I am becoming downright enamored with the horror movie choices from the folks out at IFC, because frankly, they have brought out so many that have been of good quality. Home Movie, The Possession of David O’Reilly, and a host of others have won significant respect on my list. So when they sent a copy of High Lane, I was definitely looking forward to getting it in my DVD player.

High Lane follows a group of friends who, as groups of friends so often do in these kinds of movies, go out on a climbing expedition, despite the fact that they’ve been told, as groups of friends are so often told in these kinds of movies, that the mountains are dangerous and thus closed. But the mountain is dangerous for a lot more reasons than previously suggested–like bear traps, collapsing bridges, and of course, a lunatic roaming free and waiting to kill. Now with the friends up the mountain and a horror stalking them far, far above the earth’s surface, will they make it home alive? Or will the mountain claim more lives?

This is actually a French horror film–that much was clear when the soundtrack kicked off in French–and the French have done some really impressive stuff with horror. These are, after all, the guys who gave us Ils and Haute Tension, both of which were some seriously adrenaline-charged romps of horror mayhem. High Lane isn’t an exception, either.

Where this really excels is the fact that it has a really short run time, but it takes every advantage to put in shocks and surprises in rapid fire fashion. High Lane literally assaults you, throwing shocking visual punches one right after the next. The French are not known for being squeamish, and this won’t be their first time to restrain themselves. You might not think the French would have such a penchant for over the top horror, but you’d be quite wrong. High Lane is one more perfect example of their strange tendency to go nuts with their horror flicks.

If you’re not already well-versed with horror I’d suggest you stay away. This is strong stuff, and if you’re not ready for it it might turn you off horror movies period. This isn’t some simple eighties slasher movie, this is a whole lot more than you might be ready for.

Yes, horror buffs out there, this one is a really potent, blood-soaked mess of horror movie, and with something happening nearly every one of its eighty five minutes it’s going to be impossible to get bored here. This is a lot of horror flick, and unless you’re ready for it, it’ll likely overwhelm you.

Still though, for the long-time horror buff looking for something more than the flood of PG-13 stuff that’s been hitting lately, this expert-level exercise might be just the ticket.

The Screenhead Ten Scale gives High Lane a six out of ten–it’s strong stuff, make no mistake–and will likely be entirely too much for a lot of lower-level horror fans. There’s a lot of gore and a lot of action here, and that’s going to make it a rather niche product. If you can handle it, it’s worth checking out, but those who are not of sterner stuff may want to pass.