1. Capitalised serif font – connotation slinked to vampire genre with its ‘wooden’ styling reference to coffin and stake, and the blood dripping from the letter ‘V’ fang
Context:
Second sequel to 1958’s Dracula although makes no reference to original Stoker character, perhaps to distance itself from unfavourable comparisons to the superior Christopher Lee who starred in the original film.
Original Dracula caused the BBFC moral consternation over the depiction of sexuality yet Kiss of the Vampire embraces this element in the poster through the women’s poses and the sensual connotations of the title ‘Kiss’.
By 1963, Hammer had success with other ‘monster’ franchises such has The Mummy and Frankenstein.
The 1960’s audience would be familiar with the codes and conventions of ‘monster movie’ film posters such as its composition, fonts and representations of ‘the monster’ and its (usually female) victims. Use of ‘painted’ image is also conventional of films of the period and links poster to Christopher Lee’s Dracula
Gloomy grey, black and brown colour palette reinforces the film’s dark and scary conventions
Red highlight colour draws attention to attacking bats, the vampire and the blood – all key visual signifiers of the genre
Suspense in created through the enigmas surrounding the connoted relationship between the male and female vampires which is emphasises by the ‘kiss’ of the title’ Enigma also created around the fate of the two victims
Barthes’ semantic code of the bat imagery and their conventional associations with vampirism and horror
Male vampire seems uncharacteristically fearful in his gesture codes with his arm thrown across his body in a defensive gesture creating an enigma code regarding what a powerful ‘monster’ would be fearful of
Symbolic codes of horror, darkness and fear reinforced through signifiers such as the moon and male victim’s ‘submissive sacrifice’ gesture code
Binary oppositions of vampire and victim plus the romantic connotations of ‘kiss’ opposed to violence associated with the stereotypical vampire monster
Passive victim wears white high-heeled shoes, symbolizing constraints of traditional gender role (white also has connotations of virginity) whilst the empowered co-antagonist is barefoot, signifying unconstrained sexual freedom and liberation
Gesture code of woman stereotypical of passive victim of the ’monster’ - his power highlighted by holding her whole body with one arm
Gesture code baring her teeth and her arm raised in a fist as she is bitten by the bat is more aggressive than the other woman and of her male ‘victim’ who is on his knees with his head back and throat exposed in a submissive pose. Her representation is dominant and non-stereotypical offering an arguably progressive representation of a powerful woman
Examples of stereotypes of women as passive victims of men as well as images that connote more modern ‘male fears’ of women challenging male dominance, are both encoded in the poster
Both women wear pale dresses made of light materials which reinforce their femininity by highlighting the curves of their bodies and revealing their upper chests and arms
Being in colour connotes this is a modern telling of an older which is anchored by the text ‘In Eastman color’
Conventionally, the stars are listed with the more highly paid male actors first and in order of fame, Clifford Evans having starred in Hammer’s 1961 hit Curse of the Werewolf
Universal saw early success with the ‘monster movie’ genre therefore audience expectations would be guided by this recognition of the genre