It was hard enough to get English language films screened in the Poland at the height of communism. It was especially difficult to market a movie back then, as they didn’t receive any of the promotional material that went along with the reels. So they improvised.
Many of these posters were created with no more knowledge than the film’s title, resulting in some odd and abstract pieces. Often this would fit with the tone of the films, like with pretty much any of Stanley Kubrick’s creepy projects. But other films like Bachelor Party and Weekend at Bernie’s suddenly seem much bleaker than I remember…
1.) Gone With the Wind
2.) Casablanca
3.) The Bridge on the River Kwai
4.) My Fair Lady
5.) Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid
6.) A Clockwork Orange
7.) The Great Gatsby
8.) The Shining
9.) The Exorcist
10.) Rosemary’s Baby
11.) Annie Hall
12.) Fatal Attraction
13.) Top Gun
14.) The Blues Brothers
15.) Bachelor Party
16.) Weekend at Bernie’s
17.) Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark
18.) Saving Private Ryan
19.) Reservoir Dogs
20.) The Big Lebowski
21.) Pulp Fiction
22.) The Other Boleyn Girl
23.) The Illusionist
(H/T: Dorkly.)
You can find more and purchase some of the historical oddities for yourself from Polish Posters. There are definitely a few I have my eye on.