Sly's best out and out action film. It is a superbly enjoyable movie with some interesting characters, solid performances and Renny Harlins direction is stylishly assured. Stallone is rarely this interesting in his action films and he certainly looks the part in terms of the action scenes. This was one of the best action films of the year and one of the most thrilling and enjoyable of the 90's, a definite genre classic. As a Stallone fan this is one I look back on with fond memories. Plenty of superb action and Sly in prime action man form. Action lovers appreciate this film because it has all the hallmarks that make a good aciton film. The film looks great and there is great support from Janine Turner, Michael Rooker and John Lithgow. ****
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supertom-323 July 2004
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Wracked with guilt after a lot of things felt apart on that ledge, an ace mountain rescue climber Gabriel Walker (Stallone) comes back for his girlfriend Jessie (Janine Turner), while over the cloudy skies where the weather looks a bit threatening, a spectacularly precarious mid-air hijacking goes wrong and $100 million taken from a Treasury Department plane get lost in the middle of nowhere followed by a crash landing
Stranded off the snowy peaks, and needing mountain guides to win back the stolen cash, the high-trained hikers make an emergency call asking the help of a rescue unit
Unfortunately, Gab and Hall (Michael Rooker) have to team up to arrive at the scene of the crash unaware that the distress call was a fake, and a bunch of merciless terrorists led by a psychotic (John Lithgow),are waiting for them only to find out a way off the stormy mountain with the dumped cases of money
With breathtaking shots, vertiginous scenery, dizzying heights, perilous climbs, freezing temperatures, "Cliffhanger" is definitely Stallone's best action adventure movie -
PhilipJames198020 February 2004Watching Cliffhanger makes me nostalgic for the early '90s, a time when virtually every new action movie could be described as "Die Hard in a /on a." Cliffhanger is "Die Hard on a mountain," and pretty good, for what it is.
But unlike Passenger 57 and Under Siege, which are decent Die Hard clones on their own terms, Cliffhanger dispenses with the enclosed feeling of many action movies and embraces breathtaking landscapes that, in their immensity, threaten to overwhelm and trivialize the conflicts of the people fighting and dying among the peaks.
Years before other movies like A Simple Plan and Fargo dramatized crime and murder on snowbound locations, Cliffhanger director Renny Harlin recognized the visual impact of juxtaposing brutal violence and grim struggles to survive against cold and indifferent natural surroundings.
The opening sequence has already received substantial praise, all of which it deserves: its intensity allows us to forget the artifice of the camera and the actors and simply believe that what we are seeing is actually happening. Not even Harlin's shot of the falling stuffed animal, which is powerfully effective but still threatens to become too much of a joke (and which he repeated in Deep Blue Sea), or the ridiculous expression on Ralph Waite's face, can dim the sequence's power.
The next impressive set-piece is the gunfight and heist aboard the jet. As written by Stallone and Michael France and directed by Harlin, the audience is plunged into the action by not initially knowing which agents are involved in the theft and which are not: the bloody double-crosses are completely unexpected. As Roger Ebert has observed, the stuntman who made the mid-air transfer between the planes deserves some special recognition.
Later, during the avalanche sequence, one of the terrorists/thieves appears to be actually falling as the wall of snow carries him down the mountain. So far as I know, no one was killed in the making of this movie (a small miracle, considering the extreme nature of some of the stunts), so obviously a dummy was used for the shot. But the shot itself remains impressive because we're left wondering how Harlin (or more likely one of the second-unit directors) knew exactly where to place the camera.
I'll take Sly Stallone as my action hero any day of the week, because he's one of the few movie stars I've ever seen who's completely convincing as someone who can withstand a lot of physical and emotional pain, and at the same time actually feels that pain. The role of Gabe Walker really complements Stallone's acting strengths: he plays an older, more vulnerable kind of action hero, giving an impressively low-key performance as a mountain rescuer who must redeem himself.
In contrast to many of today's post-Matrix, comic book-inspired action heroes, Stallone's Walker is an ordinary man who becomes a hero without any paranormal or computer-enhanced abilities. In Cliffhanger, the hero almost freezes to death, and his clothes start to show big tears as he barely escapes one dangerous situation after another. He winces when he's hit and bleeds when he's cut, particularly in the cavern sequence when he takes a Rocky-style pummeling from one of the mad-dog villains.
It should be noted that the utterly despicable villains really contribute to the movie's effectiveness: when I first saw this movie as a teenager, I was rooting for the good guys every step of the way and anticipating when another bad guy would bite the dust (or rather, the ice); at one point I actually cheered as one of the most cold-blooded characters in the movie deservedly suffered a violent demise.
Lithgow's British accent is as unconvincing as the movie's occasional model plane or model helicopter, but he's fundamentally a good actor, and one of the few who can perfectly recite silly dialogue: in one scene, looking at his hostages Stallone and Rooker, trying to decide which tasks to give them, he actually says "You, stay! You, fetch!" Even a better actor, such as Anthony Hopkins, might have had trouble with that line.
Even if Cliffhanger occasionally tosses credibility aside, it does so only for the sake of a more entertaining show.
Early in the movie, for example, Lithgow openly says to one of his men "Retire [Stallone] when he comes down." No real criminal mastermind would have made this mistake even unconsciously: his carelessness allows Rooker to shout a warning up to Sly on the rock face, and this precipitates a gripping tug-of-war between Stallone and the bad guys trying to pull him down by the rope tied to his leg.
