User Reviews

This is a decent movie, which ironically would best be viewed on the big screen given the visually arresting shots of the Alaskan landscape except that it had a very tiny release on the big screen, and has most certainly been seen more on-demand and now through the DVD format. In case a viewer of "The Frozen Ground" is left unsatisfied with the necessary compression of events, composite characters, etc. that are necessary to produce a movie of less than two hours in length, and want to learn more about the Hansen case that inspired the movie one could do worse then read "Fair Game" (http://tinyurl.com/mqssp5z) by Bernard DuClos that was recently republished. Reading it as a companion to the

movie will help the viewer of "The Frozen Ground" realize the liberties that were inevitably taken to make it suitable for the silver screen as well as understand elements of Hansen's life and killing spree that the picture did not have time to delve into such as more of Hansen's background (which early on indicated a propensity toward crime) and the back story of the whole oil pipeline boom that produced the mafia controlled prostitution/strip bar scene that Hudgen's character is entangled in.

I came across this one on Netflix streaming movies. The main leads are all good in their roles. It is based on the real serial killer in Anchorage, Alaska and how one trooper's persistence finally was able to put him away.

Nicolas Cage is trooper Jack Halcombe, about to leave the job for another in a few weeks. But he is bothered by the occasional young women, often prostitutes, who either go missing or turn up dead. He becomes a man on a mission to identify and imprison the guy.

He gets key help from Vanessa Hudgens as teenage prostitute Cindy Paulson who had been abducted by the suspected serial killer but had gotten away. She provides key observations that lead them to the man.

Looking quite remarkably like the real guy (google search images) John Cusack is Robert Hansen. He had a long history of various arrests, and admitted to frequenting prostitutes for things he didn't want his wife to do. He was also a pilot of a small plane and a big game hunter.

While this movie is good overall at times it seemed a bit disjointed. I would have liked that the story be a bit "tighter."

SPOILERS: It turns out Hansen was quite deranged, he would capture young women, fly them to his favorite remote locations, free them, then use a powerful rifle and scope to hunt them down and kill them, burying them where they died. At home he kept a map, with marks at a number of places, it turned out to be the places he killed various girls.

In 1993, in Anchorage, Alaska, the young prostitute Cindy Paulson (Vanessa Hudgens) is found cuffed in her apartment and she claims that she has been rapped and threatened by Robert "Bob" Hansen (John Cusack), a citizen married with children. The police officers do not believe on her words and Cindy returns to the streets and Bob is not accused.

Meanwhile Sergeant Jack Halcombe (Nicolas Cage) is assigned to investigate the murder of seven young women and the detective that found Cindy secretly sends her case to him. Jack believes that Bob is the serial-killer but he has no evidences to arrest him. Jack tries to earn Cindy's trust to send Bob to the court but she is afraid and tries to leave Alaska.

"The Frozen Ground' is a great and effective old-fashioned thriller that is supported in performances and not in explosions, car chases or special effects. Based on true events, the plot succeeds in keeping the attention of the viewer, despite the killer's identity be disclosed in the beginning. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "Sangue no Gelo" ("Blood on the Ice")

As far as real life serial killer movies go, this one about Alaskan killer Robert Hansen has a good cast and a fascinating story. Unfortunately this one wasn't that well directed or written. Camera work wasn't good. Too much was in the dark or night with jerky closeup shots of people. Better when there were panoramic shots of Alaska. Too much time was spent on victim who got away Cindy Paulson's (Hudgens) angst. Having her run away from safety so many times got annoying. Seemed fake and contrived for dramatic effect and spoiled the believability of the movie. Her escape from Hansen was fragmented and muddled. The story should have been told in a more sequential manner for full impact. The flashbacks weren't differentiated well from the present so it felt confusing in an unnecessary way.

Despite the weakness in screenplay and directing, the story of the killer is fascinating because it is so bizarre especially the hunting of his victims. Hudgens acts well in a torrid dramatic role - something none of her high school musical castmates have achieved to date. But making her run away so often makes her irritating and her character does not evoke sympathy. John Cusack is cast against type as killer Hansen. Somehow he doesn't seem that sinister - too clean cut. Could have looked a bit more evil. Nicholas Cage acts well as the dedicated person who catches Hansen.

There are other movies about other famous serial killers that are made in a more straightforward and therefore effective manner. "To Catch a Killer" with Brian Dennehy about John Gacy was much scarier. Even the cheaper TV movies about Bundy have more impact.

