The 40 Coolest Movie Posters Ever (Part I)
Witnessing the endless parade of floating heads and nonsensical taglines can often make you forget that throughout film history, Hollywood has treated us to a parade of iconic, wall-deserving posters that would make even the pokiest of flats come instantly alive.
To celebrate the gods of poster design, we've assembled a list of the 40 coolest movie posters ever.
Anything we've missed? Let us know.
Metropolis (1927)
The earliest entrant on our list deserves its spot for showcasing the invention and complexity of poster design back in a time when Photoshop would have been understood as an actual shop full of photos. Themes of oppression and social hierarchy take precedence, giving the poster equal parts style and substance.
Sullivan's Travels (1941)
Taking one of the most desirable actresses of the 1940s and showcasing her sex appeal through a simplistic drawing is no mean feat. This poster for the satirical Preston Sturges comedy might not reveal much about the film (which focuses on a film director struggling to make a socially relevant drama) but it makes the most of Lake's first leading role. Plus the tagline sort of rhymes. Which we don't see enough of these days...
Casablanca (1942)
Famously riffed on in the poster for The Good German, the original is quite simply the best. Retaining the black and white simplicity of the film but adding a shot of colour in the title treatment, it manages to encapsulate the era and also seem cool no matter what the year.
The Third Man (1949)
It's all about the border on this one. Don't know what it is, we just love a damn border. Well, okay so there's also a lot of other great things going on in this poster for this classic 40s noir. From the striking colour scheme to the moody Vienna backdrop, it's an automatic attention-grabber. But then there's also that border. Man, what a border.
Giant (1956)
Anything James Dean touched has always been synonymous with cool but this poster would have remained cool with or without his involvement. The poster for Giant, one of his few theatrical movies, showcases a typically laid-back Dean, with the film's title bearing down in suitably large lettering. Even the exclusion of co-stars Elizabeth Taylor and Rock Hudson can be forgiven.
Love In The Afternoon (1957)
Utilising a font that can only be described as "50s cool", this minimalist poster for the Billy Wilder rom-com perfectly symbolises why it was so damn cool back then. Despite featuring major stars like Gary Cooper and Audrey Hepburn, this Saul Bass artwork managed to remain completely free of any floating heads. Job well done.
Anatomy Of A Murder (1959)
Shamelessly riffed on in the poster for Spike Lee's Clockers, this still remains the original and the best. From the Rothko-esque use of colour to the fantastic lack of floating heads, despite the stellar cast, the poster for Otto Preminger's courtroom classic looks as fresh today as it must have looked in the late 50s.
The Endless Summer (1966)
Encapsulating the surf generation of the 60s, the poster for The Endless Summer combines a striking, t-shirt worthy image with a brave amount of descriptive text underneath. Sure, we're not necessarily focusing on the content of the text, but as a non-conformist movie poster it works outstandingly well.
Vertigo (1958)
Although it might now be seen as a predictable addition to a film student's first flat, there's a reason why it's become the most iconic Hitchcock poster out there. It's really really cool. It's the second Saul Bass designed poster on the list, after Anatomy of a Murder, and typifies why he was one of the undisputed greats. Bass helped to transform movie advertising into an artform and his work has been deservedly lauded ever since.
Lolita (1962)
A suitably controversial poster for a suitably controversial film, this suggestive look at the titular character is right and wrong in equal measures. By posing the very question that fans, and detractors, of the book would have been asking at the time, it's a deliberately teasing look at Kubrick's masterpiece. Plus it made a lot of men feel instant guilt. Right?
Cool Hand Luke (1967)
Luke may well have a cool hand, but this poster is rather hot. Just looking at all that orange and yellow can make you feel the heat of the Florida sun that beats down on Paul Newman and his fellow chain gangers. Those little guys with the dogs are cool, too – a unique touch that brings a bit of action to the poster.
