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Butching up movie posters

We all already know that the one-sheet for The Brave One is the Best. Jodie. Movie. Poster. Ever. But then I saw the Chinese poster and thought, “Hey, why did they replace Jodie Foster with Zac Efron‘s 14-year-old blond cousin?”

After getting over my initial aversion to this airbrushed anomaly, I began to see the poster as a sentimental reminder of the tomboyish Jodie of yore. Remember her? She was all bell bottoms and skateboards and Shaun Cassidy hair. So adorable. So butch.

Which got me thinking about other famously butch movie posters. Which lead to research. Which led to the realization that, sadly, there aren’t that many butch/tomboyish images of women in film advertising.

Certainly, the problem stems largely from the lack of these kinds of roles in mainstream film, period. But the ones I did find tended to fall into four main categories: dramas, action, sports and gay. Let’s work our way backward through the pack.

The Gay: Clearly, films about or featuring gay women amp up the butch. Or, perhaps more accurately, they tamp down the stereotypically feminine.

The Sports: If you can’t make a tomboyish poster about girls who play sports then, really, you’re just not trying hard enough.

The Action: Another no-brainer in the tough women department. But apparently there is only one way to pose strong women with guns. Original? No. Fierce? Yes.

The Dramas: Serious women sometimes wear pants. And scowls. And (I’m guessing) sensible shoes. This category can be broken down even further to just Charlize Theron films. That first one won her an Oscar, so I guess don’t de-butch it if it ain’t broken.

And a final bonus category, for the sake of nostalgia: The late ’70s/early ’80s teen movies

That last one may be my favorite. So have I missed any of your butch favorites? Post your posters below.

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