This is an original Japanese B2 promotional poster for Apocalypse Now Redux / 「地獄の黙示録 特別完全版」, Francis Ford Coppola’s expanded “Redux” version of his legendary Vietnam War epic.
This poster was produced specifically for the film’s 2002 Japanese VHS and DVD release campaign, not for the original 1979 theatrical release. It is a striking home-video advertising sheet, made to promote the arrival of the newly expanded version in Japanese rental shops and for retail DVD sale.
Film background
Directed, produced, and co-written by Francis Ford Coppola, Apocalypse Now is one of the defining films of 20th-century American cinema. Inspired by Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness, the film follows Captain Willard’s journey upriver through the Vietnam War to find and terminate the renegade Colonel Kurtz.
The film stars Marlon Brando, Martin Sheen, Robert Duvall, Laurence Fishburne, Dennis Hopper, and Harrison Ford. Its hallucinatory atmosphere, operatic scale, and unforgettable imagery made it one of the most important war films ever made.
Apocalypse Now Redux restored and expanded the film with additional scenes, presenting Coppola’s longer version to a new generation of viewers. In Japan, this edition was promoted as 「特別完全版」 — the Special Complete Edition.
Poster design
This Japanese B2 poster uses one of the film’s most iconic visual motifs: Huey helicopters advancing over a vast wall of fire. The entire design is washed in an ominous orange and sepia haze, evoking heat, smoke, napalm, and psychological disintegration.
The lower third is dominated by a blazing line of explosions across the jungle landscape. Above it, a formation of helicopters moves across the horizon, immediately recalling the film’s most famous combat imagery and its overwhelming sense of military spectacle.
At the top, the minimalist Japanese tagline reads:
「戦争。アメリカ。」
“War. America.”
The Japanese title 「地獄の黙示録」 appears in enormous black kanji across the centre. The typography is especially powerful: the characters appear charred and fractured, with glowing red fire visible within the letterforms. Beneath it, 「特別完全版」 identifies this as the Japanese Redux / Special Complete Edition version.
The lower section includes the Japanese home-video release information, making the poster especially useful for identification:
7.17（水）VHS & DVD レンタル開始!!
7.25（木）DVD 発売開始!!
The small English Apocalypse Now Redux logo appears at lower left, while the bottom credit area includes the relevant Japanese distributor and home-video release details.
Release / identification details
This poster dates to the 2002 Japanese home video campaign for Apocalypse Now Redux.
The printed release copy identifies two key dates:
July 17, 2002 — VHS & DVD rental release
July 25, 2002 — retail DVD release
This confirms the poster’s function as a Japanese rental and DVD-store promotional display poster, rather than a theatrical one. Posters of this type were typically displayed in video rental shops, record stores, and retail outlets, and were not usually sold directly to the public.
Condition
Excellent condition. Please review the photograph carefully, as it shows the exact poster for sale.
The poster presents beautifully, with strong orange tones, vivid fire imagery, bold Japanese title typography, and excellent overall display impact. Only light signs of age, storage, or handling are visible, consistent with careful preservation of an original early-2000s Japanese promotional poster.
This is an original 2002 Japanese B2 home video promotional poster.
It is not a reproduction or a reprint.
It is over 20 years old.
Certificate of Authenticity included.
