POSTER ANALYSIS

From a young age we are taught to read from top left to bottom right, so when you look at this poster the first thing that you notice is the header stating the film is “smart, fast-paced and totally gripping”, this would straight away give viewers an idea of what the film is about. These reviews and comments are usually by a well known person or company, so if this is their opinion it may encourage other people to want to go and watch the film. As you look further down the poster the next thing that you see is “Matt Damon is Jason Bourne”. This is another reflection upon how they have tried to make the film more successful. This would mean that fans of Matt Damon would want to go and pay to see the film because it has their favourite star in it. Next is the title, here you can see that it changes from red to white and then back to red for the last word in the title. The two red parts of the title could reflect the danger that Jason Bourne is in, with a entire agency after him, whilst the white reflects the innocence of him, how he is only protecting himself and doesn’t really want to hurt anyone, just to get to the truth of what happened to him. The “Bourne” part of the title is also the biggest and boldest, which is one of the first parts of the title to catch the audience’s eye. This would immediately let them know that is the sequel to the first film “The Bourne Identity”, so this would also attract fans of the previous film. In the top left hand corner of the poster, the first place the viewer will look, is a fight image and a car crash/chase from the film. This shows how there is a lot of action within the film, and would attract any action film fan. This is effectively a sum up of the film within three images. In the top right hand corner is a busy area which reflects how the agency chasing Bourne can not stop him no matter where he is. The fact that they can not catch him is also reflected by the fact that the crosshair is missing him, but still connotes the danger that is present. Again the main image on the poster is Bourne running, which shows how he is being chased by someone and trying to escape. The seriousness of the chase is reflected by Bourne’s indirect gaze, which shows how he is focusing on the enemy. As well as this he is carrying a gun in one hand and has a clenched fist for the other hand, this reflects the fact that Bourne wont let anyone get in his way on his quest to uncover the truth. On his left wrist Bourne has a watch which signifies how it is a race against time before he finally gets caught, or before he kills another person that gets in his way. The last thing, is the black

t-shirt that Bourne is wearing which reflects the death that surrounds him, and how anyone that gets close to him will end up dead or in trouble, this is exaggerated in how his girlfriend dies at the start of the film.

Around the outside of this poster is a black outline which could reflect how death is again creeping in, edging closer to their enemies, and the criminals that they are trying to stop. This point is also signified with the black jeans and jackets that both men are wearing on the poster. Again this poster features the stars names, however on this poster the names are right at the top, which means it is the first thing that the viewer sees when they look at the poster. The stars names will help to encourage both the fans of the actors and the fans of the previous Bad Boys film to go and watch the film. The title is also in a bold, black font, which again reflects the danger that comes with the lead characters.

In the background of the poster is a big explosion with the main characters just casually walking away, reflecting how they caused the explosion but don’t care, also signifying how their attitudes match the title of the film. Added to this “bad boy” image is the gun that Will Smith is carrying, showing that they are serious to stop the crime.

In this poster there is no tag line, similar to “The Bourne Supremacy”, which could show how the film production team don’t want to give anything away, encouraging the target audience to go and see the film, if they want to know what happens in this sequel.

The way that Will Smith and Martin Lawrence have been dressed on the front adds to quite a cool look, reflecting their image within the film. They are shown to be walking away from the scene with a swagger, also adding to this image. Both of them have their shirts open which could signify how they are loose cannons, and won’t stop until they have detained the suspects.

As soon as you look at both of the posters you can clearly identify that they are action films from the use of guns and action shots, such as explosions and fights. However, Bad Boys II shows the characters looking more suave and cool and just doing their job, where as Jason Bourne is fighting for his life in a more serious battle, where his life is immediately on the line.