FilmSkool — a free film school
Cliffhanger
A year after losing his friend in a tragic 4,000-foot fall, former ranger Gabe Walker and his partner, Hal, are called to return to the same peak to rescue a group of stranded climbers, only to learn the climbers are actually thieving hijackers who are looking for boxes full of money.
1993 · Directed by Renny Harlin · 113 min · Action · Adventure · Thriller · Screenplay in the scene database · 15 frames
Tagline
Hang on.
Plot
Mountain rescue rangers Gabe Walker, his girlfriend Jessie Deighan, and Frank attempt to rescue their fellow ranger Hal Tucker and his girlfriend Sarah, stranded in the Colorado Rockies. Sarah's harness breaks loose, and she falls to her death, despite Walker's effort to save her. Hal blames a guilt-stricken Walker, who leaves the ranger service.
Eight months later, Walker returns to collect his belongings and persuade Jessie to leave with him, but she refuses. Meanwhile, psychopathic former military intelligence operative Eric Qualen orchestrates the robbery of over $100 million in three suitcases of uncirculated bills. Turncoat U.S. Treasury agent Richard Travers hijacks the McDonnell Douglas DC-9 carrying the money, betraying and shooting his team members, and attempting to transfer the cases in midair to Qualen and his team of mercenaries aboard a Lockheed JetStar. One of the wounded agents, Matheson, shoots at the criminals before the DC-9 is blown up, forcing the JetStar to crash land in the Rockies and scattering the cases across the mountainside. Meanwhile, FBI agents visit Treasury agent Walter Wright, Travers' superior, and warn him that Qualen has the resources and experience to organize the robbery, that Matheson was sent undercover to stop it, and that Qualen is armed.
Hal remains bitter over Sarah's death. He responds to a fake distress call from the mercenaries, while Jessie convinces Gabe to help. He and Hal are taken prisoner by Qualen, Travers, and their accomplices Kristel, Kynette, Delmar, Ryan, and Heldon. Using Travers' beacon locator, Hal and Walker are ordered to track down the first case atop a steep rock face. Walker is tethered and forced to climb and retrieve the case, but Hal warns that Qualen will kill him, and Walker severs his rope before he can be yanked down. Heldon opens fire and is killed by the ensuing avalanche, which leads Qualen to believe the case is lost and Walker is dead.
Plot summary from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA.
Crew
- Screenplay: Sylvester Stallone, Michael France
- Cinematography: Alex Thomson
- Edited by: Frank J. Urioste
- Music: Trevor Jones
- Production design: John Vallone
- Produced by: Alan Marshall, Renny Harlin
Cast
- Sylvester Stallone as Gabe Walker
- John Lithgow as Qualen
- Michael Rooker as Hal Tucker
- Janine Turner as Jessie Deighan
- Rex Linn as Travers
- Caroline Goodall as Kristel
- Leon as Kynette
- Craig Fairbrass as Delmar
- Gregory Scott Cummins as Ryan
- Denis Forest as Heldon
Production
- Country: France, Italy, United States of America, Japan
- Language: English
- Studios: Carolco Pictures, Le Studio Canal+, Pioneer, RCS Video
- Budget: $70,000,000
- Box office: $255,000,211
- Themes: airplane, mountain, rocky mountains, hijacking, suitcase, climbing, heist, money, snow, mountain climbing
Own the film
FilmSkool earns a small commission from qualifying Amazon purchases, at no cost to you.
More by Renny Harlin
On this film
This is the plain index, shown because JavaScript is off. Every lesson here is a free video published by the channel credited on it and plays through that channel's own embed — FilmSkool hosts nothing.