The Frozen Ground

Cast of Characters:

Sgt. Jack Halcombe - Nicolas Cage

Robert Hansen - John Cusack

Cindy Paulson - Vanessa Hudgens

Sgt. Lyle Haugsven - Dean Norris

Jodi Brandon - Olga Valentina

Vice Det. John Gentile - Michael McGrady

Carl Galenski - Brad William Henke

Fran Hansen - Katherine LaNasa

Allie Halcombe - Radha Mitchell

Pimp Clate Johnson - Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson

Director - Scott Walker

Screenplay - Scott Walker

Rated R for violent content, sexuality/nudity, language and drug use

      Academy Award winner Nicolas Cage, John Cusack and Vanessa Hudgens star in writer/director Scott Walker's The Frozen Ground, based on the real life Alaskan serial killer Robert Hansen.

      Following the rescue of Cindy Paulson (Vanessa Hudgens), Sgt. Jack Halcombe (Nicolas Cage) begins a manhunt for Robert Hansen (John Cusack) -  a community involved, family man who has silently stalked the city of Anchorage as a serial killer for the past thirteen years. The Anchorage Police Department as well as the District Attorney aren't all that keen on Halcombe running this case considering he's having to reopen a number of cases that have already been closed as well as dealing with evidence that's nothing more than circumstantial.

      Despite it seeming that everyone's against him, Halcombe, with help from colleague Sgt. Lyle Haugsven (Dean Norris), must convince Cindy to help them in any way she can. She's the only concrete evidence they have against the killer and it is up to her to help end his murderous rampage.

      Nicolas Cage's acting career has been up and down like a roller coaster. First he was known for his rom-coms, then he had his Oscar winning role in the terrific Leaving Las Vegas, then he had his dopey action film phase, then got back into better films such as Adaptation and Matchstick Men, then he figured movies like Ghost Rider and Season of the Witch were endeavors worth taking. Aside from his supporting role in Kick-Ass, he has been stuck in that "I need a paycheck!" mode for years now. This film's far from perfect. It's pretty much a connect the dots, by the books serial killer thriller that we've seen a thousand times before. It's obviously been done better, but I've seen far worse. That said, sometimes a mediocre film can be elevated a bit by the performances and such is the case here. It has been years since Cage has given a performance that reminded just how great of an actor he is, and here he was finally able to do so once again in a role that's a lot more subtle than we're use to seeing from him. John Cusack plays against type as the despicable Robert Hansen, who hides his inner evil within the smiling, respected family man he masquerades as, and Vanessa Hudgens gives another strong performance this year that shows she has the potential to have a solid film career. While the three leads are strong and there's also a nice supporting turn from Dean Norris (best known as DEA Agent Hank Schrader on TV's Breaking Bad), Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson and Radha Mitchell come off as flat in two throwaway roles as Hudgens's pimp and Cage's cliche long-suffering wife respectively. Midway through the film, writer/director Scott Walker runs into some pacing issues, but there are moments that show promise for him as a filmmaker in his feature-length film debut. We also get some strong cinematography from Patrick Murguia that captures the mood of this story rather well.

      It's not a great film, but I'm still giving this a mild recommendation on account of the three strong lead performances from Cage, Cusack and Hudgens. We've certainly seen this type of film before and before this year ends we'll see another one like it, but this is a solid step back in the right direction for Nicolas Cage. It was good seeing him show again that in the right role he can in fact deliver a strong performance. I give The Frozen Ground a B (★★★).