Defying gravity? Try logic: "Cliffhanger"

Still, how can you not love this movie, especially in high-def? When it popped up on an HD channel recently, I couldn't resist the chance to see if "Cliffhanger" was as ludicrous as I remembered.

It was. And how.

You know the story. Our man Sly Stallone is a mountain rescue guy who -- as the opening scene shows us -- has a somewhat bad experience on a rescue. This episode sets the tone for the whole movie in two very different ways. One, gorgeous scenery. Sure, it's Italy standing in for Colorado, and some later scenes look a tad too soundstagey (if that's a word). But the big, sweeping shots? Very nice. Kudos to you, Renny Harlin.

Sidebar: Of course, after this movie Harlin did "Cutthroat Island." Ouch. Then again, he also did "Deep Blue Sea," and you know how I feel about that movie, just for that one Sam Jackson scene. Awesome.

Alas, with the scenery in "Cliffhanger" comes some plot developments that are more preposterous than the possibility of W getting his face on Mount Rushmore. Why Stallone even has to rescue a woman who has no business being on that mountain is only the first leap of faith needed to stomach this movie.

After that business, Sly retreats to full-on brooding mode. Alas, he ends up getting back in action when a gang of thieves crashes in the mountains. They pulled a daring mid-air robbery of a kajillion dollars in big bills, and now they're trying to find three big cases of money that fell out of the plane. Stallone's former buddy (the always enjoyable Michael Rooker) gets roped into helping the baddies, but that don't fly with Sly.

Forget the general plot. Consider these far-fetched turns of events. How about a plane crash landing on what seemed to be a pretty flat stretch of land in the middle of the mountains? How about Sly being able to magically find cases before the bad guys, who have an actual tracking device? How about Stallone not freezing to death when stripped of his gear?

It gets better. The head bad dude is John Lithgow, and this has to be one of his best performances. Not the acting itself, but him just keeping a straight face. Oh, he's a prize here. This part fell between his Oscar-nominated days in the early '80s and Emmy-winning days in the late '90s. You also could call this Lithgow's "bad boy" phase, with "Cliffhanger" joining "Raising Cain" and "Ricochet" -- all roles no doubt being cited in America's finest acting schools as we speak.

So yeah, a whole lot to swallow with this movie. But that doesn't mean it's not fun. That's right ... watching Sly play cat and mouse in the mountains once again wasn't too bad. And as the above examples prove, it was a lot funnier than "Stop! Or My Mom Will Shoot."