“Matinee” / 「マチネー／土曜の午後はキッスで始まる」, Original Japanese Movie Poster 1993, B2 Size (51.5 × 72.8 cm) G269

This is an original Japanese B2 theatrical poster printed for the original Japanese release of Matinee / 「マチネー／土曜の午後はキッスで始まる」, Joe Dante’s affectionate 1993 comedy about teenage life, atomic-age anxiety, and the glorious excesses of American monster-movie showmanship.

The film was released theatrically in Japan on 24 July 1993 through Shochiku-Fuji. This extraordinary Japanese poster features a densely detailed original illustration by Tsunemi, created specifically for the Japanese campaign.

Film background

Set in Key West, Florida, during the Cuban Missile Crisis of October 1962, the film follows a group of local teenagers attempting to navigate school, romance, family difficulties, and the increasingly frightening possibility of nuclear war.

Into this tense atmosphere arrives Lawrence Woolsey, played by John Goodman, a flamboyant independent filmmaker and theatrical showman travelling across America to promote his latest low-budget horror production:

MANT!

The film within the film concerns a man accidentally transformed into a giant human-ant hybrid following exposure to radiation—advertised with the immortal slogan:

“Half Man! Half Ant! All Terror!”

Woolsey recognises that the public’s fear of missiles and atomic destruction provides the ideal environment in which to launch his new picture. He transforms the local cinema into an elaborate immersive attraction, complete with vibrating seats, hidden electrical effects, costumed performers, staged emergencies, and other promotional gimmicks.

While the adults anxiously follow the confrontation between the United States and the Soviet Union, the town’s teenagers gather at the cinema for a Saturday afternoon filled with monsters, romance, pranks, panic, and cinematic spectacle.

Directed by Joe Dante, the screenplay was written by Charlie Haas and the music was composed by Jerry Goldsmith.

The principal cast includes John Goodman, Cathy Moriarty, Simon Fenton, Omri Katz, Lisa Jakub, Kellie Martin, and Jesse Lee Soffer. The fictional MANT! feature was itself filmed by Dante as a fully realised black-and-white monster movie shown within the main film.

Matinee is widely regarded as one of Dante’s most personal films. It draws upon his affection for Cold War-era science fiction, horror matinees, comic books, promotional stunts, and the theatrical showmanship associated with producer William Castle.

The film balances affectionate nostalgia with satire, presenting the cinema as a place where audiences can confront exaggerated fictional terrors while the real world outside appears increasingly unstable.

Poster design

The poster uses an exceptionally dense and colourful illustrated composition filled with atomic-age imagery, teenage characters, movie monsters, military hardware, palm trees, automobiles, advertising signs, and exaggerated expressions of panic.

At the centre, a young couple share a kiss in front of the illuminated marquee of the Key West Strand cinema.

The boy wears a white Hawaiian shirt decorated with green palm leaves, while the girl wears a bright pink dress with a large bow. Their quiet romantic moment forms the calm centre of an otherwise chaotic composition.

Behind them, the cinema marquee advertises:

SPECIAL
MANT
HALF MAN
ALL TERROR

The lettering and neon architecture evoke the exuberant design of American neighbourhood cinemas during the early 1960s.

A large crowd pours from the theatre beneath the couple. Teenagers, ushers, police officers, soldiers, cyclists, motorists, performers, and terrified patrons collide in an elaborate sequence of comic incidents.

At left, a red convertible crashes into the crowd while a man wearing a white hat clings to the vehicle. Nearby, a cyclist struggles through the confusion as characters shout, fall, and flee in different directions.

The lower-left corner contains the grotesque black head of the MANT creature, with enormous compound eyes, antennae, and mandibles. Its presence connects the colourful reality outside the cinema with the fictional monster being shown inside.

At lower right is a large monochrome portrait of John Goodman as Lawrence Woolsey, shown wearing a dark suit and smoking a cigar. His confident expression positions him as the mastermind orchestrating the surrounding spectacle.

Behind him, audience members recoil in alarm while one patron grips a carton of popcorn labelled with a stylised monster face.

The background expands the scene into a vision of atomic-age Florida.

