Rating: 
Summary: MOUNTAIN MADNESS...
Review: I love climbing books. I love climbing movies. Therefore, I was thrilled when this movie came out. It is an action packed, edge of your seat, high altitude climbing film. No doubt about it. There is even a cameo appearance by mountaineer Ed Viesters. The only real problem with the film is the plot. It is downright unbelievable, at times. If, however, you can suspend disbelief, you will still enjoy this film. I know that I did.The film revolves around a brother and sister, played by Chris O'Donnell and Robin Tunney, who are estranged following the death of their father while climbing. His death scene is a real nail biter, as it deals with a situation that a climber hopes never occurs. Three years later, the sister is climbing professionally, while the brother has retired from climbing and is, instead, working as a photographer for National Geographic. He and his sister inadvertently meet up on K2, the second highest peak in the world and probably the most perilous to climb, while he is on assignment for National Geographic, and she is there to climb. The sister is set to climb K2 as part of the climbing team put together by a millionaire played by Bill Paxton. For him, K2 is a trophy mountain, and he plans to climb it with the intention of reaching the summit just as the inaugural flight of the airline he owns is flying overhead. He has put together an ace team, but, alas, K2 has a mind of its own. While climbing, they are overtaken by a storm, after the millionaire disregards his lead climber's warning that the team should turn back. The sister ends up falling into a crevasse. An avalanche kills off the rest of the team, except for the lead climber and the millionaire, who join the sister in the crevasse. Hypoxic and injured, they maintain radio contact with base camp and let them know of their predicament. The brother now steps up to home plate. Organizing a six person, rescue team led by a stereotypic mountain man, wonderfully played by Scott Glenn in a standout performance, the brother sets out to rescue his baby sister, and the fun begins. The climbers each set out with a canister of nitroglycerine, as they plan to set off the nitroglycerine in order to get the three surviving climbers out of the crevasse which has been covered over by the avalanche. Give yourself over to the dazzling mountain views, the stunning, hair raising, mountains madness, and try to ignore the silly plot. Anyone who knows anything about mountains would know that setting off explosives on snow packed slopes is tantamount to an open invitation to avalanche, something no climber wants. Notwithstanding this, get set for an action packed adventure. Despite the silly plot, it is an otherwise entertaining and enjoyable film. If the crunch of crampons on ice is in your blood, if you love the idea of an ice axe saving you from a fall thousands of feet off a cliff, if the idea of a cornice breaking off, while you are standing on it, is a challenge to your climbing skills, then this is definitely the movie for you. If the words avalanche, hypoxia, and pulmonary edema are all in your everyday vocabulary, then you, too, will enjoy this film. If you just like action packed adventure, make sure you also see this film. I am sure that you will enjoy it. The DVD itself is an excellent value. It comes laden with a number of special features, including a National Geographic special on K2, featuring Jim Wickwire and Rick Ridgeway who, in 1978, along with Lou Reichardt and John Roskelley, were the first Americans ever to reach the summit of K2. The DVD also shows you how some of the stunts in the film were done. All in all, this DVD is well worth buying, and the film is well worth watching.
Rating: 
Summary: The Trailer was more Entertaining than the Film.
Review: "Vertical Limit" is a Fun Thrill Ride, which is to be Expected, some might also want a bit of Depth, or Character. Those who do will feel somewhat Letdown. Characters with Real Emotion and Reactions, Characters who we learn about and grow to care, if your looking for Characters like these.. Look Elsewhere. If your looking for two hours of Mindless Action and Thrills.. Look no Further. The Cinematography is Mind-Blowing, the Stunts are Unbelievable, Martin Campbell's Direction is pretty Standard Issue for him and the "Personality-Plus" Supporting Cast are Three times more interesting than then "Dull-as-Dishwater" Leads. (Chris O'Donnell and Robin Tunney are as Bland and Lifeless as 2 Stale pieces of Toast) If you go in expecting Cardboard Characters, Explosions, Close Calls and Inane Dialogue, you'll have a Great Time. If you Expect More.. I'll keep an Eye out for your 2 star review. P.S. If you've seen the Preview, you've virtually seen the film.
Rating: 
Summary: Without Limits
Review: I remember hearing some really bad things about this movie, and being the climbing maniac that I am, I decided I had to see for myself. And although there were some obvious flaws (how could Peter survive the Death Zone when he had no previous high altitude acclimatization?) I found that this movie erased many stereotypes about climbing movies created by "Cliffhanger". I enjoyed the actors' performances, especially Scott Glenn (whom I had never heard of before seeing this movie). His character, the legendary, yet reclusive sage Montgomery Wick, reluctantly agrees to lend his efforts to Peter's rescue group. Wick comes across as being rather harsh, and unkindly, but in the later scenes of the film, everything changes. (There's one part in the film that I can't get out of my head: when Wick finds his long-lost wife, Myama, frozen in the snow.) I also like the fact that all of the actors actually CLIMBED, although the film was shot on Mount Cook in New Zealand, not the real dreaded K2. I liked how they were realisitc in the fact that after prolonged exposure in the Death Zone, you will almost certainly get pulmonary edema, and will die shortly after. I also like the fact that it's not a boyfriend who's girlfriend is climbing the mountain, so he HAS to help her because he loves her. Yes, Peter loves Annie, but because they're siblings. There is a nice blend between family conflict and the extreme of the mountain, not to mention that even if you hate the movie, the music'll at least jolt you to attention.
Rating:
Summary: The film the made me a Chris O'Donnell fan
Review: I loved Vertical Limit! I think all the actors, especially Chris O'Donnell, Robin Tunney, and Bill Paxton, did a terrific job playing their parts. I was very impressed with the music, the cinematography, the stunts, and the acting. There were a few things that were a bit unrealistic, like the nytro. Wouldn't that have killed Annie instead of helped her? Also, the climbers would've shown a lot more fatigue at 26000 feet, but I'll let that go, considering that probably no one connected with the movie grew up already at 9000 feet and surrounded by mountains. Also, wouldn't Peter have given himself a heart attack doing that jump? You can't run that fast at 26000 feet. I tried it at 15000 and i almost couldn't handle it, even though i'm 18 and pretty much physically fit. But at least Chris O'Donnell looked totally awesome doing it. Go Chris! That's what counts in moviemaking. Vertical Limit wasn't perfect, but it sure made me want to go out mountain climbing, and that's the effect any good mountain movie should have on a person. I even went to see it twice...
Rating: 
Summary: MOUNT MUSH-MORE
Review: As the movie opens, Chris O'Donnell, who is doing his best to imatate Tom Cruise from the beginning of MI2, must make a life or death decision. This is a scene that is very reminiscent from that other rock climbing movie, Cliffhanger, At that point. I thought, this can't be good. The plot has enough holes in it to drive anyone crazy. (Why would you risk 6 lives to save 3? Just to have a large body count at the end?) The acting in the film is o.k. at best considering the script, its the best one could hope for. Director Martin Campbell, who revived the James Bond franchise with the excellent GOLDENEYE, certainly knows what he is doing. The action stuff in the film is flawless and very exciting to watch. My problem with the film is with its quieter moments when Chris O'Donnell, Bill Paxton, or Scott Glenn try and spit out the sappy or villianous dialogue they were given. All three actors seemed very uncomfortable. O'Donnell just isn't ready to carry a movie like this. What saves the DVD for me are the extras; The commentary track was very engaging and informative, The best though is the How they do it footage Watching Campbell work his magic is a joy. I just wish the movie wasn't so "been there done that" If you must see this film, leave your brain at the door, or skip the movie and go right to the special features
Rating:
Summary: Um...I don't think this movie was meant to be funny
Review: I enjoyed this movie tremendously. My friends and I were rolling on the floor laughing our heads off! However, since it was supposed to be a thriller, I think that maybe the director should be locked in a box and NOT allowed to make any more adventure films. The plot went something like this: Pretty boy Peter Garret has to lead a rescue mission to save his estranged sister and her team who have been trapped by an avalanche. The 'rescuers' plan to climb up the mountain where Peter's sister' team is trapped carrying Nitro they have obtained from the Pakistani military to blast them out of the ice cave they're stuck in. This involves jumping out of a moving helicopter with Nitro strapped to their legs and some how not getting blown up. If you want a good laugh, buy this movie. If you want a real adventure film, don't.
Rating:
Summary: Exceeded My Expectations
Review: One's opinion of a movie after you've seen it is as much influenced by your expectations going in as it is by the actual worth of the movie. "Vertical Limit" is an excellent example of this. Going in I expected this to be a completely worthless movie. Disaster movies are certainly not my favorite genre and are even less dull than good guy versus bad guy shoot 'em up films. While "Vertical Limit" certainly won't win any awards, it was not nearly as bad as I anticipated. "Vertical Limit"'s story revolves around Peter and Annie Garrett, played by Chris O'Donnell and Robin Tunney respectively. The Garretts are siblings with a background in climbing. On a climb out west an accident occurs which forces Peter to cut the rope holding his father to save himself and his sister. We flash forward several years to Pakistan where Peter has become a photographer for "National Geographic". He hasn't done any climbing since his father's death. Annie in the meantime has garnered many accolades for her climbing achievements and has agreed to assist a wealthy businessman named Elliot Vaughn (Bill Paxton) to the top of K2, the second tallest mountain in the world. Vaughn has a promotional tie-in with his climb. He must get to the top at all costs. A storm rolls in during the climb and three of the climbers; Annie, Vaughn, and Tom McLaren (Nicholas Lea); become trapped on the mountain by an avalanche. Peter decides to get up a rescue effort to save his sister. He manages to round up five other climbers including the reclusive Montgomery Wick (Scott Glenn) who lives on the moutain while searching for his dead wife's body. She was killed while leading another expedition of which Vaughn was a member. Wick suspects that Vaughn has had something to do with his wife's death. From here the movie descends into the predictable "overcoming one disaster after another" scenario familiar to this genre. For some reason though, most of the action in "Vertical Limit" doesn't seemed contrived or hokey, which often happens with these films. Perhaps it's because I myself am not a climber and not familiar with the conditions often faced by such people; but, when I saw a similar movie named "Cliffhanger", it did seem contrived and hokey so I don't think this is the reason. I'm not what you would call a fan of O'Donnell. I don't think he's a bad actor but he certainly is not going to win an Oscar any time soon. However, I think his tendency for understatement works well in this film. He allows the scenery and action sequences to speak for themselves while he allows the action to take him along. He doesn't give his lines like they are Shakespearean in origin but he does give them the weight of importance to keep you from laughing at them. Perhaps O'Donnell has found his niche with this movie. The majority of the action and especially the climax of the movie were largely predictable. However, that does not really detract from "Vertical Limit". It may have been my low expectations coming in but I give this disaster flick a passing grade.
