Speaking of great movie posters ...

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Since we’re on the subject of cool movie posters today, Empire magazine blogger Nick de Semlyen offers his own meditation on the mysterious allure of movie posters with a few choice words about a few cinema classics:

‘Chinatown’: ‘I love the weird, dreamy mood, the smoke from Jake Gittes’ cigarette wafting up and transforming into Evelyn Mulray’s hair, the features of her face looming out of the bleached-out background like a femme-fatale Cheshire cat.’

‘Mulholland Drive’: ‘What are the two girls staring at and why is it freaking them out?’

‘Kill Bill’: ‘Best ever use of a hankie in a poster!’

‘Vertigo’: ‘Like Vigo in ‘Ghostbusters 2,’ this piece of art has the power to hypnotize if you look at it too closely.’

And if you live in L.A., don’t miss the opening of a new exhibit of posters from Bob Peak, the father of modern movie posters. The first one-man show of his prolific output opens June 6 in Alhambra at the Gallery Nucleus. His work includes posters for such films as ‘Apocalypse Now,’ ‘West Side Story,’ ‘Camelot’ and five ‘Star Trek’ features.

Everyone has a favorite movie poster. If I were picking one today, it would be the great Robert Aldrich film noir ‘Kiss Me Deadly,’ with its title written inside of a blood-red pair of lips, its femme fatale lying back, being kissed by a handsome lug, but still never letting go of the stub-nosed pistol in her hand. I’m sure everyone has a favorite poster. What’s yours?