ZARDOZ (1974) Movie Poster, Original Vintage Daybill, Sean Connery
Size AU Daybill Post-War (13" x 30")
ZARDOZ (1974) Movie Poster, Original Vintage Daybill, Starring Sean Connery, Charlotte Rampling, Directed by John Boorman is in Fine+ Condition. Movie Poster and Condition. Condition: This Original Daybill Movie Poster...
ZARDOZ (1974) Movie Poster, Original Vintage Daybill, Starring Sean Connery, Charlotte Rampling, Directed by John Boorman is in Fine+ Condition.
Movie Poster and Condition.
Condition: This Original Daybill Movie Poster is presented in Fine+ condition, 2 Daybill folds as issued, with a paper loss on the left top corner, a 5mm small tear at the top of the poster, some minor edgewear on the top and right top corner but otherwise in excellent condition with bright colours and clean presentation. This is an original Australian Daybill movie poster for the distinctive 1974 science fiction film Zardoz, starring Sean Connery and Charlotte Rampling. The classic Daybill format is highly sought after by collectors of original Australian cinema posters, particularly for unusual 1970s science fiction titles and films featuring major Hollywood stars. No poster artist has been identified for this example. Its bright colours and clean overall presentation make it an appealing piece of vintage film memorabilia and a striking addition to a collection of original Sean Connery movie posters.
Movie Synopsis
Zardoz (1974) is one of the most unconventional and visually memorable science fiction films of the 1970s, written, produced and directed by John Boorman and starring Sean Connery, Charlotte Rampling and Sara Kestelman. Set in the distant future in the year 2293, the film imagines a post-apocalyptic Earth divided between the primitive Brutals and a secretive society of seemingly immortal intellectuals known as the Eternals.
Sean Connery plays Zed, a Brutal Exterminator who has been conditioned to believe that killing is his purpose. The Brutals live in a harsh, devastated landscape, growing food for the privileged Eternals while accepting the authority of the mysterious flying stone head known as Zardoz. The enormous head periodically appears in the sky, dispensing weapons and propaganda while reinforcing the social order that keeps the Brutals under control.
Driven by curiosity and a desire to understand the world beyond his own, Zed secretly infiltrates Zardoz and discovers that the supposed god is actually part of a sophisticated deception. He is transported into the Vortex, the secluded domain of the Eternals, where he encounters Consuella, played by Charlotte Rampling, and other members of an advanced but deeply troubled civilisation. The Eternals have achieved physical immortality, yet their endless existence has left many of them bored, apathetic and disconnected from the natural world. Zed's arrival disrupts their carefully controlled society and forces them to confront ideas about mortality, freedom, sexuality, knowledge and human purpose.
John Boorman conceived Zardoz after his ambitious attempt to develop a film adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings collapsed. Rather than abandoning the imaginative world-building ideas that had developed during that project, Boorman transformed them into an original story about humanity, civilisation and the relationship between nature and technology. The result is a film that combines science fiction, fantasy, satire and philosophical allegory in a highly individual style.
The film is particularly famous for its striking visual design and unconventional costumes. The production was photographed by acclaimed cinematographer Geoffrey Unsworth, while production design was handled by Anthony Pratt and costumes were designed by Christel Kruse Boorman. Sean Connery's appearance as Zed, complete with revealing futuristic costume, became one of the most recognisable images associated with 1970s cult cinema. Connery had recently moved beyond his celebrated James Bond role, and Zardoz offered him a radically different character and an opportunity to challenge audience expectations.
Interestingly, Connery was not originally intended to play Zed. Burt Reynolds had initially been announced for the role alongside Charlotte Rampling, but withdrew before production and was replaced by Connery. Principal photography took place in County Wicklow, Ireland, including locations around the Wicklow Mountains and Ardmore Studios in Bray. The combination of dramatic Irish landscapes, futuristic sets and deliberately provocative costume design gives the film a distinctive visual identity.
Today, Zardoz remains a fascinating cult science fiction film and an important example of the imaginative, experimental cinema of the early 1970s. Its unusual story, iconic Sean Connery performance, Charlotte Rampling's presence and striking production design have ensured its continuing appeal to collectors and enthusiasts. For fans of Sean Connery, vintage science fiction, cult cinema and original movie posters, this original Australian Daybill is a particularly distinctive piece of 1970s film history.
