Textual analysis of a film poster: Star Wars: Episode V- The Empire Strikes Back

Director: Irvin Kershner
Cast: Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher etc.

Studio: 20th Century Fox
Year: 1980

 

From the first glance of this poster, we can instantly tell that it is a standard ‘Star Wars film,’ poster. The stylistic choices and colours from this poster tells us that the genre of this film is sci-fi and from the future. In this essay I will be exploring what makes me jump to this conclusion, and the sci-fi  genre conventions that this poster so excellently displays.

Firstly, going from bottom to the top, we are flashed by the title of the film. “The Empire Strikes Back(1),” is written in grey-white with huge block letters. This choice of colour contrast makes the title pop due to the huge amount of space-black which makes up the base layer of the poster. This choice of jet black helps convey that this film is set in space.

Furthermore, the conventions are strong in this film, and we can instantly tell that it is a futuristic sci-fi. We come to that conclusion due to the fact that that the conventions of sci-fi films typically consist of huge amounts of black space, stars and space ships/robots. The poster has all of these. Just above the title, we see a little blue and white robot: R2D2. We can instantly tell that this robot is nothing like we currently have in our day and age. We know this because we are given contrast by the gold-humanoid robot C3PO. This robot is exactly what we would think of when asked to give a generic description of a robot. We also see two ominous black drones in the bottom left of the poster. We can tell that these robots are going to be malicious and potentially evil due to the fact that they dark black, and have grotesque features, like the leg probes beneath them, which contrast greatly from the rounded shape of R2D2. These robots aren’t the only pieces of futuristc technology in the poster. In the centre to the left we see a huge laser connected to hundreds of wires. This particular feature of the poster is particularly interesting as could tell the audience something about the story. Although its use or purpose is not explicably mentioned, we get the sense that it is a form of doomsday device that will play a role in this film, or later on in the saga.

 

Finally, at the top of the poster we see three sci-fi convention rich images. The first is the mask of Darth Vader. His mask is the same colour of space: cold and evil. Additionally its rough edges suggest that he is violent character. His mask is given the same space allocation as all of the other main characters combined, which suggests that he plays a central and powerful role in the film. This powerful image is emphasises by the fact that his eyes are literally made up of stars: incredibly massive and hot suns. The second image is that of the millennium falcon. We can tell it is a space ship due to the fact that it is being propelled by a form of jet-stream and is being followed by significantly smaller fighter ships. The odd shape and positioning of the ship (centre) suggest that it will most likely be a key featured set and motif (something similar to a huge metal angel, which is conveyed through its pure silver colour. The last image is just behind the main characters: a huge city which appears to be floating. The connotations we can draw from this image reinforce the sci-fi conventions previously displayed by the other images within the poster. Due to its size and centrality, the audience can guess that it will be another major set.

The target audience for this film is ambiguous. I believe that it would appeal to people of all ages, as it can tell a different story to each demographic. For example: a child would see a fairytale-esque film, that must have some action and sic-fi. This is shown by the poster using the same images we would expect to see in a fantasy/fairytale film. On the other hand, an older audience would most likely see only that it is a sci-fi action film, showed by the dog fights, missiles and guns. However, at the top of the poster it says in block letters and a familiar font: “The Star Wars Saga Continues.” This suggests that this movie is part of a series, or saga, and would therefore be targeting those who had seen the first film. This means that audiences walking into the ESB know what they are about to see, suggesting that the images in the poster are only reinforcing what they know they are about to see.

 

In conclusion, the mise-en-scene of the poster work together to produce a beautiful and connotation rich poster. This is mostly due to checking all the boxes in terms of being a sci-fi film and using colours appropriately. ‘The Empire Strikes Back,’ is an incredibly influential movie, and arguably the reason why the above mentioned sci-fi conventions exist. It is a valuable testament to modern filmmaking and the potential available for special effects.

 

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⁽¹⁾Foregoing mentioned to ESB