High Lane 2009

A group of five young adults Fred [Nicolas Giraud], his girlfriend Karine [Maud Wyler], and their friends Chloé [Fanny Valette], Guillaume [Raphaël Lenglet], and Loïc [Johan Libéreau] head to Croatia to climb and hike, drawn by a mix of adrenaline and escape. The mission starts with promise, but they quickly realize the trail is perilous and the starting point is blocked off by rocks. The experienced climber Fred persuades the others to push forward along a route that’s closed to casual hikers, and even the hesitant Loïc agrees to join, spurred partly by Chloé’s steady presence. As they push deeper into unfamiliar terrain, the group discovers that their improvisation has trapped them on a course far more dangerous than any of them anticipated. An unstable rope bridge collapses after their crossing, sending a chill through the group when Karine nearly falls to the rocks below. With the bridge out, there is no easy way back, and Fred, feeling the weight of his earlier insistence, urges everyone to press on toward the end of the trail as quickly as possible.

Fred climbs ahead with Karine while the rest of the group clings to a cliff edge, and trouble worsens when Fred is wounded in a bear trap. Karine tries to pry the trap off his leg, but the others—especially Loïc, whose fear shakes his ability to belay—struggle to maintain safety. Guillaume’s warnings about Loïc’s jealousy and his own unspoken affection for Chloé simmer beneath the surface as the tension tightens. Loïc’s failed support sends him plummeting, pulling Guillaume down with him, and the two hang in danger as Chloé watches in mounting horror. In a harsh moment of misdirection, Fred signals Karine to leave him and fetch the others. Karine retreats, but Fred’s fate seems sealed when movement in the trees begins and the bear trap’s grip tightens, pulling him away.

Karine manages to throw a rope to help the others reach higher ground, but when they return, Fred is gone. Loïc discovers blood on the foliage and the trap’s empty, a clue that unsettles them all. Karine, trying to steady herself, begs for calm and insists they search, even as night falls and Fred’s bag—containing the flares they might have used to signal for help—has vanished. The search becomes a conflict as Loïc and Guillaume quarrel over Chloé, and Chloé tries to intervene but slips and falls into a pit trap. Karine rappels down to assess the situation and uncovers a poacher’s trap full of spikes; Chloé’s arm is pierced, and she is left in desperate need of rescue. As Karine pulls Chloé to safety, Guillaume senses they’re being watched and urges Loïc to be cautious, but Loïc remains suspicious and obstinate. When Karine finally frees Chloé, they confront the grim possibility that the prey may be nearby.

Rain intensifies the danger as the group ropes themselves together and continues the search for Fred. A brutal turn comes when Karine is struck by an arrow through the chest, and when she yanks on her rope, the line is severed, dragging her away into the darkness. Chloé fights panic and tries to reach Karine, but Loïc urges escape instead of aid. They stumble upon a cabin in the forest where they discover Fred—naked and bloodied—lying on a slab; he dies soon after from shock and his wounds, and Loïc covers the body with a sheet in a moment of grim resignation.

Guillaume finds a door to the basement and descends to retrieve Fred’s bag, only to uncover a macabre trove: animal pelts, hunting gear, and hanging severed heads. The wall bears the name “Anton,” a stark clue that a lone poacher lurks nearby. Guillaume tries to warn Loïc, but Loïc refuses to listen, consumed by fear and suspicion. Anton returns with Karine’s corpse; Chloé is knocked unconscious during the confrontation as Loïc grapples with the intruder. When Chloé comes to, she joins Loïc in a fight to survive, but Loïc’s cowardice surfaces again as he flees with a flare, abandoning Chloé to face Anton alone. He leaves her to die as the brutal struggle continues.

Chloé and Guillaume, chained to the basement wall, hear Anton silence the life of Fred and Karine in a brutal display. Though Chloé fights to free herself, Anton returns and takes her upstairs with the clear intention to kill her. Loïc makes his way back to the cabin, and Guillaume, finally freeing himself, screams for Chloé to call out to Anton. A tense chase unfolds as Anton pursues Loïc with a crossbow, wounding him in the leg. Loïc fights back, stabbing Anton and striking him with a rock, but the poacher escapes to a precarious ladder and climbs away to the cliff edge. Loïc calls for help, and Chloé and Guillaume reach him just as Guillaume’s trust in Loïc collapses under the weight of fear and suspicion. Guillaume convinces Chloé to abandon any grudges and help Loïc, but the moment of unity collapses when Anton shoots a crossbow bolt through Guillaume’s head, killing him.

In a furious, ferocious exchange, Chloé charges Anton with a knife. She delivers a series of blows, but a sudden memory of the dead patient stops her from delivering the final strike. Instead, she leaves Anton to die and makes a desperate dash for the cable to escape. She descends into the treacherous drop with tears streaming down her face, leaving her knife behind in the cabin. Anton, enraged, retrieves the weapon and begins his pursuit along the cable in a frenzy. The final shot follows Chloé on the cable as a loud snap echoes through the trees, and the screen cuts to black—an ominous hint that Anton may have severed the line.

The closing note reminds viewers that the Balkans remain a perilous frontier, where countless people go missing each year. The fate of the survivors is left murky: Loïc’s body is found, and while Chloé has carved out a desperate escape, the world outside this climb remains indifferent to the cost of survival in such unforgiving terrain.