In the new century, Chinese films show a trend of diversification. In order to survive and develop, film posters must play an important role in propaganda by virtue of their respective film business strategies and their own film consumption market in the coexistence of various film forms. Taking zhang yimou's film poster as an example, this paper explores the Chinese culture in his film poster design style, and tries to find the balance between artistic and commercial through his film poster design style. An excellent movie poster focuses on the movie's essence, and draws viewers' attention through powerful visual symbols to attract viewers to the goal of making movies. However, the movie poster is not a simple commercial advertisement, but it needs to satisfy people's cognitive needs and the need to judge.