The best movie posters in cinema history come from many different decades, different genres, and in different styles, meaning any film can use art and graphic design to leave a lasting impression on an audience before they even sit down in the theater or grab the remote. Movie posters have gone through iterations over the years, with some poster trends growing tiresome and others opening interesting new angles on a movie and the creative direction of a project. Sometimes styles fall out of favor only to return and shock everyone with their originality.

While the worst movie posters tend to feel like they were cobbled together in a few hours with little input from anyone who actually made the movie, the best movie posters highlight why a viewer should watch a film. They can draw in viewers with an intriguing location, make them curious with a mysterious hint at what's in store, or get them excited by the characters and stories suggested on the poster. While many artists and graphic designers are recognizable for their works, some have been lost to time, but their incredible movie posters certainly haven't been.

50 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)

Poster By Robert McCall

The classic space art of Robert McCall helps to make audiences understand just what they are about to see in Stanley Kubrick's seminal and epic 2001: A Space Odyssey.

49 Brazil (1985)

Poster By Bill Garland

Garland's fascinating and theatrical depiction of an angelic woman flying out of an infinite cabinet in the poster for Brazil suggests the absurd and menacing nature of Brazil.

48 Raiders Of The Lost Ark (1981)

Poster By Richard Amsel

Richard Amsel's poster for Raiders of the Lost Ark is the exact type of yellow, old-looking art found in the serial films the Indian Jones franchise has been riffing on.

47 Manhattan (1979)

Poster By Bert Kleeger

Bert Kleeger's nostalgic depiction of a couple looking at the Manhattan Bridge in black-and-white in the same-titled Woody Allen movie is romantic and sad all the same time.

46 Godzilla Vs Biollante (1989)

Poster By Noriyoshi Ohrai

The Japanese Godzilla posters are all worthy of celebration, but Godzilla vs Biollante takes the cake for its incredible glowing colors and fearsome size of Godzilla's latest foe.

45 Cloverfield (2008)

Directed By Matt Reeves

The marketing for Cloverfield was a genius campaign and that extends to its intriguing poster of a headless Statue of Liberty overlooking the burning city of New York, with a monster-sized hole in the middle of it.

44 Metropolis (1927)

Poster By Heinz Schulz-Neudamm

The poster for the 1927 Metropolis, designed by German graphic designer Heinz Schulz-Neudamm, is modern, sleek, and unsettling, influencing everything from Blade Runner to The Dark Knight.

43 Dead Alive (1992)

Directed By Peter Jackson

One of the most terrifying VHS covers to stumble upon in a Blockbuster, Dead Alive is nightmare-inducing with the woman's bulging eyes and the disgusting thought of a rotten skull pushing out of her throat.

42 Scream (1996)

Directed By Wes Craven

As iconic as the Ghostface mask the movie spawned, the Scream poster is stylish, cool, and ensures there's no doubt that Craven's film is as much a horror movie as it is a response to horror films of the era.

41 Breakfast At Tiffany’s (1961)

Poster By Robert McGinnis

Even as a cartoon, Audrey Hepburn is incredibly beautiful and stylish with Robert McGinnis' poppy art style, including an extra-long cigarette holder, perfectly capturing the tone of the film.