Writer: Griff Furst, Jack Snyder (Screenplay) Michael McDowell (Novel)
Starring: Josh Stewart, Christopher Lloyd, Frank Whaley, Candy Clark, Robbie A Kay, Chester Rushing, Rachele Brooke Smith
Plot: In a sleepy southern town, the Larkin family suffers a terrible tragedy. Now the Larkin’s are about to endure another: Traffic lights blink an eerie warning, a ghostly visage prowls in the streets, and graves erupt from the local cemetery in an implacable march of terror . . . And beneath the murky surface of the river, a shifting, almost human shape slowly takes form to seek a terrible vengeance
There may be spoilers the rest of the review
Verdict: Enjoyable Original Crime Thriller
Story: Cold Moon starts in our small southern town, Margaret Larkin doesn’t return home leaving her grandmother Evelyn (Clark) and brother Jerry (Rushing) desperately seeking help from the Sheriff Hale (Whaley) to figure out where she could have gone, we do see her brutal murder by a masked attacker and once the body is discovered Evelyn can’t control her grief.
With secrets coming out about 16-year-old Margaret, Sheriff Hale must investigate the truth about what happened which includes the suspects from around the town, bank manager Nathan Redfield (Stewart), his father James (Lloyd) being the suspects Evelyn wants to blame but the truth will come out once the ghostly spirit returns to haunt the town.
Thoughts on Cold Moon
Characters – Nathan Redfield has followed in his father’s footsteps becoming a banker, he is however ruthless with the clients and instantly becomes Evelyn’s prime suspect. Evelyn Larkin is the grandmother who must deal with the horrifying truth that her granddaughter was murdered. She believes it was Nathan that did it as part of his way to reclaim the money his bank it owned. Sheriff Ted Hale is the man that must investigate the crime that holds little leads but he must find a way to use his knowledge of the town for answers. James Redfield is Nathan’s father, a respected man in the town that many have always looked at as an example.
Performance – Josh Stewart has become one of the names to watch in horror in recent years and this is no different, he adds another layer to what he is capable off here. Candy Clark is good through the film as is Frank Whaley who is always a go to guy in supporting roles. The biggest disappointment comes from the small role for Christopher Lloyd, he isn’t bad in his performance but you do wish you could have seen more of him.
Story – The story here starts out like you would expect, a grisly murder that opens the doors to a game of who did it. The story could have easily followed that path but we end up going in a different direction, learning the killer and watching how they must deal with the supernatural side effects or the murder. This is a fresh look at this style of movie and one that does keep us on edge from the start to the finish.
Crime/Horror – The crime side of this story could have just been the investigation of the murder and to give the only negative from this film, it would the lack of actual investigation of the crime. The horror in the film shows how the killer is haunted by the spirit of their victim.
Settings – The small town setting shows us just how connected everybody involved in the film is, how they would be investigating friends and even family for the crime that occurred.
Special Effects – The effects are all used well with the graveyard scene and the way the victim’s ghost seems to be cycling whenever she is seen all add to the moments in the film.
Scene of the Movie – Graveyard scene.
That Moment That Annoyed Me – Wasting Christopher Lloyd.
Final Thoughts – This is a very impressive crime horror thriller that does take things in a very different direction than what you would expect which only makes it feel original.
Overall: One of the highlights of the crime horror thriller genre.
Rating