The poster for Danny Boyle’s 127 Hours is so amazingly simple, it’s brilliant. I’ll explain.

This is a perfect example of a movie poster working in every way possible. The eye is guided down the center of the poster with mountain cliffs forming an hour glass. This works well with the title of the film, which obviously deals with a set amount of time. It also suggests that the central character is under the clock, or something is going to go badly when the time runs out.

We know a lot about the film just by looking at this poster. It appears the main character is all alone and he doesn’t have much time. It’s a simple concept and the type is kept simple as well with a basic “swiss-style” font choice, most likely Helvetica.

I don’t know whether this is an actual image from the film, but it does wonders for the poster. Much more effective than say, a close up of James Franco’s face; his face distressed, which could be a boring staple another less-effective designer might have chosen.

Your poster, 127 Hours, is definitely cool.