Lithgow could have given his order by a more subtle means, but the sequence might not have been as much fun to watch if it hadn't given Rooker an opportunity to openly defy the arrogance of his captor.
Done very much in the style of a Saturday matinee serial or (at times) a Western, Cliffhanger is built on such a solid foundation that it survives some weak elements that would have undermined a lesser film.
Besides the painfully obvious aircraft models mentioned before, the weak moments include a couple of scenes shot on cheap indoor sets with REALLY fake snow, as well as two other scenes involving bats and wolves that seem unnecessary in an already action-packed narrative. Finally, Harlin's decision to film some of the death scenes in slow motion seems pointless, since the technique contributes nothing to the scenes.
It's a shame that Stallone is now too old for action movies, because his character in this movie seems so credible that inevitably I wonder what he would be like years later. But perhaps it's best that Cliffhanger stands on its own for all time, without a sequel: there are enough tired and obsolete movie franchises already. There was an unofficial sequel that called itself Vertical Limit: compared to that clinker, Cliffhanger belongs on the IMDb's Top 250 list.
Rating: 8 (Very good, especially considering most of Stallone's other movies.) -
Cliffhanger is a decent action crime adventure with some flaws from director Renny Harlin whose admirable in making this movie about an expert climber who finds himself taken hostage with a fellow friend by a gang of dangerous criminals on the search for suit cases full of stolen cash in the Rocky Mountains. Sylvester Stallone is impressive as Gabe Walker the expert climber especially in the action/fight sequences but some of them definitely border on the line of unrealistic. For the sake of the film though I willing to suspend my disbelief. The rest of the cast including John Lithgow, Michael Rooker, Janine Turner, Rex Linn, Caroline Goodall, and Leon are respectable as the supporting characters in the movie. The action/fight sequences are well executed but as mentioned before some aren't very realistic no matter how tough you are. The climbing sequences however are very well done because instead of doing the whole film in a studio somewhere the locations they chose felt very real and the Ariel views of the mountain ranges are marvelous adding a touch of reality to the movie. The deaths are inventive while others are sort of predictable. The villains are solid but it would've been better if they had focused on a more central one instead of having many of them. The pacing of the movie was a little slow but the good outweighs the bad in this one. If you're a big fan of Harlins or Stallone's than chances are you'll enjoy this one too. Overall Cliffhanger has character development with enough action, drama, some suspense, excitement, thrills, and good performances by the cast who make this movie worth the time to watch.
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Ricky_Roma__26 April 2006The opening to Cliffhanger is meant to be a harrowing experience. We're meant to feel terrible that an innocent woman plunges to her horrible death. But how can we experience the horror when Frank, a helicopter pilot played by Ralph Waite out of The Waltons, is in the background cackling with laughter. Just watch him. His eyes sparkle when Stallone tells the woman that she's not doing to die and he collapses in near hysterics when she falls. Contrast this with Michael Rooker's overacting he almost faints when the girl plummets, while Frank is hooting in the background and you have a scene that is nowhere near as powerful as it should be.
But to be fair to Stallone and the girl, they do a pretty good job. The girl pleads and pleads, and Stallone gamely hangs on. And the situation itself is excellent huge drop; cracked harness; burly, lazy-mouthed actor trying to hang on to hysterical woman. But whenever I watch the scene I can only see Frank's huge grin, his glowing eyes and a shocked reaction that looks more like him doubling over in laughter.
However, laughter is a common reaction in Cliffhanger. Well, for me at least. But that's not to say I dislike the film. It's a very enjoyable action movie. But it can't transcend the clichés of the genre. Instead it buries its face in them and thrashes about like mad for over an hour and a half.
One of the clichés the film adheres to is that the villain must be English. Well, at least I think he is. John Lithgow puts on an accent of some sort. But it's an amusing performance. His best bit has to be when he gets Stallone to climb up a rock face to get his money. "You, stay. You, fetch." The joy is in his exaggerated enunciation. Another funny bit is when Stallone throws Lithgow's money into the helicopter's rotors. "Damn you, Walker!" he screams like he's split a fingernail.
But there are other English villains. The first is Caroline Goodall who comes across in the film as sort of a low-rent Emma Thompson. But much more amusing is Craig Fairbrass (Dan out of EastEnders). His performance is atrocious. All he does is shout and swear. And he does it in a thick Cockney accent. But he's immortalised in the scene where Michael Rooker goads him into beating him up rather than killing him straight away the Cockney is about as bright as a puddle of oil. It turns out that Fairbrass' character is an ex-footballer. And I guess that shouldn't be too surprising when his dialogue consists of lines like: "Yeah? And you're a loudmouth punk slag who's about to die." The only people I know who talk like that are West Ham fans. But Fairbrass proceeds to give Rooker a surreal football-themed beating he even runs up to take a penalty. Is this how Hollywood sees the English? We're either effete brigands or beer-swilling hooligans. Actually, thinking about it, it's quite an accurate observation.
But my favourite villain is played by Leon (he's so cool he doesn't even have a surname). He eschews Fairbrass' shouty brand of villainy and tries to be quietly intimidating. But his line delivery is so bad that he's about as scary as a moustachioed villain twiddling his exaggerated face fur. However, it's notable that unlike Fairbrass he actually does excel once he gives into his urge to shout. He has a great scene in a cave where he actually seems like a genuine threat he stalks Stallone and his girl with menace. But then Stallone grabs him by the balls and presses him through a spike. It's a WWE sort of death which I dig a great deal.
