After Doctor Strange and Black Phone, Scott Derrickson returns with The Gorge, an action thriller with a romantic twist, written by Zach Dean(Voyagers, The Tomorrow War). The film stars Miles Teller(Top Gun: Maverick), Anya Taylor-Joy(The Lady's Game) and Sigourney Weaver, a key figure in science-fiction cinema.
The story follows two highly-trained agents, each stationed in a tower guarding a mysterious secret abyss. Their mission: to protect humanity from an unknown evil lurking in the depths. Despite the distance, a bond develops between them. But when the threat becomes clear, they must unite to prevent a catastrophe that could destroy the world.
The Gorge will be broadcast on Apple TV+ from February 14, 2025.
Synopsis: Two over-trained agents are assigned to guard posts in towers on either side of a vast secret abyss, in order to protect the world from the mysterious evil it contains. Bonding over distance, the two agents must remain vigilant against this unseen enemy. But when the cataclysmic threat to humanity is revealed to them, they must team up to maintain the secret inside the chasm before it's too late.
Scott Derrickson's The Gorge is an explosive cocktail ofaction, thriller and romance, driven by captivating performances from Miles Teller and Anya Taylor-Joy. Halfway between survival,horror and introspection, this film offers an intense tale of human connection in a hostile, mysterious setting.
Isolated from the rest of the world, Levi(Miles Teller) and Drasa(Anya Taylor-Joy) are two snipers stationed at the ends of an immense chasm in the heart of a dense forest. One guards the American-controlled western tower, while the other occupies the Russian-controlled eastern tower. Their mission is as simple as it is opaque: to keep watch over this geological anomaly for a year, ensuring that no one discovers its existence and preventing anyone from getting close. The instructions are strict: no contact is allowed between them, and no one really knows what lies at the bottom of the abyss.
In the first half of the film, Derrickson takes the time to explore their solitary daily lives. Months pass, punctuated by impersonal military reports, training sessions and furtive glances exchanged through the fog. The isolation is total, and the lack of information about their mission adds a latent tension.
It was on the evening ofDrasa's birthday, in November, that everything changed. Out of sight, breaking with protocol, she initiated contact with Levi by sending him a furtive message scribbled in a notebook. Against all odds, he replies. What should have remained a simple exchange of courtesies becomes the starting point of a clandestine relationship. Little by little, a complicity develops between the two agents, who challenge each other, confide in each other and find comfort in the humanity they were forbidden to express.
But that night, just as a faint feeling of warmth settled between them, the chasm finally revealed its secret. In the silent darkness, strange silhouettes emerge from the depths. At first elusive, they lurk in the shadows, on the edge of perception, as if testing the limits of their prison. Then, gradually, they become bolder, their movements more assertive, hinting at their menacing presence on the outskirts of the towers.Horror takes shape: monsters exist, and the snipers' mission is not just toobserve, but to contain what lies dormant beneath their feet.
After that terrifying night, Levi and Drasa continue their mission, but everything has changed. Despite the fear that gnaws at them, their bond grows stronger in the shadows. Over the following months, they develop a form of secret long-distance communication, exchanging messages scribbled on large notepads visible from their respective towers. A ritual is established: every morning, they greet each other in silence, every night, they watch over each other, their mutual presence becoming their only anchor in this absolute solitude.
Then, in February, after several months of this long-distance relationship, Levi took the plunge. Determined to break this physical separation, he undertakes a senseless act: he sets up a makeshift zip-line between the two towers and, defying orders, crosses the chasm to join Drasa. What was supposed to be a stolen moment in their mission becomes a dramatic turning point. On the way back, Levi falls into the abyss. Without hesitation, Drasa jumps in after him, plunging into this unknown hell, ready to face the nightmarish creatures lurking in the fog.
This is where the second half of the film changes tone. Now trapped in the abyss, Levi and Drasa discover a world shrouded in thick fog, with countless nightmarish creatures on the prowl. Every step into this darkness is a gamble on their survival. Derrickson makes the most of the unknown and the claustrophobia of the place, playing with shadows, muffled noises and an anxiety-inducing soundtrack by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross.
In this part of the film, theaction takes over, with multiple screamers, desperate battles and disturbing revelations about the nature of the abyss. But beyond the monsters, it's Levi and Drasa who remain the emotional heart of the story. Their bond, born of loneliness, becomes an unbreakable alliance in the face of an invisible enemy.
Derrickson excels at creating a heavy atmosphere, brilliantly exploiting framing and camera movement to immerse the viewer in this subterranean hell. From the very first scenes, the use of wide shots amplifies thedisquieting immensity of the landscape, instilling a sense ofinsignificance and vulnerability in the characters as they face this unfathomable abyss.
As the plot progresses, the filmmaking becomes more nervous: fluid dollies, gradual pans and plays oflight and shadow distill a sense of constant threat. The photography oscillates between cold, misty tones, accentuating theisolation, and warmer hues during the stolen moments between Levi and Drasa, where the warmth of their emotional connection contrasts with thehostility of their surroundings.
The soundtrack plays a key role in this immersion, alternating between oppressive electronic layers and moments of heavy silence, where the slightest noise becomes an alarm.
While The Gorge shines with its immersive atmosphere and intriguing concept, its mix of genres can sometimes be disconcerting. The relationship between Levi and Drasa is undeniably the soul of the film, but its rapid evolution can feel rushed. Moreover, the final section, which veers into more visceral horror, is a radical departure from the slow, contemplative pace of the first half.
Despite some narrative imbalances, The Gorge remains an original proposition, supported by an impeccable cast and immersive direction. Theaction is effective, thehorror well balanced and the central relationship deeply human. A film that, had it been released theatrically, would have been able to unfold its full visual and audio potential on the big screen.
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