K.T Simpson
“I will find you, and I will kill you…” Oh wait, that’s the wrong movie. But it’s what we’re all thinking right? “Cold Pursuit” = “Taken” in the snow. Well, you’d be wrong. The movie starts with Nels Coxman’s (Liam Neeson) son dying from a supposed drug overdose, but of course Coxman senses something greater than that and vows revenge on the responsible parties. Apart from the missing/soon-found-dead son, “Cold Pursuit” bears little resemblance to “Taken”, except the Liam Neeson factor of course – but that’s unfortunately where Neeson has found himself after 3 of the damn movies.
Fun fact, “Cold Pursuit” is actually a remake of the 2014 Norwegian vigilante film “In Order of Disappearance”, which starred Stellan Skarsgård – both of which are directed by Hans Petter Moland. It’s not often that a director would remake his own film, but Moland has done himself a favour, putting “Cold Pursuit” into the hands of more people, in that the remake is now in the English language.
After his son’s death, Coxman and wife Grace (Laura Dern) struggle to hold together their marriage, as all of Nels’ focus is on revenge – and that’s about it. His pursuit leads him down a path of dodgy drug dealers, immense nicknames, turf wars and an enterprise led by Viking – aka Trevor Calcote (Tom Bateman), whose focus is not only on running his business, but also looking after his son – co-parented with ex-wife Aya (Julia Jones).
The local feds get involved in the investigation, led by Kim Dash (Emmy Rossum), and seem to always be a step behind Coxman in the pursuit for truth. As you would be – it’s Liam effing Neeson, people.
What follows is a trail of death, as key players get taken out one by one, with a handy death chart popping up every time someone loses their life. Amongst the blood, violence, and flying teeth is a healthy dose of humour, which you’d probably describe as black humour, as you may find yourself feeling a tad awkward about laughing. Having said that, just enjoy the ride, and the clever narratives that will keep you well and truly hooked. Not to mention the incredible cinematography (kudos to Philip Øgaard) – set in Alaska, “Cold Pursuit” will inject some reality into you as to how it would actually be to live in a town that sees no nighttime and requires daily snow-plowing just to commute.
In the realm of black-comedy-action films, this is one I found incredibly easy to follow – and that’s saying something for me, who annoys people around me with questions like “wait, who is he again?”, and “isn’t that the guy that was shot at the start?”. Consequently, “Cold Pursuit” becomes addictive, and kind of like a rabbit warren you just want to explore right until the very last hole.
The only criticism is the casting. Don’t get me wrong, each actor nails their role, with Bateman in particular my standout, but I still can’t work out why an Irish guy has an American brother (played exceptionally William Forsythe). Of course it’s possible, half-siblings, step-siblings, blah blah blah but still seemed weird to me.
Given that February is typically the dumping ground for films, “Cold Pursuit” is a good one to kick off the year. See it!
