The Gorge is part action movie, part horror, part romance, and a good enough movie if you aren’t too critical of the improbable details.

Miles Teller and Anya Taylor-Joy star in The Gorge as crack shots Levi and Drasa – one American, one Lithuanian. Each is assigned to a one year rotation in a high tower on opposite sides of a misty gorge. They are told not to communicate with each other and to keep the things down in the gorge from getting out.

The setup shows that Levi and Drasa are expert shots who can handle all the equipment and bombs set up along the ridge to keep whatever is down there from climbing out. For a while they follow the rules, but eventually begin writing notes to each other on big sheets of paper which they read through binoculars.

The towers and facilities used to guard the gorge have been there since the 1940s and may have something to do with World War II. It’s impossible to see what’s down below because the gorge is constantly filled with mist.

When some of the “creatures” from down below try to climb out we get the first glimpse of strange looking beings that might be human but have tree branches growing out of their bodies and other strange anomalies.

Flirting only lasts so long by long distance. Soon Levi rigs up a cable to take him across the canyon to Drasa. On his way back to the other side, the cable breaks and he falls into the gorge. She grabs a parachute and is right behind him. Thus begins the horror story. What they find at the bottom is creepy and scary and has the potential to take over the world should it ever get out.

Sigourney Weaver was around for a minute at the beginning and the end. Sope Dirisu played the character who explained the assignment to Levi when he first arrived at the post. Miles Teller and Anya Taylor-Joy were convincing as fighters and lovers, which was good because they were basically the only characters. The story relied on the atmospheric setting around the gorge and the special effects used to create the “hollow men” in the gorge. Most of the characters described the place as hell on earth.

There was plenty of suspense, plenty of action, a crazy Jeep ride, and some great big explosions. I loved the scenes where they were playing chess across the canyon and drumming along to the music Drasa had in her tower. Nice Easter eggs for the fans of these two actors.

I don’t give this one top marks, but it was fun to watch. You can see it on Apple TV+.