James Bond U.S. Poster Rankings: No. 3

Based on the ranking alone, you might think that the next film in this list of the greatest domestic one-sheet posters for the James Bond series would be one of my favorites.  Yet, the opposite couldn't be more true.

 

 

3. A View to a Kill

Roger Moore was 57 years old when A View to a Kill hit theaters, and his age was certainly showing.  Moore hadn't been the most athletic actor to play 007, his stuntmen doing much of the work during action scenes throughout the series and when a dangerous situation required Moore to be viewed on camera, a green-screen was utilized much of the time.  And if that weren't enough, having the 57-year-old bed former Charlie's Angels starlet Tanya Roberts, who was 29 when the film was released but easily looked younger, aged Moore considerably.  The 28-year gap between co-stars was such a difference that it felt like Moore wasn't just old enough to be Roberts' father, but he could have passed for her grandfather.

 

Despite the age difference and the light-heartedness that Moore had brought to the series during his time as James Bond, the image seen in the one-sheet poster above does its job in creating anxiety and conjuring a sense of thrill in the viewer.  What are Bond and his girl doing on the Golden Gate Bridge?  How is our hero able to hold on to the damsel, shoot at the villain in his blimp, and balance himself atop one of America's most beloved monuments to modern architecture?

 

Not only is the idea of a battle between hero and villain on the suspension ropes of the Golden Gate Bridge a thrill in itself, but the angle at which the artist has drawn creates a bit of vertigo for the viewer.  It is an excellent piece of marketing design that teases excitement and provides the perfect amount of intrigue for the upcoming movie, which is exactly what you want with a poster.

 

The Golden Gate Bridge theme was used in most of the marketing materials for A View to a Kill.  The only other action set piece that was promoted was Bond and Mayday at the Eiffel Tower.

 

 

As you can see, this one-sheet advance poster found in U.S. theaters is quite similar to the Golden Gate Bridge artwork, except that Paris is the city in the background, obviously.  However, the sense of a fear of heights isn't quite accomplished with this poster like it is with the one at the top.