RICHARD AMSEL. Do you know the name?
If you’re a true movie lover, you should. Amsel was one of the great commercial artists of the 70’s and 80’s and he created legendary posters for movies like Raiders Of The Lost Ark, Flash Gordon, Murder On The Orient Express, McCabe & Mrs. Miller, My Fair Lady, and yes, The Sting.
This is his “B”-Art or alternative campaign for the classic 1973 film. It was used in foreign countries, but not the US, so obviously this American one-sheet is very rare and worth a lot of money. I haven’t been able to get my hands on one. But more importantly, it’s just awesome. I like it even better than the iconic but much more simplistic poster that became so ubiquitous. Check out the attention to detail. Zoom in. The poker chips, the Aces, the die at the top. The geometric framing of the stars. The way he captures Newman and Redford’s personalities. The movement in their poses, the humor in their faces. How their shoes match the poker chips! The Robert Shaw inset. The car. The way it all seems to spill out, almost 3D-like, from the surrounding sea of white. The period typeset, the simplicity, the elegance…
He was meticulous about every aspect of his designs – they often feel nothing short of perfect.
(The only tiny “flaw” would be the killer’s gun in the upper left. Amsel’s one weakness was he could not for the life of him draw a realistic looking gun – it happens again in his artwork for The Late Show and The Big Sleep – a strange but somehow endearing Achilles Heel)
Before his premature death from AIDS in 1985, he sold a lotta’ movies. I believe his last was Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome. He also did dozens of TV Guide covers that were far too good for TV Guide. I could show you example after example of his genius, do a whole column on him – and I will, later.
But this is definitely one poster I would love to grab and frame for my wall someday.