The art of the film poster has taken a nosedive in the last twenty years, well thought out collages, montages and paintings have given way to often messily generic screen grabs, cheap poster printing and photoshopped monstrosities. Every now and then your eye is taken by good design (the Kill Bill ones unsurprisingly) but there is little to match the wit and verve of the best of the fifties and sixties.
That said, I’ll Sleep When I’m Dead (first eight minutes reviewed here) has opted for an atmospheric painting of its leads. As befits its attempt to be a modern noir, it has gone retro with its poster. It is therefore a pity that such a nice idea has lead to such a bad painting. It is, as yet, unavailible on the web though it is bill stickered all over London. I’d appreciate a second opinion on this one.