Semiotic Analysis Task: Maleficent Film Poster
Collaborative Work
By Haziq Affandy and Muizz Kasim
Maleficent Poster Owned By Disney - Poster is copyrighted and only used as a reference.
SEMIOTIC ANALYSIS:
MAIN HEADER FOCUS ACTORS NAME:
By displaying the name ‘Angelina Jolie’ an academy award winning actress who is quite popular and well known, represents the movie to be of high budget if they can afford an A-list actress such as her. The choice of font and breath of the name represents the main figure and focus of the film which is the lead actress herself playing the role of the main titular character.
HORNS HEADDRESS COSTUME:
The horns are covered with a leather headdress which represents a fashion change in the middle of the movie. There is a meaning to the horns cover up and as to why the design choice selected. In the original Disney animated film sleeping beauty; Maleficent was designed the same way with black horns adorned on her head covered by what seems to be a headdress but in more natural way, here we see the attempt at the design costume wise. The horns represents the fiction fantasy like genre of the movie showcasing the movie as a fantastical fairytale having mythical beings such as herself. The rest of the costume shown as pitch black with subtle designs and of pointy sharp nature showcasing how dark, evil, malicious and mysterious her character could be.
MAKEUP AND FACIAL FEATURES:
In essence of capturing the character Maleficent, the actress is covered in makeup and has white greyish pale skin in order to showcase her defined bony yet robust cheekbones albeit making her look more defined and represents beauty close to a sculptured statue rather than a normal being. Her cartoon counterpart has green skin rather than pale white. In vogue culture this type of flawless skin and defined cheek structure represents the feminine beauty highly difficult to attain. Her eyes are of unnatural colors having greenish yellow accents depicting both a mesmerizing gaze and a powerful stare presenting danger and malice. Her lips are a deep red commonly seen as lipstick, but here it’s more likely her natural lip color depicting how her beauty is unnaturally uncommon, and red is an iconic representation of love, romance and rarely lust which we would eventually see in the movie.
GESTURES AND POSTURES:
Her posture is centered and still, depicting her firmness and solid stature of pride and of determination as the character which makes her seem all powerful. Her hands has pale skinny fingers with sharp long nails showcasing fragile femininity and dangerous plotting. Hands gripping a magical staff with the same color design as her costume only with a focused featured lowing green gem or crystal representing magic. But when green it is usually of evil, grotesque, sickly representation of magic but also of nature, natural and relaxing nature. She covers the staff as if it were a crutch or something of value.
BACKGROUND AND TYPOGRAPHY:
The background is of a white color to contrast the main character giving the character more depth and focus. The main title Maleficent showcasing sharp metallic custom font made to represent the story and main character, as metal can represent the age it was set in where metal and steel was prominent which the middle ages was basically where fantasy movies thrive. The sharpness of the font also represents how maleficent is sharp and pointy in her design. There is also the branded ‘Disney’ logo showcasing how this titled movie is owned and made by the parent company Disney. The date is more prominent than the rest of the actor listings to showcase to audience the date where the movie is unveiled and shown in theaters worldwide. The "IN DISNEY DIGITAL 3D AND REAL D 3D" label showcases the available formats that the movie can be showcased which reassures and allows the reader and audience to watch it in their own given preferences.