To find out more about Zardoz (1974) click here to go to IMDB.com.
Special Notes.
Images may have a small 'MPA' digital watermark and this does not appear on the poster. Posters are being held by magnets in the corners to take photographs, so you may see some magnet and shadows from the magnets in these areas. The magnets are not included in the sale of the item.
Postage, Insurance & Your Country Taxes
Postage costs are quoted for this item, include insurance up to AUD$100, but if you reside outside of Australia, the price does not include any import taxes/fees that you may be required to pay when the item reaches your borders. Please check with your local authorities for any additional taxes or fees. If you would like full insurance coverage for your purchase, please message me and I would be happy to quote the additional cost (estimate is AUD$2.50 p/AUD$100 or 2.5% of the item value, up to a maximum item value of AUD$5,000).
FAQ
At Movie Posters Australia, the love and conservation of movie posters comes first, and we like to share this passion. Our commitment to quality means we will provide high quality memorabilia to our customers. Posters are carefully chosen and authenticated to ensure originality and value. We want our customers to trust MPA, so we always try to be as open and transparent as we can, provide detailed condition information and images, to ensure customers are comfortable and confident in their purchase.
While the industry does have a few condition rating standards, there is no movie poster condition rating system that has become the accepted standard world wide. This unfortunately makes condition terms vary from movie poster dealer to movie poster dealer. Terms like Mint, Near Mint, Very Fine, Fine, Very Good, Good, Fair, Poor, seem to be universal to most condition rating standards, but most standards still lack definition about what and how many flaws/defects/damage defines a specific condition level. For more information on how Movie Posters Australia grades the condition of its movie posters, daybills, lobby cards and other ephemera please see out Movie Poster Condition and Grading page.
In the early days of cinema, posters were primarily hand-drawn and printed in various sizes, often tailored to fit the available space in theaters or promotional areas. In the United States, the "One Sheet" size (some times called '1 Sheet' or '1SH' approximately 27" x 41", became the standard during the 1930s. This size was manageable for theater display and suited the needs of a growing film industry.
Different countries developed their own poster sizes and styles, which also changed sometimes over the decades, and were influenced by local preferences and practical considerations, like available paper sheet sizes and how many posters could be printed on one sheet.
In Australia, the most popular size, the Daybill, has evolved over the decades. Australian Daybills sizes in chronological order are:
- Long Daybills (15" x 40"), from 1920's to pre-WW2 or pre-1941, were printed two to a sheet, longer than current Daybill versions. There were size variances in width from 14.5" to 15" and in height from 39.5" to 40".
- War Time Daybill (10" x 30"), during WW2, for a short time to conserve paper during a war time shortage, four Daybills were printed on one sheet. Information from Press Sheets also referred to these War-Time sizes as "New Size Daybills".
- Post-War Daybill (13" x 30"), this 13" x 30" Post-War size carried through until the 1980's, but also varied in size from 13"-14" x 29.75"-30.25".
- Post-80's Daybill (33cm x 66cm, or 13" x 26"), over a few years in the late 80's, the size changed again to a metric 33cm x 66cm, although these have also varied from 32-33cm x 64.5-66cm. New sizes from the late 80's were created, sometimes called a Mini Daybill or Mini Poster, in 9" x 12", 11" x 17" and 13" x 20".
In the UK, the somewhat unique 'Quad' poster, measuring 30" x 40", became popular, offering a larger landscape format that allowed for more elaborate designs.
In Japan, movie poster sizes were smaller, such as the "B2" (20" x 28"), which suited the more compact living environment of larger cities, smaller advertising spaces, and unique aesthetic sensibilities.
The 1970s and 1980s, witnessed the rise of the "six-sheet" (81" x 81") format, reflecting a trend towards larger and more visually impactful advertising.
Overall, the variation in movie poster sizes across different countries and decades highlights the interplay between technological printing advancements, paper resource availability, paper sheet size changes, cultural preferences, and the evolving nature of movie marketing.
At Movie Posters Australia we tag each poster we sell with a 'size' and 'condition' description at the very top of the page for our customers to easily see. There may however be some slight variations to sizes by up one inch due to variations in production and guillotine methods by printers over the decades.