It’s Die Hard on a mountain! Hang on tight as Phil and Liam grapple with CLIFFHANGER (1993), aided by a very special guest: Jamelle Bouie, columnist for the New York Times Opinion section and the host of the Unclear and Present Danger podcast.After the botched mid-air heist of a US treasury plane results in a violent plane crash, mountain rescue worker Gabe Walker is coerced into helping the ruthless thieves (led by a maniacal John Lithgow) find the missing loot, amidst the forbidding landscape of the Colorado Rockies. Michael Rooker, Janine Turner, Rex Linn, Leon and Craig Fairbrass round out the supporting cast of this spectacularly shot action extravaganza, which was expertly helmed by Finnish filmmaker Renny Harlin (director of Die Hard 2).After three flops in a row, Cliffhanger marked a return to form (and the action genre) for Stallone. The guys discuss their feelings about this action icon, and where this character fits in the pantheon of Stallone’s other roles, in films such as the Rambo franchise, the Rocky franchise, Demolition Man, CopLand (and Judge Dredd). They also discuss director Renny Harlin’s horror roots, and his penchant for cinematic sadism (Jamelle is particularly partial to a stalactite-related death). Lithgow’s wild, Hans Gruber-inspired performance (and questionable “English” accent) also provide plenty of meat for the guys to chew over, and there’s a significant amount of affection reserved for the work of character actors Rex Linn, Vyto Ruginis and Bruce McGill, which leads to a lengthy sidebar on the films of Michael Mann and Spike Lee. Janine Turner is also lauded, but the resolution of her role highlights the problem that many male directors had in successfully serving strong female characters in this era of action cinema. The ‘Die Hard Oscars’ continue to provide fun and frivolity, and this week Liam and Jamelle decide to collaborate for a challenging edition of the ‘Double Jeopardy’ trivia quiz, which unearths some fascinating casting concepts! CLIFFHANGER TRAILERhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OZALfW1ohRIAt the time of release, CLIFFHANGER is streaming on Netflix and Sling and is available to rent or buy through Amazon Prime Video, Apple/iTunes, YouTube, RedBox, Vudu, DirectTV and all the usual platforms.

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