Vertical Limit (Blu-ray) (2000)

"Possibly the most suspense-charged mountain-climbing movie ever made.  Desson Thomson, Washington Post
"...like riding a roller coaster for two hours...frighteningly exciting.  Lawrence Toppman, Charlotte Observer
"Pulls off thrilling stunts that will leave you a sweaty-palmed mess. It's top-tier movie escapism.  Peter Travers, Rolling Stone

Editor's Note As action director Martin Campbell's heart-pumping thriller VERTICAL LIMIT begins, an eagle glides gracefully over the stunningly filmed mesas of Utah. Its shadow falls on a vertical rock face being climbed by Peter Garrett (Chris O'Donnell), his father (Stuart Wilson), and his sister Annie (Robin Tunney). Suddenly a backpack hurtles by, followed rapidly by two climbers whose ropes tear the male Garretts from the rock face. The excruciatingly tense sequence ends in tragedy. After this stunning opening, the action switches to the Himalayas, where tycoon Elliott Vaughn (Bill Paxton) has financed an expedition that will take him to the summit of K2--the world's second highest mountain. Annie is one of Elliott's party. In the face of a threatening storm, Elliott recklessly insists the climb should continue. The storm duly arrives and decimates the expedition, leaving Elliott and Annie stranded. Peter leads a group of climbers--including the grizzled Montgomery Wick (Scott Glenn) and a French-Canadian nurse (Izabella Scorupco)--in a rescue attempt.|Campbell, director of photography Derek Tattersall, many daring cameramen, mountain climbers, avalanche specialists, and special effects technicians, along with veteran editor Thom Noble, deliver a beautifully filmed mountaineering thriller with even more heart-stopping moments than JAWS.

	Bill Paxton
	Chris O'Donnell
	Robin Tunney
	Scott Glenn
	David Tattersall - Cinematographer
	James Newton Howard - Original Music By
	Lloyd Phillips - Producer
	Martin Cambell - Director
	Mike Medavoy - Executive Producer
	Nick Bassett, et. al. - Art Director
	Robert King - Writer
	Terry Hayes - Writer
	Thom Noble - Editor

USA Today
"The action scenes in VERTICAL LIMIT take cliffhanging to the highest peaks of excitement..." 12/08/2000 p.4E

Box Office
"...The physical feats are inspiring, crowd-pleasing testaments to the stupendous extremes of human capabilities..." 01/01/2001 p.63

Entertainment Weekly
"...The best scenes give you a vicarious vertigo high..." 01/05/2001 p.51

Hollywood Reporter
"...The stunt work and David Tattersall's lensing catch moments of the adrenaline rush that is mountain climbing..." 11/29/2000 p.14-39

Chicago Sun-Times
"...Strongly acted and well crafted....VERTICAL LIMIT delivers with efficiency and craft..." 12/08/2000 p.43

Sight and Sound
"...Campbell's tale of Himalayan derring-do does exhibit a fearsome kinetic energy and a rounded grasp of characterisation..." 09/01/2001 p.62

Uncut
"[T]he avalanches and stunts are watchable..." 08/01/2001 p.144

ReelViews 7 of 10
I have always appreciated the concept of a man versus nature adventure thriller. Unfortunately, the reality, at least as brought to the screen by Hollywood, has rarely lived up to the promise. Instead of relying on the inherent suspense in the struggle of a small group of human beings to overcome an implacable force, movie screenwriters throw in all sorts of pointless subplots and contrivances that reduce the central conceit to little more than a sideshow. Vertical Limit is the latest case in point. It's not a bad film, and it doesn't fall prey to as many cliches as have afflicted its predecessors, but its numerous missteps reduce this from the level of a gripping thriller to a popcorn diversion. - James Berardinelli

Chicago Sun-Times 8 of 10
Somebody, I think it was me, was observing the other day that Hollywood never really stopped making B pictures; they simply gave them $100 million budgets and marketed them as A pictures. "Vertical Limit" is an example: It's made from obvious formulas and pulp novel conflicts, but strongly acted and well crafted. The movie may be compared with "The Perfect Storm"...I've seen climbing documentaries in which climbers do amazing things, although none quite so amazing as some of the stunts in "Vertical Limit." The blend of stunt work and effects is seamless, and there's real suspense as they edge out of tight spots...strong performances, particularly by Glenn as the hard-bitten climber with a private agenda. "Vertical Limit" delivers with efficiency and craft, and there are times, when the characters are dangling over a drop of a mile, when we don't even mind how it's manipulating us. - Roger Ebert