THE LOST

"Once upon a time, a boy named Ray Pye put crushed beer cans in his boots to make himself taller".

The above text opens THE LOST while we get a visual introduction to Ray (Marc Senter), set to the wistful vibes of Tim Rutili's lulling "Dreamless". We see Ray striding through the woods one afternoon, making his way to a wooden outhouse in the middle of the greenery.

As he approaches the toilet, naked teenager Lisa (the ever-welcome Misty Mundae) bursts out. She is understandably surprised and, covering her modesty, laughingly explains to Ray that she thought they were alone in the woods. She scuttles back to her tent, where he watches and learns that "they" are Lisa and her friend Elise (Ruby Larocca) - also naked.

Excitedly, Ray rushes back to his younger pals Jen (Shay Astar) and Tim (Alex Frost), who he left drinking elsewhere in the woods. He urges them to come and see the "naked chicks". Being half-cut on beer and looking up to their peer, Jen and Tim oblige.

When they reach the girls' camp it is nighttime, and they arrive just in time to catch them sharing a kiss. "They're lezzies!" exclaims Ray, before turning to Tim and suggesting they shoot the pair like rabbits.

Despite Jen and Tim's reservations, Ray gets his shotgun and has them stand guard while he moves in closer to the girls' camp. Sure enough, he blows them both away - then sticks around afterwards to observe their final gasps. Or so he thinks.

Afterwards, he bullies the sickened Jen and Tim into helping him clear the crime scene.

Then: "Four Years Later". In a local bar, detective Charlie (Michael Bowen) sits dejected, telling his former partner Ed (Ed Lauter) that Elise has finally died after four years on a life support machine. It turns out she was still barely alive when the cops found her. Charlie can't let the case go, having never arrested anyone for the shootings - and decides to plough back into bringing the killer to justice.

The following morning Charlie sets about his mission by visiting Elise's parents in the hope of finding something new to work with. The trouble is, Charlie and Ed know that Ray is their man - they've just never been able to prove it.

Meanwhile, Jen and Tim are still smoking and drinking on nights with Ray. Jen in particular has become jaded with Ray's domineering ways, but they stick with him anyway, waiting aimlessly for him to finish work at the sleazy motel he runs for his mother on evenings.

Things begin to go awry for Ray when he introduces his new girlfriend, out-of-towner Katherine (Robin Sydney) to his friends. Jen is clearly unimpressed by the presence of another girl, and it soon transpires that Katherine is almost as unhinged as Ray.

Ray starts to date Katherine, neglecting Tim and Jen at her request, but soon learns she is not as easy to manipulate as his young friends. She has a mind of her own, and slowly but surely the cracks begin to appear as Ray realises he is not in control.

The situation is further exasperated by the arrival of pretty young Sally (Megan Henning), who checks into the motel. Ray takes an instant shine to her too. The only problem is, she's having an affair with Ed!

With events gradually slipping farther out of Ray's control, the women new to his life becoming more of a burden and the detectives increasingly on his back about the opening killing, it seems like just a matter of time before Ray erupts.

And when he does, the shotgun hidden behind the bathroom mirror may well come back into play ...

THE LOST is based on the novel by Jack Ketchum, whose books have become very popular for adapting into genre films over the last few years (see also RED and THE GIRL NEXT DOOR).

While it may not succeed in hitting home as hard as the book does, THE LOST is a superior adaptation. Casting is intelligent, performances are keenly observed and director Chris Sivertson must be applauded for understanding the source material so well.

Sivertson has fashioned a startlingly faithful adaptation, tapping into the juvenile Ray's childlike need for control and respect. It's worth pointing out Senter's sterling performance at this point too, transforming the character of Ray into one that is at once laughably pathetic and terrifyingly plausible. At times, he comes across like a young Crispin Glover.

The opening scenes are explicit in their intent - the filmmakers want you to know there is strong stuff to come. But, after that initial wham-bam double murder scene, Sivertson reins in the terror and turns the film into an absorbing character study - a film better described as "crime drama" than "horror".

It's a wise move, enabling the film to explore the themes and relationships of Ketchum's novel, building slowly but steadily towards a terrible ending that feels inevitable from the start.

And when the finale does come (a little later than it should - this is a long film at 115 minutes, with a dip in the middle), it is a shocker.

THE LOST is intelligent filmmaking that benefits from smart writing (the screenplay was co-scripted by Ketchum and Sivertson) and good casting. Speaking of which, look out for genre favourite Dee Wallace as Elise's drunken mother.

A nice score, attractive cinematography, good production values and slick editing further contribute towards making this a highly involving and emotional ride.

The film is presented in a satisfyingly crisp, bright 2.35:1 anamorphic transfer. Blacks are strong and colours remain accurate throughout this sharp and clean presentation.

English audio is presented in 5.1 and offers a serviceable, appropriately balanced mix throughout. Optional English hard-of-Hearing subtitles are also provided.

An attractive animated main menu page leads us to an animated scene-selection menu, allowing access to the main feature via 16 chapters.

Extras begin with an excellent commentary from Ketchum, moderated by "fellow horror writer" Monica O'Rourke. The jovial O'Rourke's job is made easy by the fact that Ketchum is an erudite and affable subject, offering equal amounts of enthusiasm and vital information in what is a hugely valuable track. Ketchum reveals how Pye was based on Charles Schmid, a killer once dubbed "the Pied Piper of Tucson". He also explains, among many other things, how MAY director Lucky McKee was instrumental in getting the film made.

6 minutes of windowboxed auditions round out the film-based extras, offering an interesting insight into the cast's genesis into their characters.

The disc is defaulted to open with trailers for SAW 5, REPO! A GENETIC OPERA, CATACOMBS and BTK.

While THE LOST may not be the adaptation Ketchum purists were hoping for, it stands as one of the decade's superior American serial killer films. Recommended.

Review by Stu Willis