James Bond U.S. Poster Rankings: No. 2

Forgoing all action or possible plot teases, the marketing team on the next James Bond poster found in the United States in 1981 was purely to rev up the male libido with sex appeal.

 

 

2. For Your Eyes Only

Roger Moore can be found centered in the background, posed in a gun-wielding stance.  Yet, the star of the entire film, the 12th of a popular series that had been running for nearly two decades, is probably not the first or even the second thing you notice about the artwork.  What most eyes fall toward initially are the bare legs of a fit woman in high heels and the bare minimum of a swimsuit covering her backside.  Once your pulse returns back to normal and your eyes begin to wander the page, you likely notice the weapon of choice for our mystery woman.  The crossbow with its deadly bolt, or arrow, cocked at the ready.  And then finally you notice the remaining image of British superspy James Bond, surrounded by those provocative limbs.

 

And that is it.  No explosions.  No action sequences from the film transposed to paper.  Nothing else giving the slightest idea of what the film could be about.  It is simply a tag line at the top, Bond and the dangerous mystery woman in the middle, and the film's credits at the bottom.  Even the color scheme is very plain.  The artist(s) was going for one thing and one thing only: sensuousness and a mysterious danger.

 

While the idea of Bond surrounded by bare legs was found in nearly all the posters around the globe, they did add some action to the frame for posters in other countries, such as this one from Germany.

 

 

Although this is my second favorite poster used in the James Bond film series, I doubt I will ever seek out a copy to frame and hang in my house as my wife probably wouldn't appreciate having this artwork in our living room for the grandparents and friends to view while spending time at the Cook home.  However, the final poster to top my list that will be revealed soon is in my living room currently and will probably stay there for quite some time.  Until then ...