Bone Cold

This movie already has a low rating but after starting it it seemed to not be totally low budget bad. However about 25 minutes in the two main characters were trying to identify a target, only had a few basic descriptions, I had to go back and check. At the mission debrief they had a picture of the guy they were sent after. Seriously they were presented with a picture of their target. Then on site they can't verify the dude? Come on guys, this just made the movie implausibly dumb I gotta question every aspect. Like not using proper weather protection despite what are sub freezing temps, not caring about footprints in snow, etc.

After a disastrous mission gone awry, an elite sniper team tasked with taking out the leader of a Ukrainian terrorist squad on the Russian border are haunted by a strange creature that may or may not be stalking them through the wilderness and must try to figure out its existence to leave alive.

Overall, this was an enjoyable if somewhat troublesome genre effort. When this one works the best is the fantastic mixture of high-end action scenes mixed with thrilling creature action. The military-based setup here featuring the team running through the wilderness going through their missions which require tons of tactical weaponry alongside the full-on firefights that take place not just for the successful mission that opens the film but also the botched one that sets the main story in motion that pits them against not just an enemy sniper but the other ground forces in the middle of their mission. This type of interplay is mixed together throughout the rest of the adventure back to their base when the creature starts getting more involved and bringing about a fantastic idea of whether or not he's a figment of the tortured psyche within. This comes across rather nicely and manages to generate a lot of really likable features here challenging whether his interactions with the team and those they come across are really happening with others bearing witness to it as well but the initial encounters cast doubt over this leading to an intriguing enough concept that gets utilized quite well here. There are some minor drawbacks that do emerge here to bring it down. The main feature is the surprisingly confusing layout of the film as it seems to shift constantly between this psychological mindset for the creature or a genuine article. There's evidence for both interpretations, with the first sighting occurring just after the botched mission that's a clear metaphor for the repressed guilt hovering over him with the subtlety of a sledgehammer. However, since there are also implications that those around him are also aware of its existence the use of both plausible explanations without committing to one is a weird take to go here. The other factor that goes along with the film not being able to commit to a specific style rests on its overlong and plodding pacing. The film runs a good ten-to-fifteen minutes too long with several implications that aren't really necessary, including the constant echoes of his grief eating at him which just ends up creating a highly repetitive feeling here with the cutbacks to his interactions with his family trying to get over what happened that are repeated in the field with his friend. This becomes quite tedious being utilized as such here dragging the running time out for no reason, which is enough to keep this down.

Rated Unrated/R: Graphic Violence and Graphic Language.

Holy @&$! What a complete waste of time!!

Ukraine // Russian border - ok

Secret Ops - ok

Alien Creature - scary as F and very confusing.

The acting is fine but the story line // plot is not-- WTF??? I get the point of the secret operations and that kind of stuff--what we don't understand is the alien creature and how that fits into the narrative- why oh why did the producer include that sub-plot?? We are still scratching our heads-

I will admit that the alien sub-plot held our interest, though. Beware of the creepy alien and the sounds of the forest- not for the faint of heart (or lungs, intestines, or guts)...

Bone Cold executes its premise flawlessly. It's a character study, written in blood and biting snow. Soldiers are asked to pledge everything for a cause, and the toll is always more than just physical. This movie takes that theme, infuses it with a healthy dose of matinee creature feature, but never loses sight of its poignancy. When you get to the climax, which I will not spoil, everything is placed in sharp relief. Family, loyalty, patriotism, love. Bone Cold is a movie about the things that matter most. As a sidenote, the logistics of filming so much of this movie in the snow-covered forest are quite impressive here. Highly recommend a watch.

A couple of hot shot snipers are sent to Ukraine to take out a particular anarchist after being short changed on their leave time, which can really suck if you've just been deployed and were looking for some much needed R&R time with your family, only to be sent back out on a so called "simple" mission. Things get rather crazy as one of the snipers Jonathan Stoddard (John Bryant) hears shrieks and a strange shadow out in the woods. The tension builds as the "thing" stalks them both. Very creepy stuff and can be a bit scary at times. You cannot really tell if everything they are seeing is truly real or not, or tricks of the mind, the mission objectives are well choreographed as are the fight scenes, a few holes though as you do not know why the enemy girl sniper sees the "thing" and refuses to take the shot on John Bryant, it's as if she knows what it is and refuses to tangle with it, like it's a legend of the forest kind of thing, and she knows something we never know. A bit odd, but I went with it. An "OK" watch, some gore and extreme violence is portrayed. No nudity or questionable stuff a few foul words, other than that it's an interesting story on deep stress. Enjoy.