100 Years of Movie Posters

Saturday 14 December 2013

Akira Kurosawa

Akira Kurosawa (1910 - 1998) was a Japanese film director, screenwriter, producer, and editor. Regarded as one of the most important and influential filmmakers in the history of cinema, Kurosawa directed 30 films in a career spanning 57 years.

Kurosawa entered the Japanese film industry in 1936, following a brief stint as a painter. After years of working on numerous films as an assistant director and scriptwriter, he made his debut as a director in 1943 with the popular action film Sanshiro Sugata.

The commercial and critical success of Rashomon (1950) opened up Western film markets for the first time to the products of the Japanese film industry, which in turn led to international recognition for other Japanese filmmakers. Throughout the 1950s and early 1960s, Kurosawa directed approximately a film a year, including a number of highly regarded films such as Ikiru (1952), Seven Samurai (1954) and Yojimbo (1961). His later work—including his final two epics, Kagemusha (1980) and Ran (1985)—continued to win awards, including the Palme d'Or for Kagemusha.

In 1990 Kurosawa received an honorary Academy Award for Lifetime Achievement "For cinematic accomplishments that have inspired, delighted, enriched and entertained worldwide audiences and influenced filmmakers throughout the world." (Wikipedia)

Rashomon (1950) Japanese poster

Rashomon (1950) French poster

Ikiru (1952)

Seven Samurai (1954) Japanese poster

The Lower Depths (1957) Japanese poster

Throne of Blood (1957) Japanese poster

Throne of Blood (1957) Polish poster

The Hidden Fortress (1958) Japanese poster

Yojimbo (1961) Japanese poster

Yojimbo (1961) Spanish poster

Sanjuro (1962) Japanese poster

Red Beard (1965) Japanese poster

Dersu Uzala (1975) Japanese poster

Kagemusha (1980) Japanese poster

Kagemusha (1980)

Ran (1985) German poster

Ran (1985) Japanese poster

Ran (1985) French poster


Dreams (1990)

Monday 2 December 2013

Cecil B. DeMille

Cecil Blount DeMille (1881–1959) was born in Ashfield, Massachusetts, he was an American film producer and director in both silent and sound films.

DeMille began his career as a stage actor in 1900. He later moved on to writing and directing stage productions. He directed his first film The Squaw Man in 1914 and would go on to direct dozens of silent films before crossing to sound films in 1929.

DeMille was renowned for the flamboyance and showmanship of his movies. Among his best-known films are Cleopatra (1934); Samson and Delilah (1949); The Greatest Show on Earth (1952), which won the Academy Award for Best Picture; and The Ten Commandments (1956), which was the last film he directed and also his most successful. In addition to his Academy Award win, he was also awarded an Academy Honorary Award for his film contributions, the Palme d'Or, a DGA Award for Lifetime Achievement, and the Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award. He was also the first recipient of the Golden Globe Cecil B. DeMille Award, which is named in his honor.

During on-location filming in Egypt of the Exodus sequence for 1956's The Ten Commandments, the then-75-year-old DeMille climbed a 107-foot ladder to the top of the massive Per Rameses set and suffered a near-fatal heart attack. Against his doctor's orders, DeMille was back directing the film within a week.

Though DeMille completed the film, it proved to be his last for he never fully recovered. His doctor made a house call to him on the evening of January 20, 1959 and recommended he go to the hospital, and again did not follow his doctor's orders. He died of a heart attack on January 21, 1959. (Wikipedia)