A Tale of Two Movie Posters

More often than not I've noticed that international posters of American films tend to be better executed and more daring in terms of challenging the norms than their American counterparts. Plainly, they're just cooler.

So when the opposite happens, it's a bit shocking for me. Case in point the upcoming movie Going the Distance starring Drew Barrymore and Justin Long. Here is its domestic poster:


When this poster came out about a month or so ago, I hadn't even heard of the movie. But the poster immediately caught my eye. First of all, the color theme is eye-catching, summery, and fun. It actually reminded me of the poster for last year's (500) Days of Summer which is a win-win for me. Then there's the angled perspective which is visually interesting without feeling gimmicky. The art, with the cute clouds, the plane, and the striking graphic of the NYC skyline in front of the Golden Gate Bridge, is both subtle and striking in both getting to the point of what the movie is about and also just making sure people check it out.

So without seeing a trailer or even reading anything about it, this poster convinced me to check out the film by its presentation alone. Isn't that what it's supposed to do? Now let's take a look at the ill-conceived international poster:


Awful right? I mean the bright blue/yellow hues found in the first poster were relegated to the font for the title and actors' name and even then they are muted. The rest of the poster is dominated by dull earth tones barely register. Juxtaposing the Brooklyn Bridge and the Golden Gate Bridge the way they did surely gets the point of the film across, but it's a bit awkward and just a bit overkill. The two actors are front and center, but unlike the first poster where they both actually seem to be PART of the environment of the poster, they look like someone just photoshopped a stock picture of a cute couple being happy. Finally, it's a little bit less "fun whimsical summer movie" and more "generic romantic Lifetime-esque movie."

Suffice it to say, if the international poster was the first ad I saw for the film, I probably would've just ignored it despite my fondness for the actors involved.