Ancillary Product #1: Poster Research // Action-adventure

The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies (2014)

As with most of the films I researched, multiple posters were used to promote each film. These include those used to accompany a trailer, used in order to whet the audience's appetite and interest in the film. Often these types of posters don't reveal too much about the film's plot however they may yet include pictures of the characters and the name of the film. In contrast, a theatrical poster will include information about the film's production company and affiliated persons. Furthermore the stars and distributors are also commonly identified.  I selected a couple of posters to show the variety of posters used by the marketing team.

Conventionally action-adventure films include themes of violence, action and protagonist vs antagonist feuds. In the posters to the left, iconography such as a sword, connoting violence and power, helps to indicate to the viewers that this film is an action film. Conventionally an adventure film uses location and costume to imply a film explores the 'adventure' theme. Since the character in both posters can be seen wearing ragged, worn and typically 'unusual'/ 'unconventional' clothing we can assume that the film is set in a different time/ world.

As this film hasn't been released on DVD, the release poster design hasn't been stipulated for me to write about it. Although I can expect it won't vary considerably from the the two on this post, apart from typically using one line reviews from certain applicable publications.

Both posters focus on primarily showing one character: a character poster. By doing this, we are being informed of the main character.

Behind the character is a background, worn by battle and shrouded by mist. In the first poster we find the columns of a grand building framing Bilbo (main character). Receding into the background are also mountains. This informs us that the location is set in a vast landscape and judging by the snow, the film is set in the thick of winter. As for the second poster, the mountains can also be seen however this time, fire throws dark and foreboding smoke into the air as tattered, black flags rise from the darkness. Instantly the reading we get here is that the film's narrative is based around a war: antagonists vs, protagonists. This is supported by the character's make-up which suggests he's been fighting.

Dark colours have been used here to create an ominous atmosphere, thus creating a foreboding mood, which we often associate with war. This contrasts significantly in the first poster where we find bright, white light which encircles Bilbo, particularly around his head, forming a sort of halo. This suggests that he is an important protagonist in the film.

With regard to layout, in both posters, Bilbo is centred within the poster so that the audiences' eye is drawn to his character. Above him is the tagline "THE DEFINING CHAPTER", all in upper case letters which implies that something will happen to end everything. When connected with the images and knowledge of the narrative for the previous two films, we understand that by saying "the defining chapter" the tagline is referring to a great battle. The use of upper case typography strengthens this reading as it connotes violence and authority i.e. a reference to the leaders of each army. The colour echoes the title's typography which characteristically follows the same font scheme used by the following series,  'The Lord of the Rings'. This instantly connects the two series, establishing that just like the following series, The Hobbit will also incorporate an action-adventure theme. Furthermore, it informs fans of 'The Lord of the Rings' that this is a film that they are likely to love just as much. Following the conventional layout of movie posters, this film also centres the title, release, and production details at the bottom of the poster, allowing as much of the image/ graphics to dominate it: therefore causing out attention to be brought to the image first.