But what about Stallone? How does he fair in the film? Well, I've never really had much of a problem with him. Yeah he's not a terribly good actor and yes he sounds like man who was born with an upside down brain, but that's part of the joy of watching him act. Just take the scenes after the accident at the start. His idea of being haunted is to mope about like a thirteen year old that's been told to stop using his father's credit card to download porn. It's so amateurish. And I love the way that the villains, when making him climb the mountain, order him to remove his jacket. I can't help but feel that this wasn't done to prove how evil the villains are, but to allow Sly to climb while flaunting his thick, muscular arms. We don't want those babies covered up.
However, Stallone looks like Marlon Brando compared to the "Whoa, dude!" extreme sports enthusiasts. They're sort of like Bill and Ted but without the charm. In fact, I wasn't distraught that one of them died; I was distraught that one survived. But at least the death of the one who looks like Kurt Cobain gives us a hilarious silent "No!" moment from Michael Rooker. But then later on we get to relive the hilarity, because Frank's death elicits another's rib-tickling "No!" moment. Hey, what can I say, the old bastard had it coming. You ain't laughing now, are you? -
dylan-ransom19 November 2005Every time a movie comes out which features rock climbing and mountain travel/rescue, I cringe with anticipation, notepad in hand, and annoy all my friends with my nitpicking. So, let me get that out of the way first. I counted approximately 100 factual and technical errors related to geography, climbing, mountain travel and rescue. Let's just say it was atrocious, though not as bad as "Vertical Limit".
Viewed purely as a mindless action flick, I must say I was entertained. The film was visually stunning with engaging action sequences. The acting was superb- those poor bastards did all they could with their ridiculous characters and inadequate, clichéd script. Cheers to Lithgow, Stallone, and Rooker in particular.
I could be pretentious and pick the whole damn thing apart, but I think Renny Harlin did exactly what he set out to do- entertain. -
TERMINATOR18020 December 2001Sylvestor Stallone (Rocky,Rambo) teams up with Renny Harlin (Die Hard 2) for the well-casted film Cliffhanger. Original, realistic, and just plain entertaining. There is a little something for everyone in this film, including a bit of humor.
***/***** Stars -
sol-kay25 November 2011***SPOILERS*** Sylvester Stallone as mountain rescue climber Gabe Walker has a chance to show off his muscles in this high climbing adventure while wearing in most of his scenes a sweat drenched t-shirt in sub-zero temperature. That as he tries to get his nerve back that he lost some eight months ago.
It was back then that Gabe in an attempt to save her life lost his best friend Hal Tucker's, Michael Rooker, girlfriend Sarah's, Michelle Joyner, grip as she was dangling some 4,000 feet above ground level when her security belt gave out! With Sarah's tragic death and his friend Hal holding him responsible for it Gabe just dropped out of sight not willing to face or see anyone for over eight months.
Now in town to get back with his girlfriend mountain ranger Jessie Deilghan, Jennie Turner, Gabe suddenly finds himself face to face with arch-enemy Hal Tucker as he's reluctantly recruited to save a number of people lost in the high Rockies after their plan crashed. What no one realizes is that the persons trapped in the snow are a gang of skyjackers who sky-jacked a government plane with over 100 million dollars in denominations of $1,000 dollar bills! It's the skyjackers headed by former US Government Intelligence Agent Eric Qualen, John Lithgow, who want Gabe and Hal to find the cash,in three large suitcases, that they lost during the failed skyjacking attempt!
****SPOILERS**** It takes a while for both Gabe & Hal as well as Jessie to figure out what Qualen & Co. are really up too but that's after all three ended up getting captured by Qualen and his gang. It's Gabe who escaped, wearing only a t-shirt and pair of torn up pants, and made it to safety who had to save his fellow mountain rescuers Hal and Jessie's lives depended on the Qualen Mob getting the lost money which Gabe was threatened or better yet blackmailed to find. But in what we soon see how Qualen & Co. interacted with each other, by murdering themselves over the slightest mess-up, it's a given that as long as the cash is not recovered that will assure that both Hal & Jessie will remain alive!
***MORE SPOILERS*** Great action scenes with both Gabe & Hal really getting worked over by Qualen and his thugs but still having enough left to finally put them out of commission. Incredible final sequence with Gabe & Qualen having out on a disable helicopter hanging by a string, or cable, on the side of a one mile high mountain. Gabe who in all reality should have died from the beatings he's taken as well as the bitter cold, wearing only a wet and unfrozen t-shirt, was able to turn the tables on Qualen at the very last moment. In the end Qualen ended up with his fellow hijacked for all intents and purposes dead and buried in the snow. And as for the 100 million dollars in $1,000.00 dollars bills that Qualen & Co. was after: It ended up burned shredded and blown away to the four winds where,in the high snow covered and impassible Rockie Mountains, no one would ever find it! -
ivo-cobra84 November 2015Cliffhanger (1993) is one of the best Action thriller heist movies of the 90's. I love this film to death! It is one of my personal favorite movies. Besides the Rocky and Rambo which are Stallone's most popular stuff I would put Cliffhanger right above those! I absolutely LOVE this film!!!! Gabe Walker is awesome I love it. I would put this movie over Rambo III and Cobra because I have enjoy it more than those two films. I don't like Rambo III it is a bad action movie. I love Cobra but Cliffhanger beats Cobra and I love Cliffhanger to death It is my childhood movie.
