Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Breakneck
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Simple
- Violence
- Brutal
- tense
- propulsive
- heightened
- action movie night
- 1990s nostalgia
What critics said
Critics broadly found the film tense and action-packed, praising its mountain stunts while noting its borrowed formula, unrealistic mountaineering, and weak screenplay.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Gabe Walker must use technical climbing knowledge, rescue skills, and intimate familiarity with the Rockies to survive the criminal operation.
Ledges, cliffs, avalanches, snowfields, and exposed mountain faces turn elevation and difficult terrain into the film’s defining visual threat.
Gabe leaves mountain rescue after a fatal climbing accident, then returns nearly a year later when a rescue call draws him back into the same landscape.
Three boxes containing a vast stolen fortune drive the criminals’ search and force Gabe to guide them through the mountain range.
Films like Cliffhanger, and why
Vertical Limit
high-altitude survival action, relentless physical peril, and spectacular stunt-driven set pieces
Die Hard 2
1990s action-thriller energy, charismatic star power, terrorism plot, and exaggerated practical spectacle
The Mountain Between Us
mountain wilderness danger, survival tension, and an isolated protagonist pursued by violent criminals
Movie Details
- Director
- Renny Harlin
- Release Date
- 1993-05-28
- Runtime
- 113 min
- Rating
- 6.5 / 10 (2746)
Cast
- Sylvester Stallone
- John Lithgow
- Michael Rooker
- Janine Turner
- Rex Linn
- Caroline Goodall
- Leon
- Craig Fairbrass
- Gregory Scott Cummins
- Denis Forest
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- Sony Pictures Core Amazon Channel
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is Cliffhanger about?
- A guilt-ridden mountain ranger is forced into a deadly high-altitude treasure hunt when stranded climbers reveal themselves as armed thieves.
- What is Cliffhanger like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Cliffhanger as breakneck, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as simple.
- Is Cliffhanger violent?
- Yes. Ember rates the violence in Cliffhanger as brutal.
- What did critics think of Cliffhanger?
- Critics broadly found the film tense and action-packed, praising its mountain stunts while noting its borrowed formula, unrealistic mountaineering, and weak screenplay.
- Which films are like Cliffhanger?
- Films with a similar feel include Vertical Limit, Die Hard 2, and The Mountain Between Us.
- How long is Cliffhanger?
- Cliffhanger runs 113 minutes.
- Where can I watch Cliffhanger?
- In United States, Cliffhanger streams on Sony Pictures Core Amazon Channel.
