“Read My Lips” (Sur mes lèvres / リード・マイ・リップス), Original Japanese First-Release Movie Poster 2003, Ultra Rare, B1 Size (73 × 103 cm) - Gallery
This is an original Japanese B1 theatrical poster produced for the 2003 Japanese release of Jacques Audiard’s Read My Lips. Originally released in France in 2001, this acclaimed romantic crime thriller stars Vincent Cassel and Emmanuelle Devos.
This ultra-rare B1 issue is incredibly difficult to find. Measuring approximately 72.8 × 103 cm, it provides twice the surface area of a standard Japanese B2 poster, giving its intimate photographic composition considerable presence.
Film background
Directed by Jacques Audiard and co-written with Tonino Benacquista, Read My Lips follows Carla, a hard-of-hearing office worker whose colleagues routinely underestimate her. When she hires Paul, a recently released prisoner, as her assistant, their uneasy partnership develops into an increasingly dangerous relationship.
Carla’s ability to read lips becomes central to a criminal scheme, drawing the pair into a world of surveillance, deception, and shifting power. Audiard combines the tension of a heist film with a closely observed study of attraction between two isolated people.
The film’s expressive use of sound brings the viewer into Carla’s experience, making listening, silence, and visual attention integral to its suspense.
Critical recognition
At the 2002 César Awards, the film won Best Actress for Emmanuelle Devos, Best Original Screenplay or Adaptation for Audiard and Benacquista, and Best Sound.
These three awards are prominently advertised along the poster’s lower margin. The Japanese release followed on 20 September 2003, distributed by Cinéma Parisien.
Poster design
The composition centres on a tightly framed black-and-white portrait of Cassel and Devos, their physical closeness tempered by guarded expressions. The grain of the photograph lends the image a tactile quality, particularly striking at B1 scale.
A deep red panel across the top carries the original French title, sur mes lèvres, in oversized white lowercase lettering, accompanied by the actors’ names and Audiard’s directing credit.
Across the lower photograph, the Japanese title appears in loose, handwritten red lettering, contrasting with the orderly French typography above. This restrained combination of red, black, and white gives the design immediate visual impact.
Two vertical Japanese taglines read:
「くちびるから伝う愛」
“Love conveyed through lips.”
「くちびるから知る犯罪」
“Crime discovered through lips.”
A small printed credit at the lower-right edge of the photograph names SG-tokyo for the advertising graphic design. The bilingual typography and emphasis on the central relationship make this a particularly compelling Japanese presentation of Audiard’s film.
Condition
Excellent+. The poster retains strong reds, crisp lettering, and excellent photographic detail, with minor handling wear visible on close inspection. Please review the photographs—they show the exact poster for sale.
This is an original Japanese B1 theatrical poster produced for the film’s 2003 Japanese release.
It is not a reproduction or a modern reprint.
It is approximately 23 years old.
Certificate of Authenticity included.
