Fresh
it has truly awe-inspiring stunts and special effects and many of its suspense sequences will leave you with your heart in your mouth.
Christopher Harris, Globe and Mail
Free account saves your watchlist and ratings.
Cliffhanger
Overview
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.
Director and cast
Critics on Rotten Tomatoes
Top critics, in their words
68%
Tomatometer
Rotten
The fact that so much money was lavished on such a thick-headed project represents the height of fiscal ineptitude, but this is the kind of roller-coaster ride for which eager audiences will gladly check their brains at the turnstiles, so go figure.
Jeff Shannon, Seattle Times
Fresh
The cinematography and gravity-defying stunt performances are exhilarating. The story, alas, is pure routine.
Steven Rea, Philadelphia Inquirer
Rotten
Some movies get you so excited - so revved up on action and thrills -- that you almost feel like you're flying. Cliffhanger makes you feel like you're dropping.
Jay Boyar, Orlando Sentinel
Rotten
That rasping tension is soon smoothed away, as the plot sets off on its daft and hackneyed course.
Anthony Lane, New Yorker
More films
A Lonely Place to Die (2011)
Action · Adventure · Crime · Thriller · R
A group of five mountaineers are hiking and climbing in the Scottish Highlands when they discover a young Serbian girl buried in a small chamber in the wilderness. They become caught up in a terrifying game of cat and mouse with the kidnappers as they try to get the girl to safety.
- Runtime
- 1h 39m
- Director
- Julian Gilbey
- Cast
- Melissa George, Ed Speleers, Eamonn Walker
IMDb
6.3
Passenger 57 (1992)
Action · Adventure · Thriller · R
Airline security specialist John Cutter, finally returning to the job after his wife's death, finds himself stuck on a flight being hijacked by notorious terrorist Charles Rane. Unfortunately for the terrorists, they're also stuck with him.
- Runtime
- 1h 24m
- Director
- Kevin Hooks
- Cast
- Wesley Snipes, Bruce Payne, Tom Sizemore
IMDb
5.9
Rotten Tomatoes
30%
Metacritic
50
Vertical Limit (2000)
Action · Adventure · Thriller · PG-13
Trapped near the summit of K2, the world's second-highest mountain, Annie Garrett radios to base camp for help. Brother Peter hears Annie's message and assembles a team to save her and her group before they succumb to K2's unforgiving elements. But, as Annie lays injured in an icy cavern, the rescuers face several terrifying events tha...
- Runtime
- 2h 4m
- Director
- Martin Campbell
- Cast
- Chris O'Donnell, Robin Tunney, Bill Paxton
IMDb
6.0
Rotten Tomatoes
49%
Metacritic
48
Zip Wire (2026)
Action · Thriller · N/A
When her ground-breaking pharmaceutical discovery is stolen and partner murdered, researcher Amy must face her fear of heights to escape nefarious attackers, with the only path to salvation being a treacherous aerial runway. To outsmart the mysterious hostiles, she has to summon every ounce of courage to protect the world-changing scie...
- Runtime
- 1h 35m
- Director
- Howard J. Ford
- Cast
- MyAnna Buring, Joseph Millson, Saffron Burrows
IMDb
4.1
Shoot to Kill (1988)
Action · Crime · Drama · Thriller · R
When a cunning murderer vanishes into the rugged mountains of the Pacific Northwest, pursuing FBI agent Warren Stantin must exchange familiar city streets for unknown wilderness trails. Completely out of his element, Stantin is forced to enlist the aid of expert tracker Jonathan Knox. It's a turbulent yet vital relationship they must m...
- Runtime
- 1h 49m
- Director
- Roger Spottiswoode
- Cast
- Sidney Poitier, Tom Berenger, Kirstie Alley
IMDb
6.8
Rotten Tomatoes
100%
Metacritic
56
The Spectacular Now (2013)
Comedy · Drama · Romance · R
Sutter, a popular party animal, unexpectedly meets the introverted Aimee after waking up on a stranger's lawn. As Sutter deals with the problems in his life and Aimee plans for her future beyond school, an unexpected romance blossoms between them.
- Runtime
- 1h 35m
- Director
- James Ponsoldt
- Cast
- Miles Teller, Shailene Woodley, Masam Holden
IMDb
7.0
Rotten Tomatoes
92%
Metacritic
82
The Circle (2017)
Drama · Science Fiction · Thriller · PG-13
A young tech worker takes a job at a powerful Internet corporation, quickly rises up the company's ranks, and soon finds herself in a perilous situation concerning privacy, surveillance and freedom. She comes to learn that her decisions and actions will determine the future of humanity.
- Runtime
- 1h 50m
- Director
- James Ponsoldt
- Cast
- Emma Watson, Alicia Vikander, Tom Hanks
IMDb
5.4
Rotten Tomatoes
16%
Metacritic
43
Smashed (2012)
Comedy · Drama · Romance · R
Kate and Charlie like to have a good time. Their marriage thrives on a shared fondness for music, laughter… and getting smashed. When Kate’s partying spirals into hard-core asocial behavior, compromising her job as an elementary schoolteacher, something’s got to give. But change isn’t exactly a cakewalk. Sobriety means she will have to...
- Runtime
- 1h 25m
- Director
- James Ponsoldt
- Cast
- Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Aaron Paul, Octavia Spencer
IMDb
6.7
Rotten Tomatoes
83%
Metacritic
71
Off the Black (2006)
Drama · R
An aging, disillusioned alcoholic gets a younger friend and wants him to pose as his son at a school reunion.
- Runtime
- 1h 30m
- Director
- James Ponsoldt
- Cast
- Nick Nolte, Trevor Morgan, Rosemarie DeWitt
IMDb
6.5
Rotten Tomatoes
65%
Metacritic
62
Comments
Talk about the film with other members