‘A Lonely Place to Die’ is a pulsating thriller that will leave you breathless

Julian Gilbey’s new film, A Lonely Place to Die, is a surprisingly taut thriller that will keep audiences on the edge of their seat for its entire duration. It features believable acting, an engaging plot and beautiful cinematography of the Scottish Highlands. The film, which is now available on DVD and Blu-ray, stands as one of the best thrillers in recent memory.

Melissa George plays Alison, the leader of a group of mountaineers who take to the high peaks in the northern part of Scotland. They’re young and ambitious, and that usually spells instant death in an action or horror movie. But A Lonely Place to Die is different (although there’s still some death). It trusts its characters and has them make real decisions with real consequences. They all seem like smart, good people — not a single airhead in the bunch.

Alison and her four friends head out on a trail to their next climb when they hear something in the woods. It’s faint, but definitive. Somewhere nearby is a young girl in distress, and they need to find her. Searching through the trees they find an unimaginable horror and quickly find themselves in dangerous, dangerous territory.

To continue with the plot would spoil much of the fun of A Lonely Place to Die (note to readers: don’t read the blurb on the back of the DVD cover). Don’t worry, the movie doesn’t descend into a gore-filled horror film or paint-by-numbers genre flick. It always keeps its head above water, even during its somewhat far-fetched conclusion.

Gilbey, who wrote the screenplay with his brother Will, knows how to write smart dialogue and keep the action rolling forward to its catharsis. There’s hardly time to catch one’s breath after the mountaineers make their discovery in the woods. The violence can be extreme at times, but it never grows gratuitous. The plot throws in a lot of curveballs and sudden occurrences to completely abolish expectation. Much like the mountain climbers in the film,  A Lonely Place to Die is rocky, untraversed terrain — and that makes it thrilling and exciting.

Any good survival drama will depend largely on its cast. They need to make us believe in these characters, enough to hope for their safe recovery. George is more than up to the challenge, matching serious acting chops with her supermodel good looks. Ed Speleers is also a standout as the comedian in the group, a man who needs to toughen up right away to face the pending doom.

The look of the film is beautiful. Gilbey is able to portray Scotland’s Highlands is such a picturesque light that it becomes that much more devastating when blood and destruction enter the fray. At the top of the world, with beauty on the horizon, there can still be carnage, there can still be the violence of your fellow man.

A Lonely Place to Die opened in limited release from IFC Midnight in 2011, but it largely flew under the radar. Here’s hoping a newfound audience appreciates this thrilling gem on DVD. It earns its spot among the best action movies over the past few years. Survival has never been so invigorating to behold.

By John Soltes / Publisher / John@HollywoodSoapbox.com

• A Lonely Place to Die

• 2011

• Directed by Julian Gilbey

• Written by Gilbey and William Gilbey

• Starring Melissa George, Ed Speleers, Sean Harris, Karel Roden and Alec Newman

• Running time: 99 minutes

• Not Rated

• Rating: