Cliffhanger

Rating:
Summary: Return to Form for Sly
Review: After a string of ill-conceived comedies, Stallone returned to what he did best in 1993; the action junket. Armed this time with a pedigree to prove, and a director that knows his stuff (Renny Harlin), Sly became a box-office sensation once more, and wowed audiences all over the world with this phenomenal thriller.

The acting is average, with a few bright spots; John Lithgow (in his third incarnation as a villain--the others being "Ricochet" and "Raising Cain") overshadowing Stallone in a battle of one-liners, and Michael Rooker, who always manages to put in a solid effort in whatever film he's in. The real star of this movie, however, isn't the superbly filmed action, but the cinematography.

Set in the Italian Dolemites, the scenery is breathtaking--some of the best mountain footage seen in theatres in a long time. When there's a break in the action, you're enthralled by the background, which isn't always the case with any movie, let alone an action flick. Much props to the director for filming most of this movie on location.

The DVD is pretty good, and the commentary track is reasonable--but with DTS sound, and a quality surround system, this movie looks and sounds phenomenal. They've done a great job with the video transfer, considering that DVDs would only become popular about five years after this film was released.

Rating:
Summary: Cliffhanger won't leave you hanging
Review: Sylvester Stallone and John Lithgow star in this exciting adventure with great cinematography and special effects. Gabe Walker (Sylvester Stallone) is an experienced mountain rescue worker trying to retrieve some money that was stolen from the U.S. Treasury. To drive him to catch the thieves even more, they kidnap one of his best friends. Mr. Walker has to find a way to get the money back while also saving his friend's, and his own life.

I like just about all of Sylvester Stallone's movies, but "Cliffhanger" is one of my favorites because it has cool scenery and some of the best special effects. I thought the part where Stallone is underwater while one of the bad guys are watching him from above the frozen surface was one of the best parts. The ending sequence is also well done. John Lithgow puts on a spectacular performance as the main enemy. If you like action movies with great effects and a lot of suspense, I recommend getting "Cliffhanger."

Rating:
Summary: A Guilty Pleasure
Review: Since I am writing this review, I am also publicly confessing to having spent two hours watching Cliffhanger. After this, nothing I suffer in life can be a humiliation.

This movie received four Razzie nominations: Worst picture of the year, worst screenplay (Sylvester Stallone), worst supporting actress (Janine Turner) and worst supporting actor (John Lithgow). There are a couple of injustices here: Stallone was denied his rightful, annual Razzie nomination for worst actor. The jury must have been stacked with Stallone fans that year. And I enjoyed Lithgow's over-the-top turn as the leader of the crooks.

But you can't argue with Janine Turner's (Northern Exposure) nomination: I could have given a better and sexier performance as a female, in spite of being a bit, shall we say, well-nourished, and having a mustache.

This movie made a ton of money, which also makes sense. It's entertaining. Director Renny Harlin knows how to make action thrillers. In this one, the Treasury Department is transporting over $150 million in $1000 bills by jet; a band of crooks aims to rob the couriers. The money ends up on the snowy side of a mountain, so the crooks kidnap world-class mountain rescue experts Sylvester Stallone and Michael Rooker, to track it down.

Norman Kent and Alex Thomson's cinematography is breathtaking, the stunts are truly death-defying, and some of the actors are good, most notably Rooker, Ralph Waite (as a rescuer), Lithgow and Rex Linn (as a treasury agent).

Since we live in a therapeutic society, I can't take responsibility for my actions -- it was all my 3-year-old son's fault. The movie came on late at night, after he had woken up (and while I was supposed to be working), and he insisted we see it together. It turns out, his judgment was excellent, as Cliffhanger is perfectly suited for the sensibility of a three-year-old boy.

In case you have too much money on your hands, you can order this from Amazon. If your neighbors see you taking the video package from your mailbox, you can just say, "Oh, I thought I'd finally give Gone with the Wind a shot."

Should you decide, instead, to rent Cliffhanger from a video store, you might try a trench coat, dark glasses, and a hat pulled down low on your face. Or as with other pornographic films, you could say to yourself, "What the hell, my neighbors are buying the same trash," and go in as you are.

The Critical Critic, March 6, 2004.

Rating:
Summary: Not exactly 'Peak' Performance
Review: It doesn't take long before the film CLIFFHANGER reveals its formula. We've seen the story before and we'll see it again. When Renny Harlin took over directing chores, he put a strong emphasis on effects and action, both of which can't bring the film to greatness.

Sylvester Stallone is our hero, who suffers from guilt associated with the high altitude death of a friend. But, when another friend is abducted by villains seeking three cases full of money scattered atop mountain peaks, he must put it all aside and come to terms with himself. Stallone has played this part before and this performance will never be confused with a personal stretch.

Some of the special effects are marvelous at times placing Stallone upon Vertigo inducing heights. Most of the films action may not be original, but with Renny Harlin constructing it as he did in DIE HARD 2, it is pretty cool.

The Collector's Edition DVD has a great audio/video transfer and 3 audio commentaries (by Stallone, the tech crew and Harlin) highlighting the creation of the film. This is often more interesting than the film itself. There are also some deleted scenes to look at and a making of documentary. Not the greatest of films, CLIFFHANGER manages to make it slightly above average.