Tall palm trees rise against a brilliant turquoise sky, while the ocean stretches towards the horizon beneath small white clouds.

At upper left, enormous military missiles point diagonally into the sky. Their scale is deliberately exaggerated, turning the political threat of the Cuban Missile Crisis into part of the poster’s comic spectacle.

Flames and explosions rise behind the cinema, visually merging the fictional destruction of MANT! with the real fear of nuclear attack.

A roadside sign at left advertises the:

Keywester Motel

with facilities including television, tennis, and a swimming pool—an affectionate reference to the commercial graphics and roadside culture of early-1960s America.

The entire image is packed with small visual jokes and narrative details. The viewer is encouraged to examine the crowd closely, much like searching through a period comic-book illustration.

The tagline

Across the upper edge, the large red Japanese headline reads:

「『グレムリン』のジョー・ダンテ監督が放つ、恋と恐怖映画とミサイルのトリプルドキドキ！」

“Director Joe Dante of Gremlins unleashes a triple heart-pounding thrill of romance, horror movies, and missiles!”

The line neatly summarises the film’s three interwoven subjects: teenage love, monster-movie excitement, and the genuine possibility of nuclear war.

Immediately above the principal title appears:

「土曜の午後はキッスで始まる」

“Saturday afternoon begins with a kiss.”

This wording also forms part of the film’s complete Japanese release title:

「マチネー／土曜の午後はキッスで始まる」

The phrase refers both to the developing teenage romance and to the traditional Saturday-afternoon cinema matinee around which the story is structured.

Typography

The original English title:

Matinee

appears in flowing yellow script near the centre of the lower composition.

Beneath it, the enormous Japanese title:

「マチネー」

is rendered in brilliant red block lettering with heavy black dimensional shadowing.

The title rests against a turquoise geometric field that echoes the colour of the Florida sky and provides a clean visual foundation beneath the crowded illustration.

The principal credit line identifies:

「ジョー・ダンテ監督作品　ジョン・グッドマン主演」

“A film directed by Joe Dante, starring John Goodman.”

The small billing block along the bottom credits screenwriter Charlie Haas, producer Michael Finnell, composer Jerry Goldsmith, the principal cast, and Japanese distributor Shochiku-Fuji / 松竹富士.

Artist note

The custom Japanese poster artwork is credited to:

Tsunemi / ツネミ

Rather than adapting the film’s American photographic advertising, Tsunemi created an original illustrated campaign image specifically for the Japanese theatrical release.

The artist’s densely packed composition combines the visual language of 1950s monster-movie posters, 1960s American advertising, pulp comic books, theatrical caricature, and Japanese ensemble illustration.

The many characters are presented with exaggerated poses and expressions, transforming the cinema premiere into a single enormous comic set piece.

The exceptionally bright palette—turquoise, red, pink, yellow, orange, and green—captures both the optimism of post-war American popular culture and the absurdity of living beneath the threat of atomic destruction.

The result is substantially different from the film’s international key art and is one of the most distinctive Japanese poster designs produced for an American comedy of the early 1990s.

Release note

Matinee was produced and released in 1993.

It received its original Japanese theatrical release on 24 July 1993 under the expanded title:

「マチネー／土曜の午後はキッスで始まる」

The film was distributed theatrically in Japan by Shochiku-Fuji.

This poster was printed for the film’s original 1993 Japanese theatrical campaign.

It is a standard Japanese B2-size theatrical poster, measuring approximately:

51.5 × 72.8 cm / 20.3 × 28.7 inches

It is an original period Japanese cinema poster, not a later reproduction or commercial reprint.

Condition

Excellent condition. A highly attractive example with exceptionally vivid colour, sharp illustrated detail, clear typography, and outstanding overall display impact.

There are only light signs of age and handling consistent with an original Japanese theatrical poster from 1993, including minor surface impressions and slight edge and corner wear.

These minor signs do not significantly detract from the artwork. The colours remain remarkably bright, and the intricate illustration presents extremely well.

Reference: G269.

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

This is an original 1993 Japanese theatrical poster.
It is not a reproduction or a reprint.

It is now over 30 years old.

Certificate of Authenticity included.