- Director : Billy Hanson
- Actors : Jonathan Stoddard, Matt Munroe, Trinity Jo-Li Bliss, Jennifer Khoe, Shaan Sharma
- Language : English (DTS 5.1)
- Studio : Well Go Usa
- Country of Origin : USA
- MPAA rating : NR (Not Rated)
- Number of discs : 1
- Media Format : Subtitled, Widescreen
- Run time : 1 hour and 49 minutes
- Release date : June 13, 2023
Sometimes it can feel like there are no new or
original ideas for film plots, and the steady stream of studio blockbusters looking
to capitalize on the latest trends does nothing to discourage this feeling.
Often even the cash-grabbing sequels in popular franchises become aware of this
problem, and the quickest fix is by blending in unexpected genre elements. Bone
Cold also seems to be taking this approach, creating a hybrid narrative
that combines an action film with the tropes of a horror movie.
The film begins
with an impressive introduction to elite Black Ops sniper Jon Bryant (Jonathan
Stoddard) and his spotter Marco Miller (Matt Munroe) while they are on a
mission. After a short return home to their family, the duo is called in for
another assignment, though minimal details and preparation is allowed before
they are sent to assassinate a man somewhere in the remote wilderness of
Russia. With the previous team suffering psychological trauma in the woods
surrounding the target, Bryant and Miller are surprisingly unphased, but the
audience is clued in on the horror tropes at play.
While there are
some hints of horror through sound design and surrealist sequences that
initially seem to occur only in the mind of Bryant, the strength of the film’s
first half are the tense action sequences. The job turns out to be more
complicated than the sniper team is told, and the pair are forced to shoot
their way to safety more than a few times. These sequences are so effective, it
makes the lackluster execution of the horror sequences that much more disappointing.
This could have been a really solid straight-to-video Sniper sequel/spin-off if
the focus had remained on this storyline, especially when a rival sniper is
brought in to hunt the American soldiers.
The combination of horror and action
may have worked quite well if the filmmakers had found a way to blend the
disparate elements of each genre, but instead Bone Cold often switches
back and forth between the two without integrating them into each other. The
result feels like a film with an identity crisis. What begins as
straightforward action ends as pure psychological horror, but the two genres
don’t effectively interact with each other, even as the two narratives cross
paths in the middle of the film.
In addition to
the high definition, the Blu-ray release for Bone Cold also includes a
making-of featurette and blooper reel in the special features. While it can be
fascinating learning how lower budget films are made, the blooper reel feels a
little out of place for the tone of the film. In some cases, these may be
better kept for the cast and crew. There is also a trailer for the film.
Entertainment Value:
6/10
Quality of
Filmmaking: 5/10
Historical
Significance: 2/10
Special Features: 5/10
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