This is the finest action movie of all time and it is a perfect 10 it deals with no CGI but real climbing, real action sequences. Dangerous stunts that people could have died. Even for a $70,000,000 budget movie the action and the stunts are well done for the 90's.
Renny Harlin made an awesome job on this movie. The movie is awesome. It has slow motion running jump! The action sequences in this movie are fantastic! It is actually the first best favorite Action that Stallone did, I love this film and it is my childhood film I love it. One of the most Stallone hit and the most successful Stallone film! This movie is filmed in the real Rocky Mountains and not a CGI or computer crap the stunts are real and insanely crazy. I watch this movie with my dad on Blu-ray 3 years ago and I really want to say thank you to Stallone for making this movie. I have enjoy it and even my dad did enjoy it and it is really my favorite memories on my dad so thank you Stallone.
Is one of my first best favorite movies ever. Why I love this movie and I put it above Cobra? Simply because the whole movie is about thrills in the rocky mountains during snow time. Renny Harlin's 'Die Hard 2' was cool, and he gave the world 'Cliffhanger', one of the most awesome action movies ever. That's right, 'Cliffhanger' rules, and we all know it. Stallone uses his mind and not his muscles, a machine gun or a hand guns to defeat terrorists. He uses his mind, he is rescuing people and he try's to save his friend's life, who is held hostage by terrorists. They are thrills, suspense, avalanche and action all over the place in the Rocky Mountains. And I seriously love this Action thriller. The opening scene where the girl is hanging on the line for her dear life, still makes my hands sweaty. And When Gabe Walker couldn't saved her, I really felt pain and I mourn with Stallone's character. Cliffhanger was actually the film I grew up with it. It is a stone cold classic action film a film that I will always cherish!
Mine favorite is Cliffhanger and almost no one puts Cliffhanger into their favorite best action movie so I put it as my Top 4 best Stallone action movies out there. Sly's best out and out action film. It is a superbly enjoyable movie with some interesting characters, solid performances and Renny Harlins direction is stylishly assured. Stallone is rarely this interesting in his action films and he certainly looks the part in terms of the action scenes. This was one of the best action films of the year and one of the most thrilling and enjoyable of the 90's, a definite genre classic. As a Stallone fan this is one I look back on with fond memories. Plenty of superb action and Sly in prime action man form. Action lovers appreciate this film because it has all the hallmarks that make a good action film. The film looks great and there is great support from Janine Turner, Michael Rooker and John Lithgow. On the airplane, the plane heist up in the air from plane-to-plane airborne transfer, a money transfer stunt was filmed in the USA as such a stunt is illegal in Europe. The stunt itself cost over $1 million to film.
Cliffhanger is a 1993 American action adventure film directed by Renny Harlin and starring Sylvester Stallone and John Lithgow.
I love this film to death beside Rambo movies, it is one of my favorite trills action movies. It is Die Hard in the mountains. I love the music theme from Trevor Jones, he write and made a perfect music score that fits to the film.
The basic plot story is about A botched mid-air heist results in suitcases full of cash being searched for by various groups throughout the Rocky Mountains. It is die hard movie in the mountains.
This movie is what it is, a perfect 10, because it takes the vision of one of the most imaginative directors on Earth. It is way to underrated and it is my personal favorite Stallone action movie. -
philip_vanderveken7 April 2005I'm far from a Sylvester Stallone fan and I guess the only time I really appreciated his appearance was in the French movie Taxi 3, which is an almost inexistent small role. And yet I must admit that this movie was actually not that bad, even though I feared the worst.
When Gabe (Stallone) fails to rescue the girlfriend of one of his friends and she plunges to her death from a 4000 feet high mountain top, he can't possibly force himself to keep working as a mountain ranger. For almost a year he doesn't set a food in the reserve, but than he returns. Soon after he's back, they get an emergency call from a group of hikers who got trapped in a snow storm. At least, that's what the rangers believe. In reality it is a group of robbers who crashed with their airplane in the mountains after their daring plan to steal cases full of money from a flying government plane failed. The cases are spread all over the reserve and they need the help of professional climbers to retrieve them...
This is of course not one of the most intelligent movies ever, but in its genre it's an enjoyable one. I especially enjoyed John Lithgow as the evil master mind and leader of the gang of robbers. I know him best from the TV-series "3rd Rock from the Sun", but I enjoyed his performance in this movie as well. Overall the acting is OK, it had a lot of action to offer and of course also some one-liners, but it also offered a very nice decor. This movie was filmed in a magnificent natural environment. I loved the snowy mountains and valleys, the mountain rivers and the forests... Perhaps that's why I give this movie a score higher than what I normally give to an action / adventure movie of this kind. I give it a 6.5/10. If you don't expect too much, this is an enjoyable movie. -
Rammstein-221 January 2000(Spoiler included, some would say)
This film is not possible to take seriously. At some parts it is so awfully stupid that I just can't help laughing at it all. Try me for the sequence where Stallone's character jumps some 20 meters with full climbing gear or (and this is really my favorite) snuffs a bad guy by sticking him onto a stalactite. Yeah, what ungodly strength did he muster to accomplish such feats? I dunno, but he sure gives reality a run for the money. -
AwesomeWolf13 May 2005I don't think I'll ever understand the hate for Renny Harlin. 'Die Hard 2' was cool, and he gave the world 'Cliffhanger', one of the most awesome action movies ever. That's right, you little punks, 'Cliffhanger' rules, and we all know it.
