Exploitation Poster Art

Tony Nourmand and Graham Marsh

Aurum Press 2005

Distributed in Australia by Bookwise

Paperback with flaps

192 pages, 297 x 246mm.

Contains over 200 colour images- the majority of which have never been reproduced before.

Over 20,000 words accompanying text.

Sex, drugs, delinquency, sex, hippies, fringe religions and, of course, rock and roll: these are just a few of the themes which have attracted the attention of B Grade film producers over years. Some of the resulting films have become cult classics, but the vast majority simply ended up being so bad, they were good. Camp, tacky, exploitative and sometimes downright weird, at the time they shocked, now they have a strangely enticing quality.

One of the most significant aspects of these films was their promotion. Powerful posters were used to grab attention and to shock and seduce the public to part with their hard earned cash to see the latest release. These posters are today amazing reminders of the fears, taboos, sins and secrets of past ages.

Prior to 1934 films were fairly risqué and the posters reflected this, however, in 1934 this changed with a puritan drive and the Hayes Code. Films then hinted at their darker secrets and pretended to be warning of the dangers they more obliquely exploited for shock value.

In the 1950s, it was the Beats and juvenile delinquents who seemed to threaten middle-class values – and stories about their “wild” lives attracted bourgeois suburban kids to the theatres. Stories about the dangers of drugs, pre-marital pregnancy and gangs abounded. In the 60s and 70s, came 'Blaxploitation' movies, hippy horror stories and the underground world of sex films.

Tony Nourmand, co-founder of The Reel Poster Gallery in London has one of the most extensive collections of these posters and these have been lovingly reproduced in all their gaudy glory in Exploitation Poster Art by Tony Nourmand and Graham Marsh.

This collection is quite impressive, reproduced in stunning colours and document the underbelly of the film industry, so many are quirky and funny, others hint at dark secrets which the films in many cases failed to reveal, the poster simply reeling in the punters. To have them altogether in one high quality volume is a boon for film buffs, this is a must have title.

Exploitation Poster Art by Tony Nourmand and Graham Marsh and published by Aurum Press (distributed in Australia by Bookwise)