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Film Posters of the 50's
The best, the sexiest, the coolest film posters from the 1950 from Some Like it Hot to Cat on a Hot Tin Roof ; from La Strada to Roman Holiday .
The superb posters in this book present the full range of images-from stark to sizzling-that enticed international cinema audiences in the 1950s. Faced with the new challenge of television, studios conjured up a host of new Cinemascope, Vista-Vision and 3D, the curves of Marilyn Monroe in The Seven Year Itch and Some Like It Hot and the moody figure of James Dean in Rebel Without a Cause . And then there was the elegant Cary Grant, at his peak in films like To Catch a Thief and North by Northwest . The "New Wave" was starting to break-with such European imports as La Strada and Black Orpheus . This was also the era of the great science fiction The Day the Earth Stood Still , Invasion of the Body Snatchers , and Forbidden Planet . With more than 250 full-color posters from all over the world and commentary by two leading experts on poster art, Film Posters of the 50s is a must have for all film buffs as well as anyone interested in graphic design and advertising.
The superb posters in this book present the full range of images-from stark to sizzling-that enticed international cinema audiences in the 1950s. Faced with the new challenge of television, studios conjured up a host of new Cinemascope, Vista-Vision and 3D, the curves of Marilyn Monroe in The Seven Year Itch and Some Like It Hot and the moody figure of James Dean in Rebel Without a Cause . And then there was the elegant Cary Grant, at his peak in films like To Catch a Thief and North by Northwest . The "New Wave" was starting to break-with such European imports as La Strada and Black Orpheus . This was also the era of the great science fiction The Day the Earth Stood Still , Invasion of the Body Snatchers , and Forbidden Planet . With more than 250 full-color posters from all over the world and commentary by two leading experts on poster art, Film Posters of the 50s is a must have for all film buffs as well as anyone interested in graphic design and advertising.
128 pages, Hardcover
First published September 15, 2000
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
February 28, 2022
Another fine volume in this series. Beautifully reproduced film posters from the 50s - apart that is from the seven images spread over two pages! Why?
Paper quality is good and colours vibrant. Like the previous volumes, the only text is from a couple of brief introductions. Personally, I prefer the 40s book, which had more posters I’d actually put up on my own wall. I’m a big film noir fan, and although there are some examples, they are generally fewer and less striking here. In fact, looking through the volume (I’m being very picky!), there are many posters I admire, but few I’d actually want to own. The French poster for ‘From Here To Eternity’ (with a stylised Burt Lancaster and Deborah Kerr on the beach); The Bridge On The River Kwai (atmospheric sun-setting reds); some wonderfully garish sci-fi posters; and from film noir, Robert Mitchum and Faith Domergue in an embracing pose for ‘Where Danger Lives,’ and Dick Powell and Rhonda Fleming in a typically noir Venetian blind image for the Italian poster for ‘Cry Danger,’ would be favourites.
Paper quality is good and colours vibrant. Like the previous volumes, the only text is from a couple of brief introductions. Personally, I prefer the 40s book, which had more posters I’d actually put up on my own wall. I’m a big film noir fan, and although there are some examples, they are generally fewer and less striking here. In fact, looking through the volume (I’m being very picky!), there are many posters I admire, but few I’d actually want to own. The French poster for ‘From Here To Eternity’ (with a stylised Burt Lancaster and Deborah Kerr on the beach); The Bridge On The River Kwai (atmospheric sun-setting reds); some wonderfully garish sci-fi posters; and from film noir, Robert Mitchum and Faith Domergue in an embracing pose for ‘Where Danger Lives,’ and Dick Powell and Rhonda Fleming in a typically noir Venetian blind image for the Italian poster for ‘Cry Danger,’ would be favourites.
May 19, 2010
I can't really make a single complaint about this book. The art reproduction is pristine, the scope is international, the styles of both art and film range from the terrific to the trashy. If you're a fan of film from this period, or a fan of commercial art, this is a must-have. It absolutely makes me want the rest of the series!
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews