From now until New Year’s, I’ll be posting various Top Ten list of 2010 movies. I love movie posters, so I might as well start with those. Thanks to Luke @ Cynicritics for selecting The Art of Movie Poster from back in April in his list of most wonderful posts of the year. I’m so honored!

Well, the criteria for selecting my favorites are based on creativity, uniqueness, and use of composition/color/angles that make them so eye-catching and also memorable. I’d easily choose any of these to display in my home if I were to put movie posters around the house. So without further ado, here are my top ten faves in random order:

1. Black Swan

All of the Black Swan posters are pretty spectacular (you can view them all here). There’s one with feathers all around framing the poster, as well as black/red art deco illustrations that are well, pretty artsy. But without a doubt this one is the most striking of all to me. It’s got almost a haunting quality with the broken porcelain face. Natalie Portman’s symmetrically gorgeous face has never looked more breathtaking… or more mysterious.

2. Never Let Me Go

I’ve blogged about this poster back in July. The simplicity of it is beautiful. At first glance, it feels blissful and innocent, it almost has a nostalgia quality about it. Yet somehow you know there is more to it than meets the eye, which is the core of the movie’s plot. The fact that the lower part of the word GO is cut off is like a little clue.

3. From Paris with Love

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I absolutely adore this one, and not only because I love anything to do with the Eiffel Tower. Sooo imaginative and simple, but delivers such an impact. If only the movie is half as clever.

4. Inception

The whole marketing for Inception is all around cool. It captures the enigmatic quality of the film and the bold red font really complements the moody bluish tone. The banners are equally noteworthy, or as I said in the post, absolutely drool-worthy.

5. I Am Love

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I am in love with this poster. I’m a sucker for cursive font, but if not used properly, it can feel outdated and old. But in this poster, it still feels pretty contemporary whilst still evoke the romantic tone of the film. I love the way the top of the ‘L’ wraps around Tilda Swinton. I’ve heard mixed reviews about the movie itself but the poster definitely get top marks from me.

6. Rabbit Hole

The theme of this movie is quite bleak, it centers on a happily-married couple whose life is turned upside down after their young son dies in an accident. It’s rare that a poster actually goes deep into the psyche of the film it promotes, but this one practically does the job. As Andrew said in his post, “So subtle, and yet it’s kind of jarring and garish.”

7. The American



I adore the 70s retro look of this design., it almost look like something for a Steve McQueen spy thriller. Perhaps try to lure audiences of George Clooney’s age as well as the younger audience who thinks retro is trendy and cool. As the film centers on an assassin hiding out in Italy for one last assignment, it captures that reclusive mood and the female face in the background hints at a love story as part of the plot. Simply brilliant.

8. 127 Hours

Everything about this poster grabs you: the composition, the colors and obviously what’s happening right in the center of it. If you already know what it’s about, you’d surely appreciate the fact that the simple design tells the story. But if you don’t, you’d surely be curious enough to find out what it’s all about. Based from the reviews, the Danny Boyle movie certainly lives up to this striking poster.

9. Tangled (French version)

I have a penchant for Disney Princesses but I’m not as enchanted by the American version. This French one however is all kinds of awesome. It’s whimsical but still has that romantic Princess-y quality about it and the colors and composition makes for a winning design.

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10. You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger

I generally love illustration design, and if handled well, they can be the most attractive. Such is the case with this Woody Allen movie poster. I blogged about this one as well back in August, and I still love it now as I did back then. It’s simply a beautiful design that’s unabashedly romantic and seductive. Not sure if the movie lives up to such a promise.

Honorable Mentions:

The Kick-Ass poster is one of the four character posters that you can view here . First thing that came to my mind is awesome! I love that each of the poster has the character’s back towards the camera, as if to say convention be darn! Yet it still conveys the whimsical aspect of the whole story.

poster is one of the four character posters that you can view . First thing that came to my mind is awesome! I love that each of the poster has the character’s back towards the camera, as if to say convention be darn! Yet it still conveys the whimsical aspect of the whole story. Buried isn’t one I’d actually hang on my wall, but I give points for its creative use of typography and the Hitchcock-ian quality.

isn’t one I’d actually hang on my wall, but I give points for its creative use of typography and the Hitchcock-ian quality. The marketing dollar behind the new TRON movie is impressive, there are dozens of them! Fortunately, they all look pretty cool and definitely captures the hi-tech and sleek look of the digital world.

movie is impressive, there are dozens of them! Fortunately, they all look pretty cool and definitely captures the hi-tech and sleek look of the digital world. When I first saw the Somewhere poster, I thought it was an ad for a resort/hotel. But upon second look, I thought it’s kinda cool that it doesn’t look like a traditional movie poster. The Sofia Coppola film centers on a hard-living Hollywood actor who re-examines his life after his 11-year-old daughter surprises him with a visit. Just like her previous work, Lost in Translation, the sense of place displayed in the poster is a crucial part of the plot.

poster, I thought it was an ad for a resort/hotel. But upon second look, I thought it’s kinda cool that it doesn’t look like a traditional movie poster. The Sofia Coppola film centers on a hard-living Hollywood actor who re-examines his life after his 11-year-old daughter surprises him with a visit. Just like her previous work, Lost in Translation, the sense of place displayed in the poster is a crucial part of the plot. The Alice in Wonderland quad is quintessentially Tim Burton-esque with the curly branches. It definitely has that otherworldly quirkiness quality that fits the story perfectly. And the colors are just downright gorgeous!

All posters are courtesy of IMPAwards.com

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Well, that’s my list, folks. Now, what are YOUR pick of most eye-catching posters?