The Frozen Ground

Set in Alaska in the early 1980s, The Frozen Ground follows state trooper Jack Halcombe as he investigates the murders of young women around Anchorage. Robert Hansen appears to be an ordinary family man and bakery owner, but the evidence points to him as the killer, and he has an alibi that has kept him beyond suspicion. When Cindy Paulson, a teenage sex worker, escapes after being abducted and assaulted, she becomes the witness Halcombe needs. The two work together to build a case against a man the community regards as respectable, while Hansen reacts to the pressure of the investigation.

Nicolas Cage plays Halcombe, with Vanessa Hudgens as Paulson and John Cusack as Hansen. Radha Mitchell, Jodi Lyn O'Keefe and Katherine LaNasa appear in supporting roles. The film was directed by Scott Walker from his own screenplay, and it was his first feature, followed years later by The Tank. It is a German, British and American co-production with a budget reported at 27 million dollars. The worldwide box office came to about 5 million dollars, a small fraction of its cost.

On IMDb the film holds a 6.2 rating from roughly 63,000 votes, and on TMDB it has a 6.3 rating from about 1,630 votes. Its critics' score is 5.2 out of 10 from 57 reviews. The gap between the audience and critics' ratings is modest, with viewers rating it somewhat higher than critics did.