Design Observer on the decline of the American magazine cover
Design Observer on the decline of the American magazine cover.
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Reader comments
Jason HeiserFeb 20, 2004 at 12:14PM
The quality of magazine cover design isn't the only thing to be dragged down by celebrity glam. Think movie posters. Virtually all contemporary movie posters are hack Photoshop jobs where a bunch of actors' heads are smooshed together into a "composition." Even when an occasionally creative design comes along (Kevin Costner's silhouetted figure hiding in a doorway for "Open Range" was sublimely rendered) it is redone in ugly, tacky fashion for its DVD release. The studio marketing deparments must have a design mandate that actors be instantly recognizable at 50 paces on the DVD shelf at Wal-mart. "We paid $20 million for that guy! Make his head bigger!"
nkwFeb 20, 2004 at 12:41PM
I agree completely. Far too many movie posters feature photos of the stars taken separately, then 'shopped together. In the worst cases, the characters seem to be staring in random directions and are clearly not interacting. How hard is it to get the stars to pose together?
gwFeb 20, 2004 at 2:16PM
The Oceans 11 movie poster is wonderful.
DaveFeb 20, 2004 at 3:14PM
That is a great poster. Reminds me a lot of this album cover.
This thread is closed to new comments. Thanks to everyone who responded.