Sly plays Gabe Walker, a former rescue climber who is 'just visiting' his old town when he is asked to help a former friend, Hal Tucker (Michael Rooker), assist in a rescue on a mountain peak. Walker obviously came back at a convenient time, because the stranded people are actually a sophisticated team of thieves led by Eric Qualen (John Lithgow). Qualen & co. have lost a whole lot of money they stole from the U.S. government somewhere in the Rocky Mountains and they really would like it back...
Essentially, 'Cliffhanger' is another 'Die Hard' clone. Just trade in the confines of Nakatomi Plaza to the open mountain ranges of the Rocky Mountains, complete with scenes created to point out the weaknesses of our hero and keep him mortal. Naturally, that set up is totally ripped to shreds soon enough, as Stallone's character avoids quite a large number of bullets with ease, and slams face-first into several rock faces with no apparent side-effects. After all, isn't that what action movies are all about?
'Cliffhanger' is one of the most exciting action movies around. A showcase of great scenes and stunts. One of the early stunts is one of the best stunts I've ever seen in a movie, and while the rest of the movie does not get any better than it did at the beginning, it maintains its action awesomeness. John Lithgow's lead villain is entertaining, and one bad dude. Quite possibly one of the coolest lead villains ever.
'Cliffhanger' is easily one of Stallone's best efforts, definitely Renny Harlin's best effort, and a very exciting action movie - 9/10 -
sddavis6312 January 2009Overall, I thought this was a pretty passable action/adventure movie that featured a bit of an outlandish story about a group of international criminals who steal millions of dollars from a US Treasury plane and then have to depend on a couple of mountain rescuers to help them find it after a crash. The movie featured pretty good performances from the very versatile John Lithgow as the mastermind criminal Eric Qualen, as well as from the generally one-dimensional (read Rocky Balboa) Sylvester Stallone as climber Gabe Walker, who overcomes a tragedy at the start of the movie to become the great hero by the end. There was some pretty exciting action that was scattered throughout the movie, thus keeping the viewer interested, a lot of bad guys to root against, and a good supporting performance from Michael Rooker as Walker's rescuer sidekick Hal Tucker. In addition to the outlandish plot, there were a few things that just didn't work for me. Why it was decided that this movie needed to include a couple of pretty typical "stoner-type" characters is a bit beyond me. The two kids added nothing to the movie and really served only to irritate me. Then there was the absolutely unnecessary (and at least mercifully brief) bat-scene in the crack through which Walker and Jessie (Janine Turner) were crawling. That also accomplished nothing except allowing any bat-squeamish viewers to go "eeewww" when Walker sticks his hand in guano and the bats start to fly at them. Finally, does anyone actually believe that John Lithgow could hold his own in a fistfight with Sylvester Stallone the way the respective characters did at the end of this movie? Not likely, in my opinion. For all that, for a movie with a story that was at best very limited, this movie was fun most of the way through, which gains it a 7/10.
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Somewhere in this mess of poorly-executed action sequences and implausible plot turns, two characters duke it out in a cavern. At the fight's climax, one character lifts the other above his head and, as he screams and squirms, slowly impales him on a blunt stalactite. As I watched, the only thought that came to me was, "That's exactly what I feel like watching this movie."
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When Hal Tucker's girlfriend dies in a botched mountain rescue, Gabe blames himself and leaves. Years later he returns for his own girlfriend. Meanwhile a cash transfer by plane gets hijacked and the cases are lost in the mountains. The hijackers use Tucker and Gabe to recover the mountain however Gabe escapes and must get the cases before the criminals to in order to bargain for Hal's life.
Stallone's sort of semi-come back film, Cliffhanger is yet another `Die Hard in a ' type film. However that doesn't mean it's bad on the contrary it's quite good. The opening 10 minutes sets out the stall well heights, good visuals and real fear. However this doesn't hold and soon we are back in standard thriller mode with Stallone picking off the gang one by one in a Die Hard fashion. This is all still fun if formulaic and the director uses the vertigo inducing locations well.
All the Die Hard trademarks are there the one liners, the multinational villains, big shoot outs etc. Most of it is really good and while it never gets to the heights of Die Hard in terms of action or tension, it is solid entertainment none the less.
The cast is a strange mix. Stallone is OK as the hero he can do this tough, wisecracking stuff in his sleep (and seems to occasionally). Lithgow is actually quite good, isn't the way that the bad guys have the best parts! `You want to kill me don't you?' he asks at one point `well, take a number and get in line'. Corny tough guy lines but hammy enough to be good. The rest are weird Turner (from Northern Exposure) is ok but then we have Craig Fairbrass from Eastenders!
Overall it's not as good as Die Hard and it's open setting prevents real tension or claustrophobia but it's still very enjoyable. Solid enjoyment without too much flash although it is a downside that the best bit is over in the first 10 minutes. -
ajaws4ever17 September 2006Cliffhanger is one of the best action thrillers ever made. It stars Sylvester Stallone, John Lithgow, Michael Rooker, and Janine Turner. Excellent acting and outstanding special effects really bring out the excellence in this film. Intensity and sheer terror really bring out the thrills in this film.
Sylvester Stallone is the perfect action-rescuer guy, John Lithgow is the perfect bad guy that uses guns, fiery explosives, and extreme violence to win the thing he desperately craves. I'M NOT GIVING ANYTHING AWAY! I strongly recommend that NOBODY under the age of 14 see this film. It's violence level is on the heavy scale and the language is on the extreme scale and it's terror is on the terrifying scale. There is a lot of blood and gunshots in this movie. There was a lot of 'F' words and 'motherf***er' works too. And the terror...terrifying.
