Here's a good look at the evolution of a movie poster. A few weeks ago Anne Thompson asked for opinions about this poster. I said I thought it was too busy in places, had a couple poorly placed elements, and had dead corners.
Below is new version.
They removed the two characters on the right of Michelle Pfeiffer -- good but it's still too busy. They got rid of the hand on the spoke of the ship's wheel -- distracting to say the least. All good, but the real problem is the two guys between Robert De Niro and Pfeiffer -- these guys detract from the relationship between the two stars. Would suggest moving the two stars closer (make De Niro bigger) and, if they must be in the poster, put the two guys in the new space created on the left of De Niro.
One of the 'poorly placed elements' in the first poster was the sword held by character on the right -- it cut into the sun in the center, adding a jangly feel. They fixed this in the second poster but would have done better to get rid of the sword altogether (two swords in one frame should be crossed or at least pointed at one another).
The other weak element was the protagonist in center of sun -- he was the main point of focus but was too small to command attention (also, the original layout did not give enough weight to the 'boy meets girl' element of the story). Both problems are fixed in second poster.
However, with the correction of one problem comes the creation of another. Main character's sword is now pointing off in a random direction, which leaves the protagonist vulnerable to attack from the guy with sword behind him -- just not right. Sword also points in same direction as the shooting star that cuts across the title -- redundant -- protag should have a more open stance (as is he appears to be trying to shield the woman from us -- alienating the audience) with his sword pointing to our right, toward the other character who is holding a sword, and pointing in the opposite direction of the shooting star. This would give the composition a lot more energy.
Color was changed to a more friendly blue which both brightens the formally dead corners and implies a magic/fantasy element. It's way better than the orange color of the first poster -- which didn't convey anything.
Still, poster would benefit by removing the ship's wheel and maybe even the sun. Make the character on right smaller and/or move him down so his head doesn't block Pfeiffer's hands (I mean, really). Would consider a second lightning bolt on upper right side to give some balance (and imply Pfeiffer's character is as dynamic as De Niro's).
The poster is much better, but still needs tweaking.
