James Mangold‘s 3:10 to Yuma (Lionsgate, 9.7) is said to be a rough, rugged tale of the Old West — no CG, nothing slick, back to the cowpoke basics. Which is why this poster surprised me. It makes it look like a Bob Fosse western. The guy holding the two handguns has his head down like he’s waiting for a musical cue before going into a hot and slinky dance number. In fact, he could be Catherine Zeta Jones with her hair up.
“It looks too cool, too stylized,” says a guy who’s seen the film. “It doesn’t reflect the grittiness. It misses the mood of the film. The coat is too stylish-looking. I think it’s the buttons — the buttons are a problem.” Let’s just come out and say it — the jacket looks like it was bought at Bloomingdale’s. Or at Nudie’s on Lankershim. The guy who designed this poster was thinking more about winning a Hollywood Reporter Key Art award than selling the movie that Mangold has allegedly made. (I’m seeing it in early August.)