A bit of a waste but still worth a watch for the subject matter.

Before I get into what I had problems with concerning the movie "The Frozen Ground", let me say I did not hate or actively dislike the movie. For one thing, I wasn't bored while watching it. The level of acting by all the participants is pretty good, and the movie has very good production values despite going straight to DVD. However, to a significant degree I found the movie unsatisfying. For one thing, the movie doesn't really explore that well the character of serial killer Robert Hansen. I had no idea what was motivating him or going on in his head at any time. I think the movie would have been better if it had the focus been on him and Nicolas Cage's policeman character in a kind of supporting role. Another issue I had with the movie was with the character of Cindy Paulson, the young woman who managed to escape from Hansen. To me, her character quite often seemed to be padding, since she didn't seem to be advancing the movie all that much. Also, near the end of the movie, when her character gets in danger again, her contrived predicament had me saying, "Oh, come on!" out loud.

Despite these flaws, I will say again I did not hate the movie. Somewhat disappointed with it, yes, but my feelings towards it were not terribly hostile.

Nicholas Cage is an Alaskan State Trooper about to retire to milder climes, with the eager approval of his wife, Radha Mitchell. A case comes to him though. An Anchorage hooker, Vanessa Hudgens, is weeping at the police station, claiming she was kidnapped, bound, and about to be killed in the woods by a maniac. It was a miracle she escaped. A light bulb goes on in Cage's mind. This reminds him of a dozen unsolved cases involving disappearing hookers. His colleagues are not amused.

Of course her story is real, and Cage's intuition is in proper working order. Those cases -- and many more -- are all linked because they were committed by the same lunatic serial killer, John Cusack.

The police balk, Cage's State Troopers balk, the justice system balks, and there is too little evidence to pick up Cusack, who is, after all, a mild-mannered Anchorage baker. He's given to hunting trips in the far woods but what man in Alaska isn't? And everyone but Cage believes that Cusack's hunting territory and the burial grounds of some of the hookers is just a coincidence.

So far, so good. Interesting fact-based story, professionally competent performers, and a sizable budget allowing for magnificent aerial shots of the gray, craggy, snowy mountains. The script and the director manage to turn it into something resembling an inexpensive, Canadian-made, feature on Lifetime Movie Network.

I'll give just a few brief illustrations. Hudgens has escaped from Cusack's clutches but she has seen him and can identify him. Cusack knows this so he is prowling the streets of the bars and whorehouses where she hangs out, hoping somehow to kill her. Hudgens knows this, and so does Cage. So Cage takes her to the only place she'll be safe -- his own home. Then, in compliance with the usual formula, Cage's wife begins shouting at him. She wants to move, they've already sent out the required papers, she cares nothing about threatened whores, only about her own family. Why save a life when it interferes with your plans to move? But Radha Mitchell's protestations don't count for much because Hudgens gathers her stuff together, escapes from Cage's house, and returns to her old haunts in the red light district, although of course she knows Cusack is hunting her there. When she's hospitalized from a slight overdose of crack, an officer is assigned to protect her, but she escapes yet again from a place of safety. She becomes a pole dancer. She does everything but wear a neon bulls eye on her frame.

The direction is okay except that once in a while, for no evident reason, the camera is made to wobble and focus on an unimportant image, or a pointless close up, as if this were a TV commercial for a brokerage firm.

What keeps the movie going -- aside from its constant asking of the persistent question, "How stupid can I get?" -- are the performances. Some of the supporting cast are shaky, but Vanessa Hudgens as the young woman in jeopardy is not. Her turn is sterling. Nicholas Cage is surprisingly subdued. He's one of those actors who generally brings something extra to each role, but not here. He plays one note on his instrument, worried and a little angry. John Cusack is very good, once the script gives him a chance to unwind from his stereotypical part. His delivery in the interrogation room is smooth, passionate, and clumsy. ("You bring up this past-based stuff.") It's not a bad film, gloomy though it is. It's just that it could have been so much better with a bit of care.

"The Frozen Ground" is a crime thriller with a little bit of mystery. The mystery wasn't in who the culprit was, but if they could catch the guy who did it.

TFG takes place in Alaska in 1983. It was a moderately exciting thriller supposedly based upon a true story. A perverted psycho named Robert "Bob" Hanson (John Cusack) was kidnapping, raping, and killing prostitutes in Alaska where he had no shortage of dumping grounds. When a girl named Cindy Paulson (Vanessa Hudgens) escaped, it led to an investigation into Bob. Leading the investigation was Detective Jack Holcome (Nicolas Cage). He was convinced that Bob was the killer of many of the missing women in Alaska over the past twelve years, and with Cindy's help he was determined to arrest him.