Rating:
Summary: An intense movie that sometimes treads dangerous slopes
Review: I got to see this movie at the theatres when it was released back in late 2000 and although I was not expecting anything all that great "Vertical Limit" nonetheless was a half-way decent movie that is an adrenaline rush for action fans, but at the same time was a bit awkward at times. It begins with Peter Garrett and his sister Annie with their father in the deserts of Arizona and they are climbing a huge mesa but a horrible accident occurs and threatens to kill all of them and their father sacrifices his own life to save his two children by cutting the rope which results in him falling to his death.
Flash forward many years later, things take place in the cold unrelenting winds of K2, the world's second highest mountain but also the most dangerous, Peter and Annie Garrett now adults set out on their adventure to conquer the treacherous peak but the attempt goes horribly wrong when the woman climber falls into a vast ice crevice far away from any nearby camps due to an avalanche, and is stuck in a ice crevice underneath unstable ice forms which threaten to collapse at any moment and time is against them as the raging winds, isolation, and extreme cold threaten to kill the entire crew if it goes wrong. This movie on a casual note is really quite good because of it's vivid portrayal of the dangers of mountiain climbing especially with climbing some of the worlds highest peaks like K2 which is in fact even more dangerous to climb that Mt. Everest. The overall tone is very intense and not to mention scary as h.e.l.l. The acting at times though is a bit hammy especially by Robin Tunney and Chris O'Donnell. Scott Glenn as the mysterious mountain dweller though was really good and the character was really something to see. The superbit Collection has really excellent sound quality and the 5.1 DTS sound when connected to the stereo will make you feel almost like you are back at the theatre watching this movie all over again on the big screen.
Rating: 
Summary: So bad it was funny!
Review: This movie sucked. Who wants to watch some random bimbo and a scary rich guy stuck up in an ice cave? It's annoying! And all the cool characters got blown up before this abysmal movie was halfway over.
And then there's the plot. Carrying Nitro up a mountain is a very very very stupid thing to do. I can't believe that someone actually thought this up as a storyline. First of all, if you jump out of a moving helicopter with Nitro strapped to your back, you will explode. However, none of the characters who did this were incinerated as they obviously would have been in real life. In fact, no one got blown up because they tripped and smashed their Nitro. Oh no! One guy died because he dropped his Nitro over a cliff and it started an avalanche, two other guys died because they left their Nitro out in the sun and it ignited (does Nitro really react to sunlight??) and the last two dudes died 'cause this one dude cut the climbing rope. It was stupid. I've said that before.
Basically, DON'T WATCH THIS!
If you want a real mountain climbing experiance, read Into Thin Air!
Rating:
Summary: Funny Rather than Thrilling; Not a Bad Bit of Entertainment
Review: Vertical Limit does not accomplish its goals as a action/suspense thriller, yet in itself it is still an entertaining movie. The acting isn't half bad--much better than could be expected of films of similar quality. What kills this movie is the plot and the details. Characters die off for little good reason other than to say, "Look, mountain climbing is dangerous, particularly when you have sun, heat, and shock-sensitive nitroglycerine on your back!" Fun factoid: the Pakistani military apparently keeps this stuff on hand for some reason and is happy to lend it out to would-be mountain rescuers. The screenplay is done in typical thriller movie fashion and actually doesn't deviate much from the tried and true formula by drawing the movie out beyond its proper end or other typical blunders. Basically, a party stranded and in grave danger of death due to freezing, altitude sicknesses, etc., must be rescued; the ambitious leader of the lost party of course cares only for himself and becomes a bad guy really overwhelmed by the antagonist represented by the forces of nature. In the end, parts of the movie supposed to build suspense end up instead giving a few good laughs due to poor execution. I don't think I was ever on the edge of my seat--much less the edge of a cliff--during this film, but I was entertained. I enjoy this film for "bad movie" nights a la Mystery Science Theater 3000, but I cannot recommend it for casual viewing. Still, if action films are your genre and you've exhausted the field, you might want to give this one a try.
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