Walking into a college dorm room or bedroom, you might notice a woman with a short black bob, lying on a bed, legs casually crossed in the air. She holds a lit cigarette in one hand, her other hand resting near a pistol on an old pulp novel. The room is filled with a certain cool, effortlessly rebellious energy. Her gaze is direct, yet mysterious, almost as if she’s waiting for something or someone. The whole scene feels like it belongs there, a snapshot of a world that’s gritty, dangerous and undeniably stylish.
There’s a retro vibe, where in the quiet intensity of the moment it becomes clear something about this image stands out. It feels like it’s more than just a decoration, more like a statement.
And that’s when you realize: I’m not writing smut right now, but describing the iconic “Pulp Fiction” movie poster.
In the “Pulp Fiction” poster the woman is Mia Wallace, a character played by Uma Thurman in the 1994 Quentin Tarantino film.
Movie and TV show posters have a way of transcending their original purpose of marketing a movie and becoming beloved and recognizable works of art in their own way.
Interestingly enough the scene on the “Pulp Fiction” poster does not appear once in the movie. This is because James Verdesoto, then-artistic director at the production company Miramax, created this poster with the intention of eliciting feelings of mystery and tension rather than portraying the plot, according to a The Ringer interview with him.
But generally, movie posters are designed to be a snapshot of the genre, theme and essence that a movie might bring. Even looking at different posters you’ll find features that make them strikingly similar to other posters. For example, when looking at the color theory of posters you will notice comedy posters having large white backgrounds and indie film posters having bright bold yellow backgrounds to catch your eye.
“Yellow is a cheap way to catch the eye,” Verdesoto said in a Vanity Fair video.
Similarly, blue posters will often indicate a thriller, with other colors denoting a subgenre, like green making it more of a technological thriller or yellow more of an action thriller. Action movie posters more recently use black and white photography with pops of a fiery red-orange or yellow signifying a dramatic action-based tension.
Despite the popularity of movie posters as an art form, many people agree that movie posters are losing the flair. For example, movies produced by Disney, specifically their live-action movies that fall under the likes of Marvel or Star Wars use a generic and now cliché floating head format, displaying as many characters in the movie as possible without much of a creative vision as to portraying what tension or conflict the movie contains.
This is in direct contrast to the creativity on display as far back as when the first feature films were being made. These posters contain bright and artistic displays of color, costumes, characters, conflict and the essence of the film. Even the typography used within these posters was often created specifically for each individual movie rather than choosing from a few standard fonts.
For example, even just the typography for the posters of “The Shining,” “Vertigo” and “Anatomy of a Murder,” all designed by iconic poster designer Saul Bass, tell us so much about the movies in simple but unique ways.
The “Pulp Fiction” poster, similarly to the bashful early designs of posters, is made to encompass the emotions that will be felt while watching the movie. Its artistry is enjoyed far and wide by many for reasons other than just being a fan of the movie.
Similar to people wearing band tee shirts despite not being able to name a song from the band, people can just love the look that movie posters can add to a space. The “Pulp Fiction” poster is just one great example of this, as it is hung up not just by film nerds and graphic design enjoyers, but by anyone looking to bring a bold, colorful and rebellious energy to their room.
Ultimately, movie posters are special because they are far more than just promotional tools and can mirror the soul of a movie. After all, in a world of floating heads and cliché designs, the ones with personality, artistry and depth are the ones that stand out and leave a mark on our hearts and our walls.
