Poster analysis 2: Kidulthood

I am going to analyse this poster for Kidulthood, a film with similar themes to our project.

The colours used in the poster are all dark- the setting is almost completely grey and even the sky is dark and cloudy, immediately conveying the sinister tone of the film. The characters are also sitting on a rooftop , perhaps to indicate their precarious position in life and the risks they constantly take by being involved with underage sex, drugs and violence.

The figures in the poster are the main characters. In the centre are the two characters that the film revolves around- putting them in the middle of the poster shows their importance ('central' characters.) The character Becky (3rd from right) is balanced the most precariously on the edge of the roof, reflecting her 'live for the moment' approach and reckless behaviour. The main antagonist, Sam, is positioned at the far right of the image, holding a baseball bat to hint at his violent nature.

The only text on the poster is the title, credits and a pull quote from a review written by Touch magazine. The use of a pull quote is effective because it gives an idea of the kind of movie it is (e.g. this one is 'powerful and moving', so the audience realises that the film won't be a comedy) and also, the five star rating shows that it has some critical acclaim.

All the characters on the poster are teenagers, so one can assume that the main target audience for the piece is also young people, the 16-24 demographic.

As our film is influenced by the grit and potency of Kidulthood, we want to take inspiration from this poster. We like the use of dark colours to convey the subject matter and the hint at violence via the inclusion of a baseball bat. We also find the use of a pull quote effective, and may attempt to utilise that technique.