59
Metascore
16 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 80The New York TimesJanet MaslinThe New York TimesJanet MaslinAll of the performers are upstaged by the film's breathtaking backdrop, and by the fast and furious way Renny Harlin, the director, approaches action sequences.
- 80EmpireEmpireAction filmmaking at its best; a career high for director Harlin and arguably Stallone as well.
- 78Austin ChronicleMarjorie BaumgartenAustin ChronicleMarjorie BaumgartenIt grabs you by the viscera in the opening prologue and for the next two hours rarely lets go.
- 75Chicago Sun-TimesRoger EbertChicago Sun-TimesRoger EbertMovies like this are machines for involving us and thrilling us. Cliffhanger is a fairly good machine.
- 75The Globe and Mail (Toronto)The Globe and Mail (Toronto)As directed by Renny Harlin (the director of Die Hard 2), Cliffhanger passes the principal tests of an action movie - it has truly awe-inspiring stunts and special effects and many of its suspense sequences will leave you with your heart in your mouth.
- 67Entertainment WeeklyOwen GleibermanEntertainment WeeklyOwen GleibermanDespite the don't-look-down Olympian settings, Cliffhanger's spirit is brutal and earthbound.
- 50ReelViewsJames BerardinelliReelViewsJames BerardinelliThe dialogue is routine, frequently punctuated by cliches, and the character-building scenes do little more than waste time.
- 50Chicago ReaderJonathan RosenbaumChicago ReaderJonathan RosenbaumOn the other hand, the brutality and sadism it delivers at every opportunity, which we're supposed to take for granted as part of the "fun," left me feeling that any civilization that can create such an entertainment may not deserve to survive.
- 50The New YorkerAnthony LaneThe New YorkerAnthony LaneFor all its technical sophistication, this movie is as blaring and unambiguous as a picture book for the very young.
- 30Washington PostDesson ThomsonWashington PostDesson ThomsonIt's an eroticism of nastiness -- triple-X fare for dirty old men in raincoats. If you resist this sleazy gorefest, you'll be right to feel proud of yourself.