DIRECTOR: Roar Uthaug
CAST:
Ingrid Bolsø Berdal/Jannicke
Rolf Kristian Larsen/Morten Tobias
Tomas Alf Larsen/Eirick
Endre Martin Midtstigen/Mikal
Viktoria Winge/Ingunn
PLOT:
Five young snowboarders take shelter in an abandoned ski lodge, after one of their friends breaks their legs. But you know how these movies work, the place is already occupied, and they’re about to regret their decision of staying there.
BREAKDOWN:
Fritt Vilt, or Cold Prey as it is known here in the states, is one wild ride. I’ve seen this movie countless times already and I have it playing again on my DVD player. I decided to write up a review for the Norwegian film. The movie is your basic slasher film and that is what I love about it. It doesn’t pretend to be anything else. It’s a brutal slasher film and that is what it is.
The movie starts off on the right back with a gripping and eerie opening scene. You don’t exactly know what is going on and that makes it all the more creepy and then the film takes another right step by introducing us to our main group of friends. They are five young friends just looking for a fun day of snowboarding. They are likable and the movie actually spends time to DEVELOP them…GASP!!! When a slasher film develops their characters and makes them likable, it can make a film so much better and really heightens the stakes. These weren’t just a bunch of stereotyped models. The cast was good-looking yes…DAMN were they good looking. ;-)…but they looked like real people too and they acted like them. They were nice yet flawed people. I really got behind these people, especially Jannicke.
Jannicke is a heroine we haven’t seen in a while (not including Christine from Drag Me to Hell). She’s a nice normal chick who is smart, vulnerable, and tough and will fight to survive while trying to help her friends along the way. She isn’t selfish…a lot of the characters actually aren’t selfish. They all try to help each other survive. But it has been a while since we have seen such a great heroine in a horror film. She definitely has been added to my list as top heroines. The actress behind her was solid as well. She was up to the task…and she was perfect! I adored her. I also had a bit of a crush on the guy who played her boyfriend; I’m not going to lie. He was adorable. The entire cast was in top shape. They each played their role perfectly and got me to care for them. I actually WANTED these people to survive, so when they bought it, I cared.
The movie did take a while to get going, but that was okay with me because I was invested in the main characters and I liked just hanging out with them and having fun…and seeing the boys without their shirts on. I especially loved that part. They had some hot bodies. The boy who played Eirick, call me =). But once the first death scene happened, I was floored! I tensed up like a little baby and I finally knew I was in for a vicious ride.
Onto the death scenes. The movie wasn’t particularly gory, but you WILL see blood. The death scenes were well shot, brutal, violent, and were gripping of suspense. I’ve heard a lot of people complain the film wasn’t gory enough, but it didn’t bother me, because the film was gripping of suspense throughout the entire show. It was atmospheric and the cinematography was beautiful. I hate snow, but on film it always manages to look gorgeous.
The directing was amazing and I loved the blue-grey hue the film had. The film itself was creepy. I actually got scared at some points. I tensed up many times.
The soundtrack was badass! The score really went with the movie well and when they used the metal rock tunes, they kicked major ass.
Any complaints? Yeah I have a few, nothing major though. The movie didn’t break any new ground. It’s the same thing that has been done many times…but that didn’t bother me so much. The movie WAS a bit predictable, like I knew who was going to survive from the moment I saw him/her. But that didn’t take away from the suspense of the film. My last minor complaint is that the character who breaks their leg…during some scenes it seems like he forgot he broke his leg because he was just hopping like it was a sprained ankle or something.
But I let all this go for the fun of the film. This is one of the best times I’ve had in a while. My favorite type of movie is the slasher film. And we don’t get too many good ones anymore (not including All the Boys Love Mandy Lane, I LOVE that fuckin’ movie. It’s one of my favorites!!!). When I say my final rating, you might think it will be too giving of me…but in this state of shit-tastic kiddy horror films and remakes, it was nice to see a TRUE horror/slasher film again.
OVERALL GRADE: 9/10
