The first ever cinematic adaptation of a Jack Ketchum novel, Chris Sivertson's 2005 film The Lost, based on the book of the same name, is a pretty accurate representation of the source material -no easy task considering how intense some of the author's books can get.

Loosely based on a true story, the film begins when three friends - Ray Pye (Marc Senter), his girlfriend Jennifer (Shay Astar) and his pal Tim (Alex Frost) - are out in the woods one fine afternoon. Ray goes to use the outhouse when a naked woman (Erin Brown a.k.a. Misty Mundae) walks out. He follows her for a while and the three friends spy on her and her friend (fellow Seduction Cinema girl Ruby Larocca) as they discuss their boy troubles. Ray assumes they're lesbians and decides he should shoot them. After the brutal killings, he buries them in the woods and hides the evidence and the three go back to their everyday lives with a secret known only to them.

As time goes on, Ray works at his mother's hotel, holds parties, does drugs and generally acts like an ass towards everyone around him. He puts beer cans in his boots to make himself look taller, he greases his hair, he wears eyeliner and he gives himself a beauty mark before heading out to pick up whatever local girl will let him have his way with her. Jennifer puts up with this despite the fact that it obviously bothers her. When a girl named Sally (Megan Henning), who just so happens to be dating a cop forty years older than she is, takes a job at the hotel and shuns Ray's advances, the police, who still consider him the prime suspect in the unsolved murder case that opened the film, start to pay attention to Ray again. While the cops are trailing him, he's trying to get with the new girl in town, Katherine (Robin Sydney), who has just moved here from California. As the cops close in on Ray and those around him start to tire of his attitude and being putting up with less and less of his crap, Ray starts to unravel and we soon learn that the worst thing he's ever done was only the beginning.

The Lost starts off with a bang and then slows down for a bit but it isn't hard to figure out where it's all heading in the long run. Some of the film's middle lags a tad but the pay off is all worth it in the end. Marc Senter is great in the lead, as he primps and brags his way through the picture, eventually fooling no one but himself. He comes close to overdoing it in spots but thankfully doesn't really go so over the top that the picture is spoiled. He's quite manic, to be sure, but it's all in keeping with some of the dark humor in the script. The rest of the cast play it pretty safe and stay pretty believable throughout. Look for cameos from Dee Wallace Stone and from Jack Ketchum himself, both of whom show up in small bit parts. Co-producer Mike McKee (father of May director Lucky McKee, who also co-produced) also has a bit part cameo appearance.

While the decision to use some rather distracting metal on the soundtrack doesn't help things much (though including Boris and The Oblivions was a nice touch), The Lost winds up a winner. The film doesn't shy away from the bloodshed required by the finale nor does it pull any punches in that regard. The cinematography is nice and slick and the film is well shot despite a couple of odd inserts that are made to look like degraded film stock in a few flashback scenes. These are minor complaints, really. Ketchum's work has, like fellow scribe Joe Landsale, been ignored by filmmakers for far too long and it's nice to see someone like Chris Sivertson come along and do his writing justice.

Video:

The Lost is presented on DVD in an anamorphic 2.35.1 widescreen presentation. While there is a bit of grain and some noticeable edge enhancement, the picture is pretty solid for the most part. Color reproduction is good even if sometimes the red blood looks a little too dark, and skin tones certainly look realistic enough. Fine detail is strong in the foreground but occasionally gets soft in long distance shots, but overall this is a pretty satisfactory effort on Anchor Bay's part.