Textual analysis

The Dark Knight rises is a successful action/thriller film with a sinister nature. This is shown through the darkness of the poster. The only bright part is the Batman logo, which is made out to look like an explosion, or fire. Something destructive, this also adds to the action feel of the film, the main character, Batman, is shown centre frame, this allows the audience to identify with his importance, but he is also shown to be mysterious, as he is masked and has a shadow on the part of his face that you can see, this could have conotations of a darker side to him, or just add to the mystery. The crumbling buildings and broken glass also add to the destructive nature of the poster enhancing the action/thriller feel of the film. Warner Bros. pictures is one of the companies associated with this movie, and this is indicated at the bottom of the poster. the tag line 'fire will rise' creates an enigma, and also goes well with the visual of the burning bat logo. all text including the title is simplistic and stands out against the dark colours used in the poster, however the title is made more interesting with another bat logo behind it, however it looks cracked or smashed, this could have conotations of Batman becoming currupt or possibly being beaten.

Total recall has a futuristic setting, this is shown through the colours used as well as the buildings that appear in the background. although is an iconic building like Big Ben, there are other buildings shown hovering above it, there are also men that look like robots shown to the right, again in the background. Colin Farrell is shown centre frame letting the audience know he is the main character however Kate Beckinsale and Jessica Biel are also shown indicating they also have important roles in the film, however they are not shown to the same scale and Colin Farrell. green is a colour that people have come to associate with aliens, possibly because the stereotypical view of an alien is now a little green man. however this colour can now be used as an indicator of sci fi films. using a greenish tint in the background of this poster it may trigger a response in some people making them associate the colour with aliens, space, and futuristic technology such as space ships. the title 'TOTAL RECALL' is shown in capitals and grabs attention without distracting from the overall poster. it has a metallic look to, again this could be associated with sci fi films as some perceptions of the future involve rooms that may have metallic walls floors and maybe even furniture. there are a number of guns shown in this poster from both the main characters and the 'robot men' this could be an indication of action themes in the plot.