THE STORY – Two highly-trained operatives are appointed to posts in guard towers on opposite sides of a vast and highly classified gorge, protecting the world from a mysterious evil that lurks within. They work together to keep the secret in the gorge.
THE CAST – Miles Teller, Anya Taylor-Joy & Sigourney Weaver
THE TEAM – Scott Derrickson (Director) & Zach Dean (Writer)
THE RUNNING TIME – 127 Minutes
Inherit enough lies, and the mind becomes a graveyard of buried truths. This sentiment runs through the core of “The Gorge,” a muddled but enjoyable thriller that bends genres to convey a rather intriguing concept. Directed by Scott Derrickson and written by Zach Dean, the film follows two soldiers fighting for survival after post-war secrets emerge from a hellish surface. With elements of mystery and romance, Derrickson and Dean take several leaps in the dark before revealing the true underbelly of this fight. Faint echoes of “Mission: Impossible,” “Stranger Things,” and “The Tomorrow War” (Screenwriter Zach Dean wrote both films) with a neat little nod to “The Queen’s Gambit,” make for a winding ride, with some visual and narrative surprises in store. Through an ambiguously told story, “The Gorge” mutates from one idea to another, leaving more questions than answers behind. Do the mysterious ideas at play amount to a fully realized vision? Not entirely, however, with Miles Teller and especially Anya Taylor-Joy in the lead roles, the film carries enough intrigue to keep the viewer on board.
The film opens with one of the most expressive actors of her generation, Anya Taylor-Joy, who piques the viewer’s anticipation. Without knowing anything about the character, Drasa, one immediately feels drawn to her presence. Taylor-Joy’s absence is quickly felt when the film cuts to our main entry point into the story: veteran sniper and former U.S. Marine Levi Kane (Teller). When Levi gets summoned to a Marine Corps base camp, he is ordered by a military authority figure, Bartholomew (Sigourney Weaver), to guard the western rim of a mysterious gorge in an undisclosed location. Every year, the military base designates one representative to patrol the West side and one (Drasa) to patrol the East side. Their mission is to keep the gorge’s existence a secret and to actively stop what’s inside (presumably evil forces) from ever coming out.
The film plays out as a prolonged puzzle with two highly trained operatives on opposite sides who cannot make contact with one another and don’t have complete knowledge of their mission or where they are. Derrickson splits the story into several chapters, each one offering pieces to help illuminate the bigger picture. Naturally, some chapters have less compelling narratives than others. Levi’s scenes with his guard predecessor J.D. (Sope Dirisu) are full of exposition and include lines of dialogue that position Levi as a proxy for the viewer: he asks several questions and gets incredibly vague answers. Meanwhile, one of the more engaging chapters of the film spends fleeting time in Pervalka, Lithuania. This chapter includes a promising but under-explored relationship between Drasa and her father, Erikas (William Houston). The scene adds an emotional layer to her character and, in retrospect, insight into her perspective on the concept of truth. Is it more hurtful to know or hide too much of what you know? Drasa and Levi personify opposite ends of the coin. Together, they propel into action to unearth the long-buried secrets of their mission, reinforcing how the truth always comes to light.
Another particularly compelling element is the initial depiction of Drasa and Levi getting to know each other. While their romance ultimately falls short on an emotionally impactful level, the film brings fun energy into establishing the characters’ early days of connecting. The considerable distance between their designated observation towers calls for them to get creative, whether by holding up signs or using weaponry to communicate during a chess game. Taylor-Joy and Teller’s commitment to these bits heightens the playfulness, as does a great selection of energetic needle drops. The film works best when focusing on how the characters observe each other and what they choose to pay attention to, particularly in an isolating environment without any human connection elsewhere.
Additionally, the crafts team behind “The Gorge” creates an isolated setting reasonably well, whether through the production design by Rick Heinrichs (whose work includes “Sleepy Hollow” and “Glass Onion“) or the cinematography by Dan Lausten (director of photography on Guillermo Del Toro’s “The Shape of Water,” “Crimson Peak,” and “Nightmare Alley“). Lausten’s work stands out, especially in the film’s second half, when a surreal and nightmarish new world emerges. From atmospheric color palettes to creepy crawly elements and various biological entities, this chapter offers a surprisingly more fantastical visual language than expected. Derrickson’s horror background (having previously directed “The Black Phone,” “Sinister,” and “The Exorcism of Emily Rose”) also comes out to play a bit here, not exactly for scares but rather to evoke something that feels otherworldly and spectral.
Revelatory developments emerge from this new world, leading Drasa and Levi to stumble upon secrets that date back to post-war history. However, the explanation for their coalition of east and west positions, not to mention why their mission is top secret, feels underdeveloped and leaves hollow gaps in the storytelling. While the concept itself has some intrigue, the execution falls short. The film packs numerous ideas into the final act without a coherent focus, and as a result, the conclusion arrives at an incredibly rushed pace. The lack of focus also impacts the central romance between Drasa and Levi; as the film jumps from one idea to the next, the weight and believability of their relationship lose impact.
The more one dwells on the story of “The Gorge,” the more incoherent it might become. The screenplay by Zach Dean leans too far into exposition, sometimes undermining visual ambiguity and curiosity. Yet the film still has enough elements to enjoy, especially concerning the performances and overall technical world-building. Anya Taylor-Joy brings a dynamic playfulness and personality to her character. While Miles Teller doesn’t quite match Taylor-Joy’s level of screen presence, the two manage to create fun chemistry and make the most out of an unfocused concept.
