This post was published before the current law change in Brunei. Please read this article for more information.

Hollywood; Bollywood and Nollywood film posters from Ghana

The Brunei Gallery is currently showing an exhibition of film posters from Ghana.

The posters pay up on gaudy and graphic violence or in intriguing situations. In one poster advertising Jurassic Park, a man hits a dinosaur with a golf club (or ball); in another poster a man demurely eats from someone else’s’ head with a fork. These posters celebrate film in all their technicolour escapism.

They also reveal something of contemporary glocalisation.

The Egyptians knew this too in the Greco-Roman world when Egyptian gods were portrayed in “universal” or “Hellenistic” styles common throughout the Mediterranean but retained their Egyptianess.

The movies portrayed are not just Hollywood, but also Nollywood and Bollywood. Women serpents predominate. Here are the modern day versions of Isis-Thermouthis, the powerful goddess of maternity.

Above all the artistry and creativity of the poster artist sparkles. A fine show. See it whilst you can.

Photo references

Sakob poster taken from Brunei Gallery website