Cold Blooded (2012) Reviews

• Whatever your expectations are, they're too low.

  underxposd2012-08-17

  When I filed into a tiny cinema (160 odd seats) at Fantasia Fest, I was pretty sure I knew what I was in for. I'd seen the trailer. It was a crime movie; cops and robbers type stuff. I was expecting criminals and violence. While I got both in spades, I also got a whole lot that I wasn't expecting. Zoie Palmer is wonderfully subtle as Frances Jane, a disillusioned cop who's presented with the darkest kind of ethical dilemma. The real brilliance comes in watching her attempt to navigate it with a morally ambiguous thief (her assignment turned uneasy ally) hanging like a millstone around her neck. Ryan Robbins as Cordero is the very definition of a smooth criminal. The set is stark and void of anything remotely comforting. The size of the cinema fed the feeling of trapped desperation. The violence, though harsh and unforgiving, comes off as purposeful rather than gratuitous. The supporting cast all do great work with their roles, and I'm not ashamed to say I was legitimately terrified by William MacDonald's portrayal of the cold and calculating Louis Holland. So yes, it is about crime. It's also about what happens when the rules that govern your personal code of conduct are quite literally cut away. Director Jason Lapeyre treats Zoie Palmer's character to the most costly personal growth workshop I've ever seen. There are scenes that haunt me still, weeks later. Hopefully distribution isn't far off for this gem. If you're lucky enough to catch it at a festival, don't hesitate. It didn't earn an audience award for nothing. Oh, and bring someone with you, because there's nothing comforting about holding your own hand.

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• A modern day cops and robbers plays out in a deserted hospital ward.

  chefling2012-08-11

  I was fortunate enough to have seen this film at #MIFF 2012. I had an idea of what to expect but it blew those ideas out of the water. The cast is top notch. Ryan Robbins was believably amoral, Zoie Palmer's performance was quiet and unassuming nevertheless a strong female role model and William MacDonald was positively terrifying. Billed as a modern day cops and robbers, the plot twists and turns, keeping you guessing. The shocking violence often had the audience gasping and then laughing nervously at the screening I went to. The violence was handled shrewdly and moreover believably. I never once felt the violence was there for strictly shock and awe. It was always part of the story and therefore necessary. That said, Cold Blooded resonated with me so much that I found myself thinking of it days later. Always a sign of a great film.

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• Really Plain. Watched the whole thing in 30 minutes

  omairtajammul2013-10-25

  Don't know about the positive reviews of this movie. Over all a really bad experience. The only person you feel for during the whole movie is Ryan Robbins. The lady cop comes off as a complete moron who cannot think straight or do anything related to using common sense. Long boring corridor scenes with nothing much going on. Seems like they tried to make a classic in closed environment hoping that only acting is gonna pull through but nothing works. Also the criminals in the movie seem to be so unprepared for anything that one fails to understand what were they thinking or why weren't they caught or killed by the police even before the incidents of this movie. They actually make office colleagues seem more dangerous. There are a lot of better movies worth your time out there. I would watch movie inspired by real events over this and I hate those things. Really suggest you avoid this.

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• After the last credit faded away, I stood looking at the screen satisfied and incredulous, what a well written crime story! Better than a horror movie!

  alshwenbear12013-09-24

  I could look for flaws in the script, but why? Why to spoil such a magnificent film? Francis' face (Zoie Palmer) bloody and with empty eyes, without hope, resignation and disbelief, remained for several more minutes in my mind. If I didn't knew better I would have thought that the Coen Brothers had something to do with this movie, but no this is a film written and directed by Jason Lapeyre, I don't have idea who he is, but I am really looking forward for whatever he does next, as a fan of "The Killing" I recognized Ryan Robbins, and I am way more impressed with his acting, very cool way to play the role of "Cordero".About Zoie Palmer, I am not really familiar with her work, but certainly I am going to try to watch other movies of her and see if she is as good as she is as this unfortunate cop. If you haven't figured yet how much did I like "Cold Blooded", is time for you to watch it, better than a horror movie!

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• Try Hard

  kosmasp2014-03-18

  I understand if people are confused and/or disappointed in the fact this movie plays only in one location. But it's better to concentrate on one location than switch around like crazy and get nothing done. This movie is really well made and has characters to root or hate. Maybe not as intense as you'd like and maybe some of them are not as well prepared as they should be. But this isn't the first movie to have criminals who encounter problems due to lack of preparation or intelligence. The main leading lady is tough as nails and might not be as easily accessible as some might hope for. There's also no love story implemented just to lure an extra audience in. This is a no hostage taking, keeping hostages imprisoned kind of situation. If you don't have an issue with that, you will have a lot of fun with this little clever thriller

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