Quiz #4 Movie Poster Compare and Contrast

Movie Posters are a great example of gender targeting in the media, especially today. The Marie Antoinette movie poster is clearly targeted towards a female audience, while the Braveheart poster is obviously geared towards a male crowd. One reason Marie Antoinette can be considered a “Chick Flick” is based on the color used in the poster. The colors gravitate towards lighter colors, such as pastels and creams, as opposed to the “Guy Pick” heavier colors in the Braveheart poster, such as the dark browns. Other aspects of the posters that create a feminie or masculine “look” are through the clothing. In the Marie Antoinette Poster, Kirsten Dunst appears to be carrying a fan, there is a pink feather in her hair, and she is wearing a decadent couture gown, all speak greater to women. In the Braveheart poster Mel Gibson is wearing a battle uniform and carrying a sword, all speak louder to men. The backgrounds of the posters also provide gender targeted elements, such as the luxurious silk in the Marie Antoinette poster and the war in the background of the Braveheart poster. Along with the more subtle reasons are the more obvious ones. Some obvious reasons why Marie Antoinette is being targeted to women is the fact that they only feature one woman on the poster and the movie title is just a female name. Similar, is the fact that in the Braveheart poster Mel Gibson is the primary focus. Many posters, games and even T.V. shows follow similar techniques.