This is a competently made and well shot thriller which has a lackluster plot which fizzles to a limp conclusion. It does also feature one of the most unnecessary shower scenes in recent years so that kind of makes up for the flaws...

Antarctica, home to one of the deadliest forces in the world: the whiteout. The ice has provided U.S. Marshal Carrie Stetko (Kate Beckinsale, UNDERWORLD, VACANCY) with a perfect place to forget her troubled past and feel at peace, but in just three days she will be getting out. Each winter the station powers-down and the sun sets for several months. Soon nothing will be visible or traceable so when there is a sudden murder in her jurisdiction - the first homicide in Antartica - Stetko is quickly plunged into a shocking mystery.

When U.N. Special Agent Robert Pryce (GABRIEL MACHT), is sent to monitor her investigation, the case takes a deadly twist and a 60-year-old secret is unearthed. As Stetko herself becomes a target, Pryce could prove to be a powerful ally,but only if solving the murder is what he's really after. With only days before the last plane out, Stetko must race to unravel the mystery or risk being stranded on the ice as darkness and the killer closes in.

The setting is superbly recreated, you feel the cold and impending claustrophobia of the 'whiteout'. The problem isn't with the chills, but with the thrills. The great conspiracy at the heart of the film should be shattering but it isn't. The twists and attempts to add a 'who-done-it?' element to the proceedings fail to have any real impact. You only have a passing interest in the supporting characters and don't know nearly enough about them to warrant investing any additional effort in them.

The central character however does grab your attention (and not just for the obvious reasons...). Carrie is well-rounded with a dark past which is slowly revealed. Beckinsale has fun with the role, and indeed the potential for the character to go on further adventures is something that might be worth exploring. She handles the action scenes well, even if they are confusing and not exactly the sort of set-ups that get the heart pumping.

It's a shame that you leave the film feeling that a great setting and energetic performance from Beckinsale are let down by the pedestrian plot. 

Rating: ***

Starring: Kate Beckinsale, Gabriel Macht, Tom Skerritt and Columbus Short
Director: Dominic Sena
Written by: Jon Hoeber, Erich Hoeber, Chad Hayes and Carey Hayes    
Release Date: 11th September
Certificate: 15
Runtime: 101mins

Review by: Cassam Looch