6. Cloverfield
This poster for
Cloverfield works very much in the same way as the Harry Potter teaser poster did. It takes a landmark that represents justice and security and then destroys it to show how powerful the enemy really is. However, unlike Harry Potter,
Cloverfield had to sell itself on its own merits. We've seen New York under attack before. How could this one be different? This film takes the Godzilla-like creature from the film and runs with it. The head ripped off the Statue of Liberty, the rippling path towards the burning skyscrapers...this poster sets the scene. Some thing has found us...this suggests that this isn't some otherworldly creature...this 'thing' has come from the ocean depths of our planet - it plays on that unknown of what might live on the ocean floor where it is too deep for humanity to go. The title itself is as intriguing. It doesn't conjure up the image of monster movie. Coupled with the fact that the monster itself is not in this poster (indeed we only see glimpses of it for the majority of the film), it builds on that intrigue. It makes you want to find out more. And that is the success of a good movie poster.