VERTICAL LIMIT
Rated PG-13 for some language and intense situations
Starring Chris O'Donnell, Bill Paxton, Robin Tunney, Scott Glenn and Izabella Scorupco

CineSight Rating * 1/2

I really, really wanted to like this movie - honest. I tried so hard. I mean, it's directed by Martin Campbell - the guy who revived the Bond franchise with GOLDENEYE and gave us a fun new version of the MASK OF ZORRO. There's no two ways about it: Martin Campbell knows action. And then there was the trailer for VERTICAL LIMIT, featuring crusty old Scott Glenn. The first time I saw it my jaw just about dropped on the floor and the movie immediately went on my "must see" list.

But what happened? I began to sense all might not be right with the first shot of a rather obvious computer graphic soaring eagle. Before I could recover, I was treated to a truly lame piece of exposition between Chris O'Donnell and his 'dad'; stuff about mountain climbing safety, blah, blah, blah, which I just knew was going to become extremely important about 15 minutes before the end of the movie. So far neither the effects or the script were looking too hot. Then Bill Paxton showed up. He plays a billionaire with no brains who decides to take a stroll up K-2 despite warnings of bad weather. Hmm, I wonder what could possibly happen.

Unfortunately, Bill takes Chris' sister along with him, and without giving too much away, Chris (who is apparently afraid to climb after an accident involving his 'dad') has to go to the rescue. Luckily for him, he takes along Scott Glenn doing his Popeye of the mountains impression. Glenn is the local mad mountaineer; shunned by other climbers, but who just might be able to get Chris out of a few sticky situations. Oh, and by the way, they decide to strap nitroglycerine to their backs in case they need to blast a hole in the ice during the rescue. Now, if they can just reach the top without shaking up the explosives too much. The rest of the movie is pretty much explosion, avalanche, fall, explosion, avalanche, fall... You get the idea.

Okay, I'm done with my griping. So why did VERTICAL LIMIT earn even one-and-a-half stars? Well, not all the effects were bad. There was one nifty scene involving the rescue party being dropped from a helicopter onto an icy ledge that had me holding my breath, and a couple of other scenes that were genuinely exciting. But sadly, the performances were uniformly bad. The only reason I can think of is that it was so cold on location that no one wanted to do a second take. Finally, a special mention must go to the set designers who shall remain nameless. They managed to produce an ice cave that was even less convincing than the 'fortress of solitude' in SUPERMAN.

At least we can take comfort in the fact that cast and crew have got this stinker off their hands. Now they can get on with their careers and hopefully show us what they're capable of.