Well, it's my 500th post here on the boards (it's more now). Small potatoes compared to some on the board, but it's special to me. So why not give you guys a look at my ugly mug as we talk about favorite movie poster cliches.
The images and icons we see on the posters advertising films.
The first is the halk-masked out face. Play with the saturation and color levels, you get a scary horror movie
But take that same half masked face. Change the color, ad some star effects and you get an epic space adventure.
Here's one of my new favorites. Every third action movie uses this one. It's "Tough guy looking down/over his shoulder and photographed from the back.
You can link to posters that show examples of what you like. Photoshop skill may be helpful but not neseccarry.