The serial killer thriller ‘The Frozen Ground’ is so clunky a guy who has seen less than five movies in his life could come up with a better script. It is so clichéd and derivative that directly ripping off some other thrillers would still make for a comparatively fresher film.

The film is slow-paced but fruitfully takes it’s own sweet time to build each of its characters. What keeps one engrossed is the narration of State Trooper Jack Halcombe’s (Nicholas Cage) endless and determined search to find evidence against Hansen and his attempts to put him behind bars for good.

A promising feature debut by New Zealand-born writer-director Scott Walker, this icy crime thriller is based on actual events. The story sustains a blistering pace and there are enough thrills to propel viewers to the edge of the seat. Shot in the locations where the murders took place, cinematographer Patrick Murguia ably integrates the snowy vistas of a small town in Alaska with interiors shot in seedy bars and nightclubs.

Despite the fact that you know the end, the beauty lies in the way Walker opens up the cards at the right time. John Cusack plays the part perfectly, and Nicolas Cage impresses in his role as the investigating officer. The film stays true to its genre and delivers on every front.

The film does navigate through familiar serial killer-thriller checkpoints but the screenplay does pack in some clever tricks. Scott Walker does not sensationalize Cusack’s Hansen and Cage thankfully reins in his histrionics.