Cliffhanger was an entertaining and spectacular action adventure movie full of incredible stunts. Directed by Renny Harlin (Die Hard 2) and starring Sylvester Stallone in one of his best movies of his career, Cliffhanger was one of the biggest box hits of 1993.
Haunted by a tragic accident during a rescue gone wrong, ranger Gabe Walker (Sylvester Stallone) leaves town until he returns 8 months later to collect his things and continue to move on. His girlfriend Jessie (Janine Turner) wants to stay and doesn't want to leave town with Gabe. Gabe's former friend Hal Tucker (Michael Rooker) holds Gabe responsible for the death of his girlfriend Sarah (Michelle Joyner) after she fell to her death at the start of the movie. Meanwhile, a mid air heist goes awry involving an air to air transfer of three cases with a total of $100 million. The heist was masterminded by former Intelligence Officer Eric Qualan (John Lithgow) along with the assistance of turncoat US Treasury Agent Richard Travers (Rex Linn). The suitcases containing the money fall into separate locations in the mountains and their plane crashes after a federal agent opens fire on the plane despite being mortally wounded. Faking a distress call by pretending to be lost hikers, Gabe and Hal head to the site and are taken hostage by Eric Qualan and his group of thieves (Caroline Goodall, Leon, Craig Fairbrass, Gregory Scott Cummins, and Denis Forrest). Gabe and Hal are ordered to help the thieves find the suitcases full of the stolen money. Gabe manages to escape after Eric tries to kill him, but Hal is left to guide them to the remaining suitcases. Gabe starts to outsmart the thieves picking them off one by one as he battles to stop Eric Qualan and to rescue Hal.
After a string of box office flops including Rocky V (1990), Oscar (1991) and Stop! Or My Mum Will Shoot (1992), Cliffhanger would be a big comeback vehicle for Sylvester Stallone, which would also turn out to be one of the biggest hits of his career. John Lithgow was delightfully evil as the mercenary Eric Qualan.
The rest of the cast includes Ralph Waite, Paul Winfield, Bruce McGill and Zach Grenier.
Director Renny Harlin created a spectacular action adventure on screen. The mid air heist would be one of the most expensive stunts in history with a stuntman ziplining between two aeroplanes at an Altitude of 15,000 feet. The stunt itself cost $1 million. The stunt even earned a spot in the Guinness World Records as the "most expensive stunt performed in the air".
Cliffhanger would have been a good movie to watch at the cinema however I was only 9 and my parents were wary about the movie. We did later watch it on VHS and we enjoyed the movie. 30 years on, Cliffhanger is a fun movie from start to finish which has aged very well. Suspend any disbelief and have a great time.
7/10.
Haunted by a tragic accident during a rescue gone wrong, ranger Gabe Walker (Sylvester Stallone) leaves town until he returns 8 months later to collect his things and continue to move on. His girlfriend Jessie (Janine Turner) wants to stay and doesn't want to leave town with Gabe. Gabe's former friend Hal Tucker (Michael Rooker) holds Gabe responsible for the death of his girlfriend Sarah (Michelle Joyner) after she fell to her death at the start of the movie. Meanwhile, a mid air heist goes awry involving an air to air transfer of three cases with a total of $100 million. The heist was masterminded by former Intelligence Officer Eric Qualan (John Lithgow) along with the assistance of turncoat US Treasury Agent Richard Travers (Rex Linn). The suitcases containing the money fall into separate locations in the mountains and their plane crashes after a federal agent opens fire on the plane despite being mortally wounded. Faking a distress call by pretending to be lost hikers, Gabe and Hal head to the site and are taken hostage by Eric Qualan and his group of thieves (Caroline Goodall, Leon, Craig Fairbrass, Gregory Scott Cummins, and Denis Forrest). Gabe and Hal are ordered to help the thieves find the suitcases full of the stolen money. Gabe manages to escape after Eric tries to kill him, but Hal is left to guide them to the remaining suitcases. Gabe starts to outsmart the thieves picking them off one by one as he battles to stop Eric Qualan and to rescue Hal.
After a string of box office flops including Rocky V (1990), Oscar (1991) and Stop! Or My Mum Will Shoot (1992), Cliffhanger would be a big comeback vehicle for Sylvester Stallone, which would also turn out to be one of the biggest hits of his career. John Lithgow was delightfully evil as the mercenary Eric Qualan.
The rest of the cast includes Ralph Waite, Paul Winfield, Bruce McGill and Zach Grenier.
Director Renny Harlin created a spectacular action adventure on screen. The mid air heist would be one of the most expensive stunts in history with a stuntman ziplining between two aeroplanes at an Altitude of 15,000 feet. The stunt itself cost $1 million. The stunt even earned a spot in the Guinness World Records as the "most expensive stunt performed in the air".
Cliffhanger would have been a good movie to watch at the cinema however I was only 9 and my parents were wary about the movie. We did later watch it on VHS and we enjoyed the movie. 30 years on, Cliffhanger is a fun movie from start to finish which has aged very well. Suspend any disbelief and have a great time.
7/10.