Can Movie Posters be Considered Art?

Some of the most iconic and recognisable examples of design come in the form of movie posters. Here I have compiled a selection of what I consider to be some of the greatest movie posters of all time and prime examples of how the art world has, on occasion been infiltrated by inspired box office promotional advertising. What do you think? Can a truly iconic movie poster be considered as art or are they forever condemned as simply a capitalist tool that can have no place in a gallery?

Jaws 1975:

Clever design here, The isolated

use of the image in the centre

really adds an air of gravitas and

foreboding.

Star Wars 1977:

Such an intrinsically 70's design and

worthy of a place in any retro

mood board.

Walk the Line 2005:

Very Classic, almost Tex-Mex

design.

Pulp Fiction 1994:

Early 90's grunge design at it's very

best. One of my favourite movies and

one of my favourite movie posters.

American Beauty 1999:

A perfect example here of how

simplicity can often produce the

most memorable results.

Casablanca 1942:

As classic a design as you're ever likely to see. I just

love the trends in design of the first half of the 20th

century.

Perfume 2006:

Great use of light and colour isolation

here for an extremely effective design.

Planet of the Apes 1968:

Very clever Two-tone design here and

the use of text to make up the image

is a technique that was very ahead of

it's time.

Star Wars Episode I 1999:

Very neat minimalist design on this

piece and the intelligent manipulation

of the shadow eludes to the movies

story in a nice subtle way.

The U.S. vs. John Lennon 2006:

Every aspect of the movies title is

captured here in a beautifully simple

design. Very clever work.

The Thing 1982:

Lots going on in this piece, very

effective though. The old fashioned

design works well and is almost

reminiscent of the old 1930's horror

movie posters.

Scarface 1983:

This hugely iconic, often replicated

two-tone design has become one of

the most recognisable designs of all

time.

Tim Burton's The Nightmare

Before Christmas 1993:

The art work on this entire movie

was exquisitely done and the poster

is no exception.

Sweeney Todd 2007:

Incredibly eery feel to this one. Great

use of light and shadow and colour

isolation.

Alfred Hitchcock's The Birds 1963:

Another fantastic example here of how

simplicity can often hold the key to a

highly effective design.

V for Vendetta 2006:

Love this, quite quirky, vector

design. Great colour scheme too.

Forrest Gump 1994:

Lovely typography, beautiful composition.

This simple design never fails to conjure

up images for me of a wonderful film.

Jurassic Park 1993:

This, logo in the centre of a plain,

dark background style of design always

serves well to imply that there is

something big on the way and that

was certainly true of Jurassic Park.

Clockwork Orange 1971:

To succeed in creating such a creepy feel

in such a sparse design is an amazing feat

and that focused stare always stirs my gutty

wuts!

The Silence of the Lambs 1991:

Perhaps the most iconic of them all.

The image of Jodie Foster with the

death's-head hawk moth covering her

mouth is extremely powerful and

instantly recognisable. The pattern on

the back of the moth is not its natural

markings It is, in fact, Salvador Dali's

"In Voluptas Mors", a picture of seven

naked women made to look like a

human skull.

So there you have it, my case for the

inclusion of select movie posters into

the art world.

Did I miss any out? Comment below if

you think there are more movie

posters worthy of a place on gallery

walls.