DIRECTOR Renny Harlin WRITER Vikram Weet STARS Holly Goss; Matt Stokoe; Luke Albright SCREENING Today at 10.30
Certainly The Dyatlov Pass Incident holds an intriguing premise, that of its titular, real-life mystery of the deaths of a group of hikers in Russia’s Ural mountains in 1959. A lack of survivors/eyewitnesses made for an inconclusive verdict and some juicy, wildly differing conspiracy theories, any of which could form the basis of an effective horror film. Sadly, opportunity was fumbled by first-time writer Vikram Weet’s decision to concoct a Blair Witch aping mash-up that fails to hold attention due to its very own indecision. As such, the final act — reasonably effective due to some nicely claustrophobic camerawork and stylish art direction — feels somewhat tacked on, and crosses the line between fantastical to slightly amusing ridiculousness.