This movie has non-stop action from it's frightening beginning to it's explosive conclusion. It's conclusion is explosive, but very short and very mediocre. Well, I mean the ending is literally explosive, if you know what I mean. The director could have done more with the ending. But otherwise, this movie is filled with violence and terror and fiery explosives that makes this one of the best action-adventure-thrillers ever made.
Spectacular, intense, strong, pulse-pounding, heart-stomping, throat-tightening, great, awesome, sweet, incredulous, super, brilliant, and very violent!
Violence/Gore: 10/10, Sex/Nudity: 1/10, Profanity: 9/10, Drugs/Alcohol: 2/10
Original MPAA rating: R: Violence and Language
My MPAA rating: R: Brutal Violence, Strong Language, and A Scene of Sheer Terror
My Canadian Rating: 18A: Extreme Violence, Frightening Scenes, Coarse Language -
SnoopyStyle13 April 2014Gabe Walker (Sylvester Stallone) is an expert mountain climber. While rescuing injured friend Hal Tucker (Michael Rooker), equipment failure causes the death of Hal's girlfriend. Gabe is haunted by the death and blames himself. Eight months later, a government plane transporting bulk money is hijacked. However the 3 suitcases of $100M are lost in the aerial transfer. The criminal gang led by Eric Qualen (John Lithgow) crash lands. Gabe and Hal are tricked into rescuing the gang, and are kidnapped to track down the suitcases.
The money transfer looks silly when the whole hijacking is suppose to be thrilling. However the climbing chase in the mountains has its thrills and its spills. In the end, it's a fun little ride and probably better than one might expect from this standard B-movie. -
slightlymad2225 January 2016Continuing my plan to watch every Sly Stallone movie in order, I come to 1993's Cliffhanger.
Whilst his muscle bound rival, Arnold Schwarzenegger was scoring huge with Terminator 2 in his last movie, Sly's movies were tanking and tanking hard. So after coming to terms with the fact he wasn't going to score a hit movie with comedies, and unable to return to the safety net of Rocky and Rambo (after the last movies under performed) Sly returned to the action genre, more in need of a hit than ever.
Plot In A Paragraph: A botched mid-air heist results in suitcases full of cash being scattered throughout the Rocky Mountains. Mountain worker Gabe Walker (Stallone) is forced to guide the high jackers (Led by John Lithgow) to the suitcases.
Cliffhanger has one of the greatest openings to a movie ever!! I rate it up there with Jaws, Raiders Of The Lost Ark and Saving Private Ryan! It's that good!!
Renny Harlin is a director who is either great or awful. Thankfully it's the former here, and the action scenes are all brilliantly (if slightly unbelievable) staged. Trevor Jones score is a real winner too.
Despite some awful stunt doubles, some dodgy use of miniatures, and obvious studio sets mixed with real footage, Cliffhanger is very enjoyable. With the exception of an over the top John Lithgow, Rex Linn and Caroline Goodall, who all put in fine turns. The villains are as cardboard, two dimensional and cliché as the come. But this is the Stallone show, and backed up by the always reliable Michael Rooker he is back on top form. OK it's still a bit of a one man army story, but it's certainly more believable than the last Rambo.
He may not be the number one Box Office Star in the world anymore, Kevin Costner, who'd been scoring big in The Untouchables, No Way Out, Bull Durham, Field Of Dreams, JFK, Robin Hood: Prince Of Thieves, The Bodyguard and the Oscar winning Dances With Wolves (which he directed) whilst Sly movies under performed, had over taken over him as the biggest movie star on the planet. And rival Schwarzenegger was doing better than him too, thanks to Predator, Total Recall and T2, but Cliffhanger proves that back in the action hero role, Sly still had it in him to deliver the goods. -
If you think about it, agent Travers only needs Kristel, her co-pilot Mike, the Treasury Jet Pilot and Qualen (with his international connections to move the currency) for his plan.
He doesn't need the rest. The less people involved, the more money for agent Travers. -
hitchcockthelegend15 March 2008Gabe Walker (Sylvester Stallone) is an expert climber, but after a tragic incident leaves a girl dead, he leaves the mountains to get his head together. After his self imposed break he returns in the hope of rekindling a relationship with Jessie (Janine Turner). Whilst at the rescue centre he is called to help a group who are stranded in the mountains, he agrees to help out this one last time, unaware that the group in the mountains are heavily armed murderous thieves and they need help of another kind...
Directed by Renny Harlin, this is one of those films that shows that Stallone once had box office clout as big as his bodily frame. It's a delightful no brain action film that delivers royally to those with a bent for the action genre. What really lifts Clifhanger above average is the wonderful use of suspenseful situations. The film opens with a quite breath taking sequence and then kicks on to literally have us hanging on by our fingernails. The bad guys are deliciously over the top, none more so than the bullishly nasty John Lithgow as Eric Qualen, whilst Sly gets beefcake support from the ever reliable Michael Rooker. Cinematography by Alex Thomson is gorgeous as he brings to life the Cortina d'Ampezzo area of the Dolomites in Italy. Score is by Trevor Jones, who keeps it orchestral as he lifts from his own work for Last of the Mohicans, which in turn is mixed with what sounds like the lead theme of Alan Silvestri's work on Predator.
