“Little Big Man” (小さな巨人), Original Release Japanese Movie Poster 1971, Dustin Hoffman, B2 Size (51 × 73 cm) T98

This is an original Japanese B2 poster produced for the first Japanese theatrical release of Little Big Man in 1971. Directed by Arthur Penn and starring Dustin Hoffman, the film combines dark comedy, frontier adventure and tragedy in one of the defining revisionist Westerns of its era.

Adapted by Calder Willingham from Thomas Berger’s novel, the story follows Jack Crabb, a 121-year-old man recalling an extraordinary life moving between Cheyenne and white settler society. Hoffman’s performance carries Crabb through a succession of identities and reversals, supported by Faye Dunaway, Chief Dan George and Martin Balsam. Beneath its humour, the film questions familiar stories of frontier heroism and exposes the violence behind them.

The Japanese poster builds its composition around an enormous, high-contrast portrait of Hoffman wearing a bowler hat with a single upright feather. Against the pale background, the dark portrait creates an immediately recognisable silhouette, with the small English Little Big Man logo incorporated into the crown of his hat.

An irregular ribbon of colour film stills cuts across his face, bringing riders, frontier landscapes and glimpses of Crabb’s changing fortunes into the graphic. Below, a scarf patterned with the American stars and stripes introduces vivid red and blue, its flowing shape balancing the broad, dark forms above. The combination brings the film’s conflicting identities directly into the design.

The Japanese title, 小さな巨人, anchors the lower section in deep green. A double border and circular character portraits in the corners give the sheet a distinctive frame, while the Towa distributor mark and Japanese credits complete the composition.

The arched promotional copy above Hoffman reads:

「なんと121才！その波瀾の生涯をインディアンとして3回・白人として4回生きた男のメチャメチャに痛快な物語！」
“An astonishing 121 years old! The wildly entertaining story of a man who lived three times among Native Americans and four times among white society!”

A striking choice for collectors of Dustin Hoffman, Arthur Penn or New Hollywood cinema, this design brings together bold portraiture, photographic detail and distinctly Japanese typography.

Condition: Excellent.

Please review all photographs, including the front and reverse, as they show the exact poster for sale.

Japanese B2 format: approximately 51 × 73 cm.
Stock code: T98.

It is not a reproduction or a reprint.

Certificate of Authenticity included.

About Japanese B2 posters
Japanese B2 posters typically measure approximately 51 × 73 cm and were produced for theatrical display. Their distinctive combinations of photography, illustration, typography and locally written promotional copy offer a fascinating record of how films were presented to Japanese audiences.