Rating:
Summary: Stallone's Best Action in Years
Review: Best watched with minimal expectations. The action scenes are great. The movie is basically Die Hard in the mountains or Point Break with mountain climbing. The plot, however, doesn't make a bit of sense, so its just best to ignore it. Several obvious questions spring instantly to mind. Why are there so many henchmen in the 2nd plane? It's essentially a getaway vehicle. Why are they so well armed? All the agents are on the hijacked plan. Why do they carry cold weather clothing? They're on a plane. Enjoy the scenery.

Rating:
Summary: bleah
Review: Vedere Stallone recitare può anche essere un'esperienza divertente, ma purtroppo capita raramente nei suoi film e questo non fa eccezione. L'inizio è da cardiopalmo: Stallone che cerca di salvare la sciacquetta inesperta mette i brividi, ma lei precipita giù e con lei tutto il film. Poteva anche finire lì, purtroppo il film continua. Pazienza.

Rating:
Summary: A great action movie
Review: I thought this movie was very exciting, and Sylvester Stallone has never looked better! Great Action ! and a good plot, much better action movie than most!! I have the DVD and the picture and sound quality are excellent,(anamorphic widescreen and 5.1 dolby digital)Also some great special features on disc "How it was done", and Commentary, etc.. If you are a fan of Action Movies or Stallone ... GET THIS !!!

Rating:
Summary: Stallone's comeback movie!!
Review: Before this one, Stallone had a series of flops, but this one is definately one of his best & shows a more human side to Stallone not seen since Rambo II & Rocky, In this he is Gabe, a mountain rescue worker who fails miserably in a misguided attempt to rescue his best friend's girlfriend in a climbing expedition gone wrong, while crossing over to another peak on a cable, she soon loses her grip, Gabe attempts to rescue her but fails as she falls to her death at least 100 stories up, the film then proceeds to its plot where the Treasury is getting ready to transport three cases of International money by plane, it is soon hijacked in mid-air by a group of International terrorist led by John Lithgow who has a field day as bad guy Eric Qualen with one-liners that would rival Alan Rickman in "Die Hard", as they attempt to steal the money with the help of a rogue agent, another agent near death after being shot by the rogue one, foils the plan in which case they lose the money in mid-air & watch as it falls to the mountains below, the agent soon shoots their plane before the Treasury plane that he is on explodes forcing them to crash land in the mountains, it is here that we see the return of Gabe who joins up with his resentful friend(Michael Rooker) to rescue what they believe are ordinary people, when they learn that they have been decieved by the terrorist they soon are in for the ride of their lives,as Gabe just barely escapes with his life & begins a one-man assault on the group as he locates their money one at a time, Janine Turner is here as Stallone's girlfriend who soon joins the action as she meets up with Gabe, as they attempt to stop the terrorists, lots of great action set-pieces, & Lithgow's performance is chilling, but you can tell he had fun, everyone plays their roles to perfection especially Rex Linn( Breakdown) as the rogue agent who see the errors of his ways somewhat toward the end, as he tells Qualin what to go do with himself, the last 10 minutes is intense & somewhat reminisent of "Indiana Jones & the Temple of Doom" & fun to watch, it may borrow from "Indiana Jones" & "Die Hard", but not many movies have been made like this one in a mountain region!!!, Highly Recommended!!!

Rating:
Summary: Edge of Your Seat ... er, Cliff
Review: This is a nail-biter of a movie. There are many points that keep you on the edge of your sear, er, cliff. The cinematography is excellent and so is the acting. Although the setting is snow-covered mountains, it is viewable any time of the year (watching during a snow storm is especially gripping). This is better than many of the summer block-buster movies we have seen in the past ten years, so give it a try.

Rating:
Summary: Go Climb A Rock
Review: Looked at as strictly an actioner, director Renny Harlin's CLIFFHANGER, is a well made exercise. Gabe Walker (Sylvester Stallone) blames himself for the death of a friend, while leading a group of friends on a mountain climbing trip.As a member of Rocky Mountain Resue, he believes, that he should have been able to save her...Distraught, he resigns over the accident...He is called into action after a plane goes down and the survivors, now trapped on a mountain, send a out a call for help. But as it turns the victims of the crash are really terrorists, who need help locating millons in stolen cash, now spread out over the rough terrain. John Lithgow is Eric Qualen, the leader of the bad guys, and boy does he have fun chewing the scenery. The action is well done and moves at a brisk pace. Like most action films, this one should be taken for what it is, and nothing more. It is much better than the recent movie VERTICAL LIMIT (another rock climbing flick), at least this one is fun, as opposed to VL, which I compare to nails on a chalkboard.

The DVD has some good extra features. There's a solid commentary track with Harlin and Sly (yo!). It also includes some well produced featurettes about how the action sequences were accomplished. The deleted scenes don't offer much and their space on the cutting room floor, was warranted, but they're fun to see. Rounding out the extras are the usual theatrical trailers, photo galleries, talent files, production notes, and storyboards with DVD-ROM content. Overall, a fine "Collector's Edition DVD, that comes with my recommendation, especially for any action film fan