Slam bang action, tense fraught moments, and a script written with knowing tongue in cheek persuasion, Cliffhanger literally does ROCK. 7.5/10 -
Horst_In_Translation12 December 2014"Cliffhanger" is one of the most seen films from 1993. It reached no°10 in the box office ranking from that year. The director is Renny Harlin from Finland who has worked on several sequels to classic movies including "Die Hard", "Nightmare on Elm Street" and "The Exorcist". The script comes from John Long, Michael France and lead actor Stallone himself. For some reason, the Razzie Awards decided to nominate this movie in several categories, which is pretty ridiculous as it is by no means a bad movie. John Lithgow is a great villain (as we know from "Dexter") and Janine Turner gives a decent performance as well. The Razzies really messed up by nominating these two as well as the screenplay and film itself. Turner was probably cast as she played the central character in an Alaska-based television series which was very successful at that point. Snow content seems to be her thing.
The movie centers on Sylvester Stallone, who is sometimes displayed as almost too perfect here. Even when he fails to rescue a woman in the first thirteen minutes, we see that he did everything right. Everybody sees that except him and Rooker's ("The Walking Dead", I did not recognize him though) character. That's why the friendship of the two men is also a crucial emotional plot point as the film goes on. The two go on an extraordinary journey when they get kidnapped by a group of criminals deep in the snowy mountains and have to help the thugs to get back some suitcases full of money.
All in all, I enjoyed watching these 105 minutes. It's pretty good entertainment. There are minor flaws: For example, I did not understand really the inclusion of the two young guys in the mountains who added absolutely nothing to the story. Other than that, I can certainly recommend watching this film and I am not even a great Stallone fan. The fact that I knew Lynn and Lithgow (and these two had major roles) helped me a lot in appreciating this film I guess. Visually, it is pretty nice too. The snowy mountain landscapes are great to watch and I can see how this movie scored three Academy Award nominations. By the way, it lost the entire trio to "Jurassic Parc". I recommend watching it. The first 15 minutes are certainly one of the best intros to any 1990s movie. -
There are some Stallone movies I like, but this movie didn't meet my low expectations. I found this movie hard to believe. For example, a bunch of terrorists who crash land in the wilderness are prepared to survive for at least two days. Also, in all this wilderness Stallone and company keep running across bridges and ladders that provide convenient short-cuts or plot devices. Also, the Treasury cops don't seem to coordinate anything with the local rescue people. Also, bad guys who couldn't hit the side of a barn with really high-tech looking automatic weapons.
I liked John Lithgow's villain initially, but the character is such a complete psychopath that he doesn't care at all about any of his own bad guys, or all of them getting killed. Eventually I just couldn't believe the character anymore.
Not worth the price of a rental, not even worth taking the time to watch. -
NightmareOnElmStreetFan23 October 2019Cliffhanger is Stallone's best action 90's movie of all time! I love this film to death, it is one of my personal favorite action movies and personal favorite Stallone movies. It is practical, they are practical dangerous stunts. They are real models, the real Rocky Mountains not CGI graphic dated. The scene locations were filmed in Rome, Lazio, Italy. They are the real Rocky Mountains, tough the movie is set in Colorado, USA. Everyone of the cast even director did an amazing job. It is man vs nature vs hijackers, "Die Hard" on a mountains.
"Your friend just had the most expensive funeral in history..."
Directed was by Renny Harlin and this is my favorite movie of the director. He made so many good movies in his career that are my favorite movies. A Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Master, Die Hard 2, Cliffhanger, The Long Kiss Goodnight, Deep Blue Sea, Mindhunters and Skiptrace. Real good movies that are my favorite. Sylvester Stallone is Gabe Walker a rescue climber who becomes involved in the failed heist of a U.S. Treasury plane flying through the Rocky Mountains. Another movie that put Stallone in the underdog character. I would put this movie between Rocky, Rambo: First Blood and Over the Top because Stallone plays that kind a characters. Gabe becomes Rocky when he fight the nature, he climbs up the wall without his climbing gear in a t-shirt whithout his jacket. He becomes one man army after the hijcakers kidnapps his friend Hale Tucker (Michael Rooker) and force him to search three suitcases full of money. Gabe knows after they will located and get the money they will kill his friend and he has to get to the suitcases first.
In the opening scene we have attempted rescue failure when the hero Gabe fails to save the girlfriend Sarah (Michelle Joyner) and he drops her of the cable into her death. This is the first time in the opening scene we see a hero failing to save a life. "Gabe" Walker, a former mountain climber and rescue ranger. This is my fvaorite character Stallone played. The movie earned over $255,000,211 it was another year of Stallone. In 1985 Rambo: First Blood Part II and Rocky IV both earned over $300.000,000 Cliffhanger is another successful movie that put Stallone on the top of his career.
Sylvester Stallone is excellent as the lead role, his acting ability is professional and a bad-ass. In here Gabe Walker dosen't use guns or knives he uses his mind and he has to fight for survival againts the nature and criminals in the Rocky Mountains. John Lithgow was excellent as Eric Qualen fantastic job as the bad guy. Michael Rooker is fantastic as the good guy Hal Tucker love his acting performance. Janine Turner as Jessie Deighan, Walker's love interest is gorgeous and likable I like her, I really like that she try to help those people I love her. Exccellent performance ever. Caroline Goodall as Kristel was another likable actress that I like her. She was talented as the villian. Rex Linn as Richard Travers was excelelnt villian he was in CSI: Miami and Rush Hour he was great. Ralph Waite R.I.P. as Frank was another likable actor that I love. Max Perlich and Trey Brownell were great as Gabe's friends I love them when they talkwith gabe in the opening sequence. Leon Robinson as Kynette was a bad-ass henchman I love him.
