DETECTIVE Jack Halcombe (Nicolas Cage) is preparing to leave Anchorage with his wife Allie (Radha Mitchell) and children when he receives a call that the body of a young woman has been found in the icy wilderness.

Soon after, Jack receives a file on Cindy Paulson (Vanessa Hudgens), a 17-year-old prostitute who claims that she escaped from the clutches of Robert Hansen (John Cusack), who held her hostage in his basement den and raped her.

Jack interviews Cindy and is moved by her tearful testimony, his interest piqued when the young woman reveals: “He said there were seven girls before me and I was lucky because they usually stay for a week.”

Convinced that Hansen is a dangerous serial killer, Jack works tirelessly to build a case against his prime suspect aided by Sergeant Lyle Haugsven (Dean Norris).

Based on the real-life hunt for serial killer Robert Hansen, The Frozen Ground is a solid genre piece, which embraces hoary archetypes: the grizzled cop close to retirement, the working girl who has been abused by the system, the family man with a sadistic streak.

Cage is unusually subdued, almost sleepwalking through some scenes, but Hudgens continues to impress.

DAMON SMITH