“Beyond this point, there will be monsters” says a pensive, gravelly-voiced Michael Douglas. The venerable star of Jean-Baptiste Léonetti’s Beyond the Reach is not far wrong either, as this character drama set out in the unforgiving landscape of the Mojave Desert very quickly becomes a dark cat-and-mouse horror flick. Problem is, it’s just not a very good one.

Douglas is playing Madec, with a distinct emphasis on the first three letters of his name, he’s an affluent tycoon with a twinkle in his eye and a wad of cash in the front pocket on his tailor made shirt – he’s rich and powerful, but cowers behind the shadow of his tilted cowboy hat. He wants to go out hunting in the Desert, after bribing himself a license by throwing some spare money around, he is partnered with the impoverished guide Ben (Jeremy Irvine). But when the pair make their way to the barren, dry land – it becomes unclear who is actually being hunted in this perilous, unforeseen situation.

Douglas plays this high-rolling corporate swine remarkably well, almost picking up where he left off in Wall Street. From the moment you meet him you don’t trust him, and he makes for a chilling antagonist. Horrors can often work well when our hero locks horn with another human being, as while knowing of their capabilities can be somewhat restrictive, it feels more real and allows for the viewer to adhere to the situation at hand, and place themselves in the protagonist’s shoes. But in this instance, with the ageing Douglas roaming the Desert – the threat doesn’t feel significant enough, and you can find too many ways for Ben to defeat the opponent, no matter how savage and brutal he is willing to be.

Léonetti doesn’t spend along enough setting the scene either, as we proceed right into the action. Though the lack of background knowledge (for Ben at least, Madec is deliberately elusive) is frustrating, given the modest running length and the unrelenting nature of this picture, anything more subtle or slow-burning wouldn’t be in line with the film’s general tone. However it does pave the way for a severe bout of tedium, which kicks in around half way through proceedings. Given the crux of the narrative is underway so soon, there isn’t anywhere left to go, and suddenly watching Douglas roam the desert and Irvine scramble desperately out of sight, becomes somewhat monotonous, as that’s pretty much the only thing that truly happens throughout the entirety of the middle act.

What also doesn’t help, is that Ben simply hasn’t got enough about him personality-wise, making it too much of a struggle to emotionally invest in his cause, and root for his safety. You couldn’t really care either way. There is a contrived attempt at implementing an ex-girlfriend sub-plot, but it’s not nearly enough. Mind you, Irvine’s distinctively wooden performance doesn’t help matters much either.