Cliffhanger (1993): Revisiting one of Stallone’s best movies

1993’s Cliffhanger came along at an essential time for Sylvester Stallone. In 1990, Rocky V notably underperformed at the box office, while his foray into comedy with Oscar and Stop, Or My Mom Will Shoot was disastrous. Clearly, he needed the right comeback movie. Luckily, Sly was on the right track, with him signing a deal to make a high-concept action flick for Carolco Pictures, the reigning kings of 80s and 90s action movies called Cliffhanger. In it, he would play a mountain climber named Gabe Walker, who blames himself after a rescue gone wrong. While mounting another rescue attempt, Walker runs afoul of a group of deadly robbers who’ve stolen millions in unmarked currency via an air-to-air transfer.

Sporting an outstanding supporting cast that includes John Lithgow, Michael Rooker, Janine Turner and Leon, Cliffhanger was a huge hit and revitalized Sly’s career. It also elevated director Renny Harlin to the A-list, marking him as one of the nineties’ most prominent (and best) action directors. In this episode of Sylvester Stallone Revisited (written and narrated by Chris Bumbray and edited by Bill Mazzola), we dig into this iconic much-imitated but never equalled action classic.

Cliffhanger has the following synopsis: Outdoor thriller in which a former mountain rescuer is pitted against a group of criminals who have lost their $100 million stash during a plane crash in the Rocky Mountains. After being persuaded to help rescue a group of stranded hikers, he discovers that they are in fact a gang of violent robbers who need help to locate their missing loot.