I settled down last night to watch a film, I’ve been a bit vacant from TV for a while aside from a couple of series I’m following but knew there were a few new films to take a look at. To be honest after sitting on and through Cider Apple Vinegar for the afternoon, which wasn’t bad, I was feeling like an action fix. This soon became a choice between ‘The Gorge’ and ‘Elevation’, one a monster feature but pre-reviews slightly less obvious than the latter which was far easier to work out from its marketing spiel.
So ‘The Gorge’ is on Apple TV, it was immediately captivating, well it was Anya Taylor-Joy with a sniper rifle completing a ridiculously long shot, which may not be to elite snipers I guess? Then onto Miles Teller, he’s brought into a meeting where we are clearly informed he’s on his own, no family, friends or girlfriend, a red flag screaming hey I’m expendable. Back to Anya Taylor-Joy about to learn the same.
We are then flown to a top secret location not even presidents know about, we meet the welcoming committee and he’s given his assignment, to safeguard and protect the outside world from an undisclosed, mysterious evil that lurks within. Basically to man the tower on his side of the gorge and keep the bad stuff in the gorge, keeping mini-guns, mines and his sniper rifle at hand, oh and don’t talk to the other side, which obviously is Anya Taylor-Joy, yes, keep an eye but do not engage in any contact, it’s Anya Taylor-Joy and he’s a man (apologies Ms Taylor-Joy), but you get the plot. What follows is great fun, switch your mind off rom-com with a gun, flirting with great pop-culture references to The Queens Gambit and Whiplash, added once the actors were signed up I wonder?
The Baddies then appear, the two of them repel borders in what is a great bullet fest of an action scene. Think zombies vs superior firepower although I’m still a bit confused why the trip mines were set at a height that blows holes in there defensive fence every time they explode? The two break the rules, get talking eventually getting together and almost unbelievably when the Hollow Men try to leave The Gorge again, it’s when the two hero’s are parting ways, at their most distracted.
Without too many spoilers, they end up in The Gorge fighting for their lives although you never fear for them just wonder how, not if they’ll make it, the is a gun toting rom-com in disguise after all. They uncover the plot escaping in an over the top scene up the cliff and escape to freedom in a manner of sorts. WOW, I skipped a lot there but don’t want to ruin the ending.
The Guardian described it as “Miles Teller and Anya Taylor-Joy flirt over an abyss full of creatures in a slickly made but increasingly dumb Apple mockbuster.” – Guardian
The monsters were not quite hellish as they describe but they had substance of story which made them interesting, it could easily be described as an increasingly dumb Apple blockbuster but who cares, I wanted that although I did not know it when I hit play on the remote. The filming was beautiful when needed and incredibly special effect laden the rest of the time, in a very good way! The two lead actors were great, believable at all times, the perfect choice.
(Spoiler Alert) The ending and I mean the happily ever after? They went for the slightly delayed are they aren’t they with a slice of cheese right at the death but I could live with it. It could have been left open, leaving the viewer guessing? They could have died saving the greater good they could have turned or showed signs of turning into monsters themselves, but who doesn’t want a happy ending to a romantic (horror) comedy. This is not the late nineties when anti-hero’s heroically died at the end, this is family friendly streaming and we need a coke and a smile, or is it Potato Moonshine or Vodka and big gun?
I’d give it a 4 out of 5 stars based on the actors, the visuals and pure entertainment factor.
