“La Luna” (ルナ), Original First Release Japanese Movie Poster 1979, B2 Size (51 × 73 cm) ZA710

This is an original Japanese B2 theatrical poster printed in 1979 for the first Japanese release of La Luna (ルナ), the controversial and visually sumptuous drama directed by Bernardo Bertolucci and starring Jill Clayburgh, Matthew Barry, Tomas Milian, Renato Salvatori, and Veronica Lazar.

A striking and highly atmospheric poster for one of Bertolucci’s most provocative late-1970s works, this Japanese design is especially notable for its moody photographic composition, luminous nocturnal imagery, and bold period marketing text. It is an excellent piece for collectors of European art cinema, Bernardo Bertolucci, and Japanese release posters for major international films.

Film background
Released in 1979, La Luna follows Caterina Silveri, a celebrated American opera singer who relocates to Italy with her teenage son Joe after the sudden death of her husband. As she discovers Joe’s heroin addiction and emotional instability, the relationship between mother and son grows increasingly intense, troubled, and psychologically transgressive, leading the film into some of the most controversial territory of Bertolucci’s career.

Directed by Bernardo Bertolucci, already internationally renowned for works such as Last Tango in Paris and later The Last Emperor, La Luna remains one of his most divisive yet unmistakably personal films. Its mixture of operatic melodrama, sexual taboo, and emotional extremity made it controversial on release, but it has endured as a significant example of late-1970s European auteur cinema. Jill Clayburgh’s performance was particularly praised for its emotional fearlessness and complexity, and the film continues to attract interest for its boldness, style, and intensity.

Poster design
The poster is elegant, moody, and unmistakably of its period. At the center, framed within a teal rectangular border, is a photographic image of Jill Clayburgh and Matthew Barry in a melancholy embrace. Clayburgh looks downward with a grave, reflective expression while resting her hand protectively on Joe’s head, creating an image that is at once intimate, unsettling, and emotionally charged.

Above this central image hangs a large glowing full moon surrounded by dramatic dark clouds, directly evoking the film’s title and reinforcing the atmosphere of nocturnal mystery and emotional turbulence. The strong contrast between the black ground and the pale moonlight gives the sheet a refined visual power.

At the very top appears the sensational copy:

「全世界にセンセーションを巻き起こした華麗な性の衝撃！」
(“A magnificent sexual shockwave that caused a sensation around the world!”)

Running vertically at upper left is the provocative line:

「＊母と息子…
その二人のきずなが
今、罪深く激しく
男と女の愛に変わる！」
(“Mother and son... now their bond transforms, sinfully and intensely, into the love between a man and a woman!”)

The lower section is anchored by the large pale-blue Japanese title 「ルナ」, with the original title LA LUNA incorporated neatly within the design. Beneath are the cast credits and production details, all laid out in a restrained fashion that balances the poster’s more sensational upper text. The result is a compelling mixture of art-house sophistication and period exploitation-style marketing, a combination that makes Japanese posters of controversial European films particularly collectible.

Condition
Very Good / Excellent condition. A very attractive example with clean paper, strong colour, and excellent overall display presence. Dark-background posters from this period often show wear easily, but this copy presents especially well.

Please review the photograph carefully, as it shows the exact poster for sale.

This is an original 1979 Japanese theatrical poster.
It is not a reproduction or a reprint.

It is now over 45 years old.

Certificate of Authenticity included.