Rich Kelly's "Down By Law" Movie Poster

And Mondo has once again blown me away. Rich Kelly's Down By Law movie poster is a marvel. I briefly wrote about Kelly during my review of Gallery 1988's Multiplayer show, but I'm delighted to be able to dedicate an entire blog post to the artist. Like Ansin, Stout, Moss and Tong, Rich Kelly has a decidedly unique look to his art and has been able to confidently and successfully bring that style to a remarkable number of different subjects. Be it a German expressionistic film, a famous barrell throwing monkey, a heavily tattooed mustachioed man, Chewbacca or Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice, his work is instantly recognizable.

Down By Law

Kelly's knack for creating folksy caricatures (a gross oversimplification of his art) that somehow seem cartoony and grounded all at the same time has always amazed me, and his take on Down By Law, one of Jarmusch's most influential films, is no different. With that said, now I REALLY want to see Rich tackle my favorite Jarmusch film, Mystery Train! Can you imagine how cool it would be to get a Jim Jarmusch Director's Series from Mondo and have all of the pieces done by Rich Kelly? That would be mindbogglingly awesome. Sorry. I got a bit sidetracked there. Where was I? Oh yes, you've got the three stars of the film (Tom Waits, Robert Benigni and John Lurie) mugging for the theoretical camera with Roberto looking as happy and as Italian as can be. Jarmusch's films have always been like quirky little slices of heaven for me and that's exactly why this poster succeeds so...successfully. Rich Kelly was able to imbue the poster with his own off-kilter aesthetic and create something that seems to flawlessly channel the idiosyncratic character of the majority of Jarmusch's filmography. His grey palette also seems to perfectly reflect the film's gorgeous black and white photography. Kelly is fast becoming an artist that I get excited about just by the mere mention of his name and I can't wait to see what he (and Mondo) does next!

The Down by Law poster will be available tomorrow (2/16) at a random time through Mondo. Be sure to follow @MondoNews for the exact drop time, though I expect it to be around 9 AM Pacific (could always be wrong). You should also head over to Rich's website and store (he's still got some Beetlejuice posters!) when you've got a moment. And if you've never experienced the beat poetry that is a Jim Jarmusch film, what are you doing here?! Go and buy/stream/steal some movies now!