TITLE: The Gauntlet
YEAR OF MOVIE RELEASE: 1977
FILM STUDIO / PRODUCTION COMPANY: The Malpaso Company
DISTRIBUTOR: Warner Bros.
DIRECTOR: Clint Eastwood
CAST: Clint Eastwood, Sondra Locke, Pat Hingle, William Prince and Bill McKinney
PRODUCER: Robert Daley
SCREENPLAY: Michael Butler and Dennis Shryack
MUSIC: Jerry Fielding
ARTWORK: Frank Frazetta
FORMAT: One Sheet
GENRE: Action / Crime / Thriller
COLLECTOR’S NOTE
Frank Frazetta’s poster gives The Gauntlet a connection to the world of fantasy illustration. His muscular figures, dramatic poses and richly painted destruction transform a contemporary police thriller into an almost heroic survival scene.
The battered bus behind Clint Eastwood and Sondra Locke references one of the film’s central action spectacles. Contemporary production reporting described extensive practical destruction, including a bus subjected to thousands of rounds of gunfire. Frazetta’s artwork captures that emphasis on physical action, making the poster particularly relevant to collectors of his illustration as well as Eastwood cinema.
POSTER DESIGN FEATURES
Clint Eastwood stands holding a handgun beside Sondra Locke, both depicted in torn clothing amid wreckage. Behind them, a bullet-riddled bus leans diagonally across the composition, its shattered windscreen and punctured bodywork reinforcing the sense of danger.
Flames rise at the left, while twisted metal, discarded tyres and broken machinery fill the foreground. Dark blue-grey shadows contrast with the warm yellow sky and orange fire, creating depth and dramatic lighting.
Large red CLINT EASTWOOD lettering sits above the dark block title. The painting occupies most of the poster, with a printed Frazetta signature visible near the lower-left side of the artwork. A white lower panel contains the principal cast and production credits.
CONDITION NOTE
Visible fold lines and creasing are present. Two substantial rounded areas of paper loss affect the upper border near the left and right corners. A smaller area of paper loss is visible near the right edge at the central horizontal fold, with additional edge wear and scattered marks. Please examine the supplied photograph for the poster’s visible condition.