The 10 Best Movie Posters of 2009

[welcomewiki]

6. 'Inglourious Basterds'


The composite-image poster for Quentin Tarantino's World War II riff, featuring Brad Pitt smack in the center, may be more familiar to audiences, but this high-concept piece completely nails it. How do you convey the film's fantastic elements with Tarantino's tribute to the spaghetti western? The surnames inscribed on the bat is one way, that's for sure.

[welcomewiki]

5. 'Broken Embraces'


Fear, beauty and ***; sensuousness at a distance; the complexities of love -- these are all themes Pedro Almodovar toys with again and again. This time, in the poster for 'Broken Embraces,' Almodovar's follow-up to 2006's 'Volver,' the sizzle of Penelope Cruz's lips and windblown hair make her character seem as irresistible as the actress herself.

[welcomewiki]

4. 'Up'


The poster for 'Up' is supremely wise not to communicate when or where the characters land. In fact, the whole point of the movie, one of the most emotionally arresting animation features in years, is that it's the ride up, up, up that matters, not just what happens at Paradise Falls.

[welcomewiki]

3. 'Jennifer's Body'


Writer-director Diablo Cody may be keepin' on keepin' on in the name of girl power, but let's be totally blunt: this was Megan Fox's year, and this 'Jennifer's Body' teaser was a surefire way to pump up moviegoers' testosterone. The post-opening poster, picturing Fox looking like the devilish innocent she plays, was steamy -- but not nearly as mouth-droppingly good.

[welcomewiki]

2. 'The Girlfriend Experience'


Like Steven Soderbergh's film itself, the poster for 'The Girlfriend Experience' is an obscured mystery. Yet while the dynamic between adult-film star Sasha Grey's character and the comic-booky pop-art of Roy Lichtenstein isn't too clear, the densely plotted, color-changing dots do dare you to peek behind them. This poster wins 2009's Stand Up and Take Notice honor.