I’m a sucker for period dramas. I find the recreations of bygone eras more than interesting and when they’re done well they truly do transport you back in time to that point in history. The lastest such film that has flown onto my radar is The White Countess. The movie stars Ralph Fiennes and Natasha Richardson as a U.S. diplomat and Russian exile who cross paths and fall in love in 1930’s Shanghai.
I love it. The only way that I could enjoy this poster more was if they had produced like a one-sheet from the 30’s and painted it. Had they done so it would fit in well with any film from that period and would have graduated from great to absolutely spectacular. As it is, the image of Fiennes and Richardson in a passionate embrace is simple yet immensly powerful. Love it.
The trailer does a very nice job of setting up the main plot – that of the love story between Fiennes and Richardson- as well as the subplot – the political intrigue that’s going on around them. Based on this it seems emotions are not over-the-top, as they sometimes tend to be in this type of film. Instead everything seems to be evenkeeled and under control.
Most of the site is made up of the standard elements. Story, About, Cast and such. My favorite part is the Links section. The main players in the cast and crew get links to their IMDb entries as well as official or fan-run sites. That’s a really good way to let people find out more about the movie and it’s players by embracing these outside sites. Excellent sense of belonging to a community as opposed to making yourself look like you think you’re the only fish in the ocean.
Overall
Very well done, if a bit sparse, campaign for a movie that will probably be looking for at least a few Oscar nods come time. The poster is absolutely fantastic, the trailer is above average and the website gets points for it’s communal outreach. I like it.
Chris Thilk 