Signs are all around us, but sometimes they tend to blend into the background. We don’t always notice how much they add to the setting—or the look—of a place. This got me thinking: even though we don’t always notice them, signs really do make a big impact. Think about how certain movies would be really different if they didn’t include signage. To throw out a fancy schmancy film studies term, we could say that signage always adds to the mise en scene. So of course, working for a sign making company, I started thinking of movies with important signage, and thus, this list of movies was born!

• You’ve Got Mail: The quaint, wooden outdoor sign for Kathleen Kelly’s children’s bookstore called “The Shop Around the Corner” contrasted with the clean, minimal electric signage of the rival corporate bookstore, "Fox Books", serves as a reflection of the personalities of Kathleen Kelly and her eventual love interest, Joe Fox. Even with no other knowledge of the characters or storyline, you could easily come to an accurate conclusion about them based on their signage alone!

See how scary Fox Books' "Coming Soon" signage is to the small business? It's making a huge impact on the scene!

• Citizen Kane: Yeah, this movie is depressing. But the use of signage is great! Look at that giant banner behind Kane. It’s so overbearing, overblown, and attention-seeking—just like Kane’s personality. In his pride he felt this giant banner was necessary to draw more attention to himself, but in reality the banner overwhelms his actual presence. Nice use of visual irony there, Mr. Wells.

Yeesh, you'd think he'd pick a more flattering picture of himself.

• Casablanca: What would this classic film be without Rick’s Café Américain? It’s the hub where the majority of the action takes place. One look at his glowing neon sign lets the denizens of Casablanca know they have a refuge from the war, a place to rendezvous with the seedy underbelly of the city, and an establishment that isn’t under the thumb of local corrupt officials. Here’s looking at you, Rick.

This sign is great. It's Moroccan and American all at the same time, just like Rick.

• Psycho: Another classic film with a glowing neon sign is the suspenseful Hitchcock hit, Psycho. Seeing the buzzing “vacancy” sign in front of the dingy Bates Motel adds to the creepiness factor by about a thousand before we even meet Norman Bates himself. Look at this sign, don’t you already hear the Ree! Ree! Ree! Ree! of violins and Janet Leigh’s bloodcurdling scream? I always end up yelling at the TV, “They have vacancies for a reason! Don’t go in there, Marion!”

Yes, this sign is totally creepy.

• Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure: “Strange things are afoot at the Circle K.” First of all, this line delivered in 1980s boneheaded-dude style is priceless. Second, the eerie glow from inside the Circle K sign draws our attention toward the sky and the impending Whovian-esque telephone booth careening toward Bill and Ted to take them on a whirlwind historical adventure. Excellent!

• Back to the Future: The best part of the signage in the Back to the Future series is how it changes as Marty Mcfly changes history. Example? The lighted “Twin Pines Mall” sign becomes the “Lone Pine Mall” after Marty runs over a pine tree when he first lands the time-traveling DeLorean back in 1955. These subtle little Easter eggs hidden for the avid fan make watching the movies into a sort of I-Spy game of signage.

Aha! See what they did there?

• Signs: Okay, this one is a stretch. But could we really make a list of signs in movies without at least mentioning a movie called Signs? I think not.

Come on, put on your tinfoil hat, grab some popcorn, and join us for a movie marathon.

Obviously this list is incomplete, but this blog post had to end somewhere :) What are some other movies or TV shows you can think of where the signage makes an impact? Comment below about your favorite movie signs!

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