Cliffhanger

Revealing mistake: During the "grand finale" fight scene, which takes place on the underside of an overturned helicopter hanging from a cliff, a few frames show the rigging that is holding the helicopter in place.

Revealing mistake: When every bullet hits the snow it sparks, showing the pyrotechnics of the shots.

Revealing mistake: The explosion happens and Gabe and Jessie seek shelter in a small cave. Before the rocks start falling, Gabe bumps the wall of the cave and creates a hole in the set. This is noticeable on the left side of the screen.

manthabeat

Factual error: How is it that when Sly comes out of the freezing, icy water, his hair and clothes are bone dry? I don't know too much about hypothermia, but I would imagine that his fairly thin sweater isn't wind proof. I'm sure by the time the movie ended, he would be suffering from more symptoms of hypothermia other than chattering teeth.

More mistakes in Cliffhanger

Sarah: Help me! I don't want to die.
Gabe: You're not gonna die.

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Trivia: In an interview with GQ, John Lithgow revealed that he was originally supposed to be the film's secondary villain, with Christopher Walken playing the main antagonist. However, Walken exited the project, leading to Lithgow being promoted to main antagonist.

Phaneron

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Question: Why was Hal mad and blamed Gabe for Sarah's death? It wasn't his fault. Also, how did Sarah get to that height at the beginning of the movie with no climbing experience? I mean, I can barely climb an indoor climbing wall, but she can climb a mountain like a walk in the park. (02:16:00 - 02:16:35)

Answer: There was no realistic reason. First, the steel buckle on the safety harness would never just bend and break like that. The accident was not Gabe's fault, but Hal is supposedly so angry and grief-stricken that he unfairly claims Gabe ignored his advice when rescuing her. The movie uses melodramatic plotting to contrive a conflict between the two men. It's also unrealistic that Sarah, an inexperienced climber, was able to make such a difficult climb, even with Hal's help. The movie had many plot holes.

raywest

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