Cliffhanger (1993)

Director:

Renny Harlin

Writers (WGA):

John Long (premise)
Michael France (screen story)

Release Date:

28 May 1993 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Thriller

Tagline:

Hang on!

Plot:

A botched mid-air heist results in suitcases full of cash being searched for by various groups throughout the Rocky Mountains.

Plot Keywords:

Money | Mountain | Rockies | Heist | Snow

Awards:

Nominated for 3 Oscars. Another 1 win & 7 nominations

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Sylvester Stallone	...	Gabe Walker
John Lithgow	...	Qualen
Michael Rooker	...	Hal Tucker
Janine Turner	...	Jessie Deighan
Rex Linn	...	Travers
Caroline Goodall	...	Kristel
Leon	...	Kynette
Craig Fairbrass	...	Delmar
Gregory Scott Cummins	...	Ryan
Denis Forest	...	Heldon
Michelle Joyner	...	Sarah
Max Perlich	...	Evan
Paul Winfield	...	Walter Wright
Ralph Waite	...	Frank
Trey Brownell	...	Brett

Also Known As:

Cliffhanger - l'ultima sfida (Italy)
Cliffhanger, traque au sommet (France)

MPAA:

Rated R for violence and language.

Runtime:

113 min | UK:112 min

Country:

Italy | France | USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.20 : 1

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints) | Dolby Digital (35 mm prints) (Europe) | Dolby SR (35 mm prints) (USA)

Certification:

Iceland:16 | Finland:K-18 (original rating) | New Zealand:R16 | South Korea:12 | Philippines:R-18 | Singapore:NC-16 (re-rating) | Singapore:PG (cut) | Norway:15 (cut theatrical version) | Norway:18 (uncut) | UK:15 (uncut version, re-rating) | Ireland:15 | Argentina:16 | Australia:M | Chile:18 | Finland:K-16 | Germany:18 | Netherlands:16 | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | USA:R | Canada:16+ (Quebec) | UK:15 (cut) | Germany:BPjM Restricted

Filming Locations:

Cinecittà Studios, Cinecittà, Rome, Lazio, Italy

Company:

Carolco Pictures

Trivia:

The teddy bear that falls off the cliff in the opening scene was not scripted but was added at the last minute. Renny Harlin liked the bear so much he bought it so that the audience would have a clear idea of what would happen and how horrific the fall was.

Goofs:

Factual errors: When Gabe lights the flare, the night-vision point-of-view shot momentarily breaks up into static, like a faulty video display. This is not how night-vision works.

Quotes:

Eric Qualen: Love is a killer, isn't it?

Movie Connections:

Featured in Stallone on the Edge: The Making of Cliffhanger (1993) (TV)

Soundtrack:

DO YOU NEED SOME?

Good and Bad

Every 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.