The Gorge (2025)

The Gorge (2025) Quite disappointing considering how well it started! In fact, the first hour was perfect—touching, funny, and fun. The problem is that there’s a second hour! If you want to see a totally unrealistic film, you’ve got a good one here, but if you’re a fan of realism, don’t bother!

The Gorge is an American film directed by Scott Derrickson and written by Zach Dean. It stars Miles Teller, Anya Taylor-Joy, and Sigourney Weaver. The film is produced by Skydance Media and Crooked Highway and is broadcast on Apple TV+. Derrickson is an American producer, director, and screenwriter best known for directing The Exorcism of Emily Rose in 2005 (which I love!) and The Day the Earth Stood Still (which I’m not too fond of) three years later. He also directed the very good Doctor Strange , released in 2016.

It’s hard to talk about this film without spoiling it, and I’m going to risk doing so, but I’ll warn you! In fact, what’s annoying about this kind of feature-length film is these heroes who get knocked down, stabbed, attacked, and shot at, but who always run like nothing happened, except in the last five minutes. They can fall from dizzying heights but get up again quickly, and of course, they always have enough bullets and ammunition—until they find more or even more powerful, more explosive weapons. What’s more, we discover some scary creatures, but it doesn’t seem to surprise us that much! As you can see, this film is a great cinematic spectacle with fantastic touches—an action, science fiction film.

Beware of spoilers!

The Gorge reminded me of films that were, for the most part, much better. Like Passengers (2016), for example, for the romance and science fiction aspect, as well as for the violation and transgression of the rules. It reminded me of From Dusk Till Dawn (1996) for the film in two distinct parts that have almost nothing to do with each other. The parts with the giant insects are reminiscent of the same kind of scene in King Kong (2005).

Sigourney Weaver needs no introduction! She plays one of her loathsome roles here, if ever. Miles Teller is a fine actor, notably in the excellent Rabbit Hole (2010) and in the traumatic Whiplash (2014), which is also quite poignant. On the superhero front, however, the Fantastic Four reboot (2015) was a bit of a flop, really! Note that Miles really is a drummer and saxophonist, and Anya Taylor-Joy is a real music fan too, apparently! This wonderful actress won us over with her incredible roles in the films The VVitch (2015), Morgan (2016), Marrowbone (2017), and The Menu (2022).

I can’t say how much I loved the beginning, the first part, that first hour. Even the few pieces of music that punctuate it are ultra enjoyable. In the second hour, it goes off in all directions, becomes incoherent, then there are explanations, and it goes off again in all directions. There are working vehicles, even though they’re supposed not to have been used for a very long time. The same goes for the film reel, which explains the plot of the monsters. Even after explanations, I’m not convinced by all these passages. In these films, they always come across computers that are switched on and you just have to press play to get an explanation of everything that’s going on, or a TV that announces the right information at the right time.

Plus, I hate all these films where the characters go from a reality we all know to one where monsters exist, and they’re not totally hallucinated by what they see! ‘Wait a minute! What the hell, monsters exist, and we didn’t know it? How is that possible? It’s completely crazy! Yeah, I’ve just discovered another form of life, and I’ve killed 137 of them today. Well… I’m going to go to bed because tomorrow will be another day!’

The icing on the cake of ridiculousness remains the villainess in the suit who, after feeling betrayed, tells her men that she wants to ‘kill him with her own hands’, referring to the man she herself hired. Then we see her arrive in a helicopter accompanied by her thugs.

In short, the direction doesn’t bother with details, leaving the viewer with a total lack of coherence. Quite frankly… Does Apple pay writers and directors to let such incongruities slip by? The ending is fine but nothing incredible; it’s pretty standard stuff—some might even say it’s phoned in! At least it’s an original story and not just another remake.