Not a single element is wasted-even the hand-drawn typography, which is a throwback to 1920s era German expressionist films, gives you a sense of vertigo.

Legendary Hollywood designer Saul Bass created this movie poster for the psychological thriller Vertigo to be both complex and hypnotically simple, immediately drawing in and disorienting the audience. So it only makes sense that the marketing for this film would be created by someone who was equally adept at using visual effects to manipulate the audience’s emotions. Vertigo (1958)ĭirector Alfred Hitchcock was exceptionally skilled at working in a visual medium any designer could learn a thing or two from watching his movies. As a designer, you can never be certain if your ideas are strong enough to stay popular for a century, but those that do are typically the ones that are ahead of their time. Take the font, for example-even though it’s nearly 90 years old, it looks like the kind of logo you might see on a hair metal band’s album in the ’80s or even one of today’s graphic novels. Not only is it an art deco masterpiece, the poster blends the style of the ’20s with a taste of what’s to come in the future.

Only four surviving originals are known to exist, one of which was reportedly valued at over $1 million in 2012. In fact, the poster is even more valuable than the silent movie it advertises. Metropolis (1927)įritz Lang’s Metropolis is the oldest film in our countdown and a great example of classic cinema-and we think this movie poster had something to do with that longevity. Want to see how these designs have contributed to the evolution of movie posters over the years? Take a look at this easy-to-download summary graphic. So what makes the best movie posters so iconic? And how do you apply their positive traits to your own designs? The only way to find out is to study the greatest movie posters ever made. And in twenty years, they’ll probably still be hanging on our walls. These are the kind of designs that will last for generations (in fact, some already have). Where some do less than impress, others shine brightly like a homing beacon, calling designers to a higher standard. With many designers already questioning whether the future of movie posters is in jeopardy, our blog seemed like further proof that this art form is on its last legs.īut movie posters are just like any other print design.

We recently rounded up some of the worst movie posters of all time to show you what not to do when you tackle a design project.

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