'Crystal Skull' poster artist Drew Struzan's brush with blockbusters

At its best, the art of movie poster illustration conveys a tangible sense of adventure. There are few sharper contemporary examples than the imagery crafted by veteran artist Drew Struzan for "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade" back in the summer of 1989. Arresting, iconic likenesses of Harrison Ford and Sean Connery anchored a montage that also featured Indy on horseback, charging determinedly ahead, pistol pointed like he was about to blast out the fourth wall. Calculatedly random paint spatter represented sand kicked up by his wild ride, while just over his shoulder, pursuing Nazi forces trailed off into the textured swirl of a cruel desert sun. The poster alone was enough to make us wish it wasn't Indy's last crusade, as it very much seemed at the time.

By Tom Russo

May 22, 2008