American Special Ops soldiers/snipers Jon Bryant (Jonathan Stoddard) and Marco Miller (Matt Munroe) have just returned from a 10-day mission in Afghanistan, which has been particularly tough on Jon, who was the one who took out the enemy target. As Jon tries to enjoy being back home with his wife Mel (Jennifer Khoe) and their daughter Wendy (Trinity Jo-Li Bliss), there is this dark cloud of his work looming over things. Jon has been having some strange visions ever since he pulled that trigger, and his work is something he tries to avoid talking about at home. The pressure, stress and guilt of the job seems to affect Marco far less. He heads home to spend some time with his mother, and do a little partying.

However, Jon soon gets a call from the Colonel, apologizing for canceling their leave so soon, and stating that the soldiers are needed for another important mission right away. The Colonel assures Jon and Marco that this will just be a quick in-and-out trip to Northeastern Ukraine to take out the Russian leader of a new, fast-growing anarchist militia, and then they will be right back home. Jon and Marco have some doubts, wondering what happened to the previous team that was sent to do the job, but they reluctantly agree, and the next day they find themselves traipsing across the frozen Russian landscape trying to locate their target. However, it’s not all smooth sailing, and they end up crossing paths with a skilled enemy sniper (Elise Greene). While they are playing a tense game of cat and mouse in the forest, another threat also emerges. Ever since Afghanistan, Jon has been seeing and hearing a strange creature that seems to be stalking him, and now he sees it watching him in the forest. While the dark, skeleton-like creature is clear to Jon, Marco has trouble seeing it in his scope, and wonders if his partner is starting to lose it. Either way, this threat is very real to Jon.

Bone Cold is a tense psychological thriller with some action-packed moments and a bit of a creature horror movie vibe. These two buddies/soldiers are dropped off alone in the frozen wilderness with minimal supplies and no support. They have Angel (Danielle Poblarp) on their comms to order an extraction once the mission is complete, but she can’t provide much other support. As they make their way through the forest, Jon starts to hear the shrieking of a creature and sees a tall, think black, bony figure staring back at him, but Marco isn’t seeing or hearing it. In his attempts to eliminate this creature, Jon accidentally attracts the attention of another sniper, who now poses a very real and dangerous threat. And so it becomes a game of survival for the soldiers

While some of the acting and dialogue in the film comes off a little low budget or improvised, the effects and cinematography are solid, and the core story itself is quite a good one. The film mixes your typical action/thriller/creature feature with a darker, deeper and more grounded story. While the creature that is stalking the soldiers is never fully explained or explored, it feels like it is meant to represent the PTSD, guilt and stress that Jon is experiencing over the possibly innocent people he has killed in the name of justice. Early on, we see how his work is affecting Jon’s home life, and the film feels like it is trying to comment on how soldiers like this can’t just do their job and return home like nothing happened—the stress eats away at them and follows them like this monster.

I quite enjoyed the film overall, with the standoff between the snipers making for some really tense and stressful moments. The creature also has a really creepy and sinister design that works well for fright value, especially when it’s true nature is grounded in a harsh reality. I don’t think the last 10-15 minutes of the film was needed—it felt like an unnecessary coda that made the film drag a bit at the end after it had already reached a satisfying conclusion. These final moments felt like they were there to hammer down the whole PTSD theme that was well-hinted at throughout the movie.

Well Go’s Blu-ray release looks great, with a clean, clear picture throughout that provides an excellent level of detail, especially in close-ups. Even in the darker, nighttime sequences, it is easy to see what is going on. The audio track provides clear dialogue throughout and makes excellent use of the stereo and surround channels to provide an immersive viewing experience. This is especially noticeable just in the insect ambiance of the woods, or when Jon hears the shrieking and chittering of the creature coming from all different directions, or when the snipers are firing their bullets at their targets.

In addition to the film, Well Go’s Blu-ray release includes an interesting 26-minute Making-Of featurette, a fun 10-minute gag reel, the film’s trailer, and some previews for three other Well Go releases. The disc comes packed in a locking HD keepcase, and doesn’t include a digital copy. Our review copy included a slipcover.

What’s Included:

Film: (1:48:39)

Blu-ray:
• 1080p / Widescreen 2.39:1
• Audio: English DTS-HDMA 5.1, English Stereo
• Subtitles: English SDH

Extras:

• Making Of (26:07)
  The cast and crew give a glimpse into the ragtag process of making this movie with just a 10-person crew. The participants talk about how the film and story came about, shooting on a minimal budget, filming in freezing cold temperatures of Maine, the camera equipment used, the special effects, the serious themes of the movie, writing the ending, and more. Includes behind-the-scenes footage, and interviews with producer/writer/director Billy Hanson, producer Jaclyn Amor, co-producer Vanessa Wilson, director of photography Ben Meredith, hair & make-up/production sound Suzan Jones, and stars Matt Munroe (“Marco Miller”) & Joanathan Stoddard (“Jon Bryant”). Also includes some audition footage of actors Jennifer Koe (“Mel Bryant”), Shaan Sharma (“Col. Nathan Bernham”), Trinity Jo-Li Bliss (“Wendy Bryant”) & Matt Munroe.
• Blooper Reel (9:57)
  Fun with the cast and crew as they laugh, flub lines, miss marks, deal with unexpected noise, and just have fun on set.
• Trailer (1:33)
• Previews
  • The Tank (2:19)
  • The Siege (1:49)
  • Day Zero (1:48)

Final Thoughts:

Bone Cold is an interesting take on the genre, combining a creature horror with a tense psychological action/thriller to explore deeper topics of PTSD and the stress and guilt that a solider goes through. It is a strong effort from first-time feature filmmaker Billy Hanson. Well Go’s release features excellent picture and sound, and even contains some great bonus material, including a beind-the-scenes look and the unique process of making this film, and a gag reel. Recommended for those looking for a new take on the genre.

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