in numerous ways but it shows that at some points in the movie it doesn't take it self quite too seriously, but instead trying to add some slight humour. A billing board has been used as well on the bottom of the poster to inform the reader on the distributors of the film, the producers, the director and the cast.

The film poster for 'The Campaign' takes a different approach to advertising their film, the fact that these two films are completely different genres is clearly evident from the use of colours. Here is a use of bright light hearted colours such as blue and red which are also significant to the film as they are the colours of the party in which they represent. To reiterate again our focal point is the two main actors and movie stars, they are both well known for their previous parts and known for comedic acting. 

Both actors staring at each other shows conflict but this is quickly blinded out by the quite obvious fact that both their noses are touching, for comedic effect. Both names are clearly shown at the bottom to clearly state who they are. The tagline at the bottom of the poster 'may the best loser win' is a contradictory statement which is not supposed to be take seriously. Straight away we can get a basic idea of the story line from just looking at the poster this is achieved from the image in the background of the white house and the clothes they are wearing. Both are wearing suits which connotes importance one with a blue tie and one with a red further showing the conflict, they are opposites.

To conclude film posters codes and conventions can show a clear suggestion of what the film could be about in terms of a plot and can affect audiences in different ways depending on how they like to be reacted by film posters.