TITLE: The Eiger Sanction
YEAR OF MOVIE RELEASE: 1975
FILM STUDIO / PRODUCTION COMPANY: The Malpaso Company / Universal Pictures
AUSTRALIAN DISTRIBUTOR: Cinema International Corporation (CIC)
TAGLINE: “His lifeline in the hands of the assassin he hunted!”
ADDITIONAL POSTER TEXT: “Eastwood: The Man. Eiger: The Mountain. Sanction: The Killing.”
DIRECTOR: Clint Eastwood
CAST: Clint Eastwood, George Kennedy, Vonetta McGee, Jack Cassidy and Heidi Brühl
PRODUCER: Robert Daley
EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS: Richard D. Zanuck and David Brown
CINEMATOGRAPHY: Frank Stanley
SCREENPLAY: Hal Dresner, Warren B. Murphy and Rod Whitaker
BASED ON: The novel The Eiger Sanction by Trevanian
MUSIC: John Williams
POSTER PRINTER: M.A.P.S. Litho Pty. Ltd.
FORMAT: Australian One Sheet
GENRE: Action / Thriller / Adventure
COLLECTOR’S NOTE
Clint Eastwood both directed and starred in The Eiger Sanction, undertaking climbing work himself after training with mountaineer and mountain-sequence photographer Mike Hoover. Filming included Switzerland’s Eiger and locations in the American Southwest, giving the espionage story its distinctive mountaineering setting.
The source novel’s author, Trevanian, was the pseudonym of Rodney William Whitaker, who also contributed to the screenplay under the name Rod Whitaker. The paperback illustration on this Australian poster highlights that literary connection, alongside a campaign that explains the title through its three elements: the man, the mountain and the killing.
POSTER DESIGN FEATURES
A large illustrated portrait of Clint Eastwood aiming a handgun towards the viewer dominates the upper-right section. Warm brown facial tones contrast with the dark weapon and pale background, directing attention to his concentrated expression.
At the lower left, a smaller climbing illustration shows Eastwood carrying rope and an ice axe against snowy mountains and an Alpine village. A tiny falling figure beneath the scene reinforces the danger of the mountain setting. A separate monochrome image of a woman occupies the lower-right side.
The central orange-red panel carries Eastwood’s name in white and the film title in bold yellow. Yellow and magenta explanatory lettering fills the upper left