The movie had some good intensity and energy. Bob was a choir boy when he wasn't kidnapping, raping, and killing, so there was nothing anyone could pin on him. Holcome was committed to stopping Bob, but everything hinged upon Cindy, the survivor. I was in tune with the movie until Cindy escaped the hospital. It was such a stupid move that can only be viewed as a plot device to create suspense.

The movie began with Cindy screaming for help as she was cuffed to something in a motel. She gave police a statement about a man named Bob who raped her. The authorities weren't really motivated to believe her, so Bob was never arrested and Cindy went back to the streets hooking. She was a mess on the streets, so a girlfriend of hers convinced her to dance at the strip club. It was there that she saw Bob again which naturally freaked her out. Like any normal person she booked the next thing smoking to get out of town. Jack convinced her to stay so that she could help him put Bob away.

Jack stashed Cindy at his house just to give her a safe place to stay. His wife, understandably, was not happy. When Cindy heard them arguing about her she left and went right back to the streets. It was such a frustrating move, but I could understand it to some degree; who wants to be where they're not wanted? So, even though I thought she was dumb for leaving, I wasn't overly perturbed because of the circumstances.

However, after Jack had her hospitalized after he found her OD'ed, her reasons for leaving the safe confines of the hospital made zero sense. She was in a protected place with a police guard; why on Earth would she leave that situation? Of course, Jack had to go looking for her again, and he saved her from another near death situation, but it was so unnecessary. I had had enough of Cindy. If she was determined to kill herself through recklessness, then go ahead, I don't have to watch.

Eventually, Bob confessed to his crimes and seventeen of the twenty-plus women were found. The movie was good, but could've been so much better with just a smarter main character.

Netflix.

Was concerned Nick Cage would be the Nick Cage of late, but it was a nice surprise as he was absolutely fantastic. He really carried this movie and should be given the credit he deserves.

Vanessa Hudgens portrayal was very good knowing her previous films were mostly comedic. She made me believe she was her character.

Was hoping not to find out who the killer was until later, but as the movie played out, it suited the arrogance of Hansen. Thought Cusack did an adequate job with the material presented.

The score was very dramatic and added to the feeling of the moment. Loved the outdoor wilderness scenes as they were mostly well shot, but the inside shots were framed too tight, but that was the style the cinematographer decided on , so it's a matter of opinion or budget.

Overall I liked the movie and would rate this as above average. Well done Nick.

This film, written and directed by Scott Walker, is based on actual events that took place in Anchorage, Alaska, in 1983 and also covering a number of previous years.

At first I thought the movie was not covering any new ground and was rather plodding in its' pacing. However, as tension built in the final 30 minutes of the film, I thought that things really picked up and that the plot pieces fell nicely into place.

Two fine actors John Cusack and Nicolas Cage are the headliners here in the type roles they can excel at. We learn early on in the movie that Cusack, as Robert C. Hansen, is a psycho serial killer, who lures young women by offering them lucrative photo shoots. He then kidnaps, tortures, rapes, and finally kills them.

When a body of a woman is uncovered in the Alaskan wild, which had been dug up by a bear, Cage, as Alaskan State Trooper Sergeant Jack Halcombe, is called in to head up the investigation. He quickly discovers that there is a connection between this woman and many missing women over the past years from Anchorage. When a conscientious local Anchorage police officer sends him several case files surreptitiously, Sgt Halcombe also concludes the local police have either completely dropped the ball on a proper investigation of the disappearing women or they're covering something up.

Sgt. Halcombe also finds out there is a recent survivor of a kidnapping and rape which meets the M.O. of the previous attacks. This is Cindy Paulson, ably played by Vanessa Hudgens, who's a young prostitute that has come from an abusive home and has been on the streets since she was 11 years old. She's extremely fearful and skittish though and refuses to go into protective custody.

As all signs point to Hansen as the serial rapist and killer, Sgt. Halcombe must try and find enough evidence to get a reluctant District Attorney and local police force to close in on him. At the same time, he has to try and keep Cindy alive as a witness.

As mentioned, after a slow start and formulaic plot elements, I thought the movie ended up as a rather engaging and absorbing flick. The actual photos of many of the victims at the end of the film added realism and gave it a more humanistic touch.