Escape From New York
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| Poster Origin : | United States |
| Poster Size : | US 1 Sheet / 27 x 41" |
| Poster Artist : | Barry Jackson |
| Poster Year : | 1981 |
| Poster Version : | First Release |
| Film Origin : | United States |
| Film Director : | John Carpenter |
| Film Year : | 1981 |
This dramatic image utilises Manhattan’s towering skyscrapers as intimidating and claustrophobic devices to accompany the horde of armed savages closing in on the vulnerable escapees. It has the feel of a disaster movie from the 70s with architecture and bodies listing and swaying from a seismic shift, and the skewed perspective creates a dizzying sensation of toppling as the dystopian society collapses.
With a nod to other apocalyptic visions of the future the artwork recalls the destroyed statue from Planet Of The Apes (1968). Lady Liberty is actually still intact in this film but artistic license was necessary to create such a poignant metaphor for America’s crumbling constitution.
The famous red headline font seems retro now, but had futuristic connotations in the burgeoning computer age, with its pseudo-stencil LCD-like glyphs constructed from chiselled geometric segments. Originally named Checkmate, it was never officially released as a digital font but was re-imagined by Canada Type in 2006, whose designers acknowledged this poster as their inspiration.