An alien fungus escapes from an old lab, and it is up to an old agent and two young employees to stop it from taking over the world.
Exactly what you expect it to be.
Every now and then, you come across a film that clearly knows exactly what it wants to be – and, more importantly, never pretends to be anything else. Cold Storage is precisely that kind of film.
Writer/producer David Koepp has been particularly active again lately, and here he adapts his own novel alongside director Jonny Campbell, bringing to the screen a cheerful blend of comedy, science fiction, and horror. The result is a brisk, entertaining ride that lasts just over ninety minutes and rarely wastes time pretending it’s something more profound than a good genre romp.
The narrative unfolds naturally with the familiar but always effective premise of a lethal organism spreading beyond control. Yet the film manages to keep the central threat playful and engaging rather than oppressive. Meanwhile, the subplot focusing on the younger characters – their frustrations, insecurities, and personal baggage – serves as the engine that keeps the main plot moving forward. It’s a straightforward structure, but it works.
The cast embraces the tone nicely. Joe Keery, Georgina Campbell, Ellora Torchia, and Liam Neeson all deliver solid performances, clearly understanding that this film operates with its tongue firmly in its cheek. Nobody seems interested in overplaying the drama, and that restraint keeps the film light on its feet.
The visual effects team also appears to have had plenty of fun along the way. The film exuberantly resurrects humans, animals, and insects – sometimes only partially – while splashing the screen with the sort of bright green biological chaos that feels appropriately pulpy. It’s messy, occasionally ridiculous, and very much part of the fun.
Most importantly, Cold Storage never takes itself too seriously, and that alone gives it a certain charm. In a cinematic landscape often obsessed with escalating stakes and world-ending consequences, this film simply aims to entertain. So, for ninety minutes or so, you can forget about the very real threats facing the world today – threats that are rarely extraterrestrial or mutant in nature, but far more human.
My advice? Have fun with it. And don’t spend too much time questioning the logic of what’s happening on screen.
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