On the Doll - Holly Stone

On the Doll

Poster Research

The conventions displayed in the poster "On the Doll" have many varying qualities and effects on the audience.

To begin, at the very top of the poster, we can see a movie slogan. It reads "do you wanna play." The colloquial language and use of a rhetorical question may add to the potential genre that it is displaying. It may also draw in the audience and leave them questioning the significance of the doll which is centering the poster.

The composition of the main photo centering the poster builds a sense of enigma. It displays this with the use of black and white colors. The use of the doll reinforces the title however. But the fact that the doll is taking up the entire poster may once again leave us questioning its significance. It also is a strange form of doll, as we associate dolls with children and maybe little girls Barbie dolls etc. The doll on the poster has no facial features, it also appears to be slightly dirty which may suggest it is worn from years ago. The general appearance of the doll suggests a horror/thriller genre and builds upon a mystery.

The main titling of the poster "on the doll" is in a clear and very bold text. The world doll is made much bolder than the rest of the texts, this may once again suggest the significance of the doll. The title also has a shadowy effect to it, this may also add a slight eeriness to the poster. We may refer to the shadows behind the texts as echoing and potentially suggest the doll is supernatural.

As with almost all posters, this poster includes a production/billing box in order to credit actors and associates with the production of the film. However the titling and production box are in line with one another, a technique called justification. Two of the main actors have their names larger than the production box, this is often used with well-known actors in order to attract an audience who may be a fan of a certain actor/actress. 

In conclusion, the doll appears to be symbolic within the poster and can generate an overall semantic and enigmatic codes on what genre the film would be based upon. That genre is horror/thriller. The use of an echoing font and pale coloring of the poster suggests the cold/bitterness of the doll and how it is most likely going to be an evil character.