Rosemary's Baby (1968)
This one’s another very daring bit of promotion. With only four tiny words in white, this poster is anything but verbose, but who needs a synopsis when you’ve got such an evocative image? The silhouette of the pram superimposed over the haunting image of Mia Farrow’s sorrowful face encapsulates this sinister tale of the occult. There’s no mistaking this one for a rom-com.
The Wild Bunch (1969)
Look at those four action shots. From just a short glance you know exactly what sort of film you’re getting – a Western that kicks your teeth in with its action scenes. Now take into account those long shadows and that poetic synopsis and you know that it’s going to make you think, too. A great work of graphic design.
Downhill Racer (1969)
At a first glance, this poster is dominated by some very cool photography – and often that’s all you need from movie artwork. But this one goes further. Look at it for a second more and you think, “hang on. Who’s that little fella? Is he skiing?” It’s intriguing. Sure, the typography is a bit dodgy, but it was the late Sixties – that sort of thing was cool at the time.
A Clockwork Orange (1971)
“Rape, ultra-violence and Beethoven” – three powerful concepts that smack you in the face before you even get down to the imagery. That’s not a bad way to catch people’s attention, but Stanley Kubrick’s disturbing masterpiece deserves more from its poster. With an extremely cool illustration framed by sci-fi triangles and some awesome typography added into the mix, it totally does the dystopian classic justice.
Straw Dogs (1971)
There’s nothing fancy about this poster – no intricate border, bright colours or jazzy fonts – but sometimes all you need is an arresting photograph with a white border. This close-up of Dustin Hoffman with his smashed spectacles is certainly that – definitely enough to illustrate the poignancy of this unflinching and controversial exploration of violence.
Vanishing Point (1971)
You can’t miss the image of that car – it’s right in the middle and it looks like it’s going fast. But Vanishing Point is about more than a car driving fast (while we don’t contest that that’s a great subject for a film); it’s also the sort of existential journey that just had to be made in the early 1970s. The hippy sense of the freedom of the road comes through in the rest of the poster, too. And you’ve got to love that cheesy tagline.
Badlands (1973)
Terrence Malick’s debut feature is an astonishing thriller with the disturbing subject matter of a couple who go on a killing spree in Dakota. And its poster is equally show-stopping. With an unnerving, fairy-tale style blurb accompanying a striking photo of the silhouetted pair, you are left in no doubt about what sort of film it is. That last line hits you like a sledgehammer.
Mean Streets (1973)
There aren’t many images more striking than a smoking gun, and if you had made a gritty drama focusing on the minutiae of daily life on the mob-run streets of Little Italy, you’d probably put one on your poster, too. Paired with the stylised blocks of flats surrounding it, the message is clear – life in this city is dangerous. The design is clean, crisp and striking, loyally serving Scorsese’s realist classic.
Chinatown (1974)
This is one stylised movie poster, but one that expertly communicates the feel of Roman Polanski’s psychological drama. The shadowed face of Jack Nicholson, the pinstripe suit and that hat, the pervasive smoke – all the imagery goes towards creating that dark, mysterious sense of film noir. Faye Dunaway’s face is ghostly and disembodied. It’s rich and enticing, just like the film tradition Polanski worships in this movie.
Taxi Driver (1976)
Robert De Niro looks cool in this poster – that’s kind of a given, considering Travis Bickle is one of the coolest characters in any film, ever – but he doesn’t look comfortable. There’s something very intriguing about this shot that mirrors the enigmatic nature of the taxi driver himself. Of course, you’ve got the iconic, beaten-up taxi behind him and the yellow and red colour scheme too. All in all, it’s just really cool.
The Driver (1978)
Forget about the illustration for a second – that is some nice typography: a simple look that conveys speed and exhilaration. It’s a simple name, too, and it looks great. The illustration does the job brilliantly as well: Two men looking thoughtful, one holding a pistol, and a beautiful woman looking mysterious – it can only be a neo-noir. But that car bursts through all this, assuring us that there will be also be some high-speed action in Walter Hill’s stripped-down thriller.
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