The mountains I love the snow the night scenes. There was a stuntman that was hierd to jump off the plane without parachute he slide the cable in to other plane. That was for real, he was payed $1.000.000 and he did that stunt only once. You have an explosion on the bridge that explodes practical explosion. You have bats in the cave in which Gabe and Jessie accidently discover them. Actually the dialogue reminds us on "First Blood" Two of Qualen's men start fighting and Qualen breaks the off and says the fight is not here, it's over thetre.". The same dialouge was used in First Blood when Ward and Mitch fight each other and Teasle says "The fight's out here!" Great action, wonderful practical effects, excellent stunts, great direction and great acting from everyone. They are three explosions in this movie. Agent Travers shot with a machine gun a rabbit but rabbit survives in here. In the workrprint cut the bunny is shot to pieces. Stallone re model the bunny and change the effect that the bunny survives because Sly loves animlas like Jean.-Claude Van Damme. My favorite scene in the movie is fight between Stallone and Kynette (Leon) the henchmamn kicks Walker's but I love when Gabe granbs the guy hold him nad stab him like in a slasher horror movie. Even Kynette's knive looked like Rambo's knive. The bridge scene is fantastic filmed when Gabe Walker set's a trap wire off handcuffed with C4 he runs you see Sly running with an explosion on the bridge. Great choreography.
I love this movie to death. One of my personal favorite action film of all time. This is my movie my action movie it means everything to me. Stallone fan for life. I love the music score from Trevor Jones. It is Rated R for violence and language. For 1993 it is not a dated movie it come out the same year as Demolition Man, Hard Target and Jurassic Park my favorite movies of al time, they are my movies. I have this movie on Blu-ray disc I have 2 copy's of Cliffhanger on Blu-ray. In 2015 I watch this movie with my dad he loved the film too. Cliffhanger it is a thrill seeking action in the mountains. This movie get's perfect 10! -
skullislandsurferdotcom2 February 2012The opening scene, as intrepid rescue worker Sylvester Stallone attempts saving a woman hanging onto a cable connected from a really high mountaintop to a helicopter, sets a nice stage to one of the better (or perhaps the only decent) Sly action flicks during the 1990s.
Cut to a group of T-MEN embarking on a plane trip to move three suitcases of money, and wouldn't you know: they just happen to crash on the same mountain where Stallone had worked before quitting and, eight months later, returning for his woman. But she's content with the same job as a rescuer who, along with Michael Rooker, Ralph Waite and a reluctant Stallone, is thrust into "saving" the plane-wrecked villains led by a really nasty John Lithgow, who really wants the money residing in various locations throughout the storm-ridden mountaintops. And it's up to Stallone and Rooker to recover it, or else.
Stallone makes for a worthy action hero, which is no surprise, but since you can tell he's doing most of his own stunts in genuinely dangerous settings, his physicality, along with Renny Harlin's weaving camera, makes for a star-director collaboration that, although loaded with corny dialog, is a fun ride. With every scene there's another goon to thwart (including Rex Linn in a great performance) and a new peak to climb.
Janine Turner is more than eye-candy as Stallone's independently daring girlfriend, while John Lithgow not only chews the scenery but blows bubbles with it. And that's okay – because even the silly stuff works.
For More Reviews: www.cultfilmfreaks.com -
The-Sarkologist18 November 2011Well, this movie did not really live up to its title. To me a movie can't really be a cliffhanger because we are watching everything in one straight shot. Doctor Who on the other hand was brilliant at just simply leaving the story hanging drawing the audience back the next night, or week, to see how the situation was resolved. Cliffhanger was not like that. It did not keep me gripping my seat and the only thing I was waiting for was for the bad guy Qualin (John Lithgow) to die and the movie to end.
I could end here because to me there wasn't much in this movie that I have not seen before. The scenery didn't thrill me and the cinematography wasn't all that crash hot (unlike Bad Boys where it is brilliant). The reviewers seemed to have loved this movie but personally it may have been breathtaking in the cinema, but it was not at all breath taking for me. Stallone's character does not need a name because the character is simply Stallone. He is a very good actor but when directors cast him to be the typical brutal action hero then I am not really impressed. Tango and Cash was not Stallone and that is what I liked. Here he was a typical clichéd hero in a different role, where as he might be a cop in one movie, he is a mountain man here. No real point to it.
John Lithgow and his gang of thugs are pretty poor. They are just too brutal and evil to really catch my interest. They may have been cool and calculating in the air, but on the ground in the mountains they are just desperate, sadistic, and just running around with signs on their back saying "kill me please!" John Lithgow puts it aptly in his line, "I guess you want to kill me, well take a number and get in line." That is in line behind all of the audience who simply want to see him dead for being such a pathetic bad guy. Bad guys are supposed to have style and sophistication. They supposed to know what they are doing and have a goal in mind. They are also supposed to be intelligent, especially if they are able to pull off a mid-air heist such as the one the pulled in this movie. Lithgow is none of these, he even lacks the intelligence to know that you don't kill, or even intimidate your guides. You play it nice and easy. But if they were to do that then there would be little room for your stunts. Personally, I could probably rewrite this movie to make it much better.