31 Days of Halloween - Poster of the Day - Halloween (1978)

Halloween is a classic film for numerous reasons, not the least of which are some of its iconic images. Who can forget the the white mask of Mike Meyers slowly emerging from the shadows behind Jamie Lee Curtis at the finale? Or the high school student pinned to a wall by a knife, as Meyers stands there staring into his dying eyes?

How did posters of the day capture this imagery? The original poster (at right) is straight forward: creepy pumpkin face, giant butcher knife. Although pumpkins do show up in many scenes in the movie, Mike is not wearing a pumpkin mask.

For a more...umm...imaginative take on the film, we have this poster (at left) from Japan. Let's take a close look shall we?

At first glance, it is creepy. Mostly black, broken by an energetic blue-white bolt of lightening, with some poor disembodied head screaming, all centered around the dark figure of Mike Meyers. There's just a little splash of color, the deep red of fresh blood. Making the knife the focal point of the poster is a great idea, as it tells you what you need to know about the film. Then, your gaze travels up to see the face of Mike Meyers. And you start to giggle. Sigh.

The mask used in the film, as is well known, started life as a Bill Shatner mask (no Bill Shatners were harmed in the making of the movie...or poster) that was modified and painted white. And it is disturbing. It is so de-natured, so weird, it looks more like a shamanistic mask from some primitive tribal rite than the representation of the greatest Canadian to have ever lived.

In this poster, he looks like a deranged Disney character. Anime eyes and a silly, smirk do not make for a frightening visage. Although the poster has a lot going for it, the interpretation of the face is not one of those things.

Anyway, overall a good poster; But changing the face from the iconic, inhuman look from the film to this oddly humorous image was a bad idea.

Well, it is still a great movie.