Freeze

Sometimes i don´t think people who live in warmer countries realise how lucky they are. They can jump in an ocean that does not have ice blocks hitting you and you don´t have to shovel snow from your driveway for 6 hours. You can just lie in your sun chair and feel the sun, instead of feeling the snow make you suffer in all eternity. I have especially one horrible memory from the late 80´s when i went on a school skiing trip to Norway, where we was supposed to try skiing from a massive mountain. I hated it and didn´t enjoy it all, except for the breakfast buffé served every morning and i would easily have stayed there instead. So since the 90´s i have travelled to warmer places instead of going to any skiing holiday. We already have plenty of snow here in the North of Sweden where i live so it is far too much anyway. I personally believe that Satan created snow to torture the souls of humanity. Speaking of winter and snow, there are actually some good films out there that takes on the subject of winter. One of the films that i like to revisit sometimes is the 2007 horror film known as 30 Days Of Night. Directed by David Slade ( who directed the brilliant psychological thriller Hard Candy ( a must watch ), this film takes place in the town of Barrow, Alaska, where they are preparing for its annual "30 Days Of Night", a period during the winter with a month-long polar night. What the town don´t know is that a group of vampires, led by Marlow ( Danny Huston ), have a perfect oppurtunity to feed on the citizen during this month with no sun. 30 Days Of Night turned out to be much better than i expected when i saw the film in cinema, and a very different idea for a vampire film. I personally feel that this is one of the better films actor Josh Hartnett did in his youth, and definetely worth picking up on the Double DVD release. Listen to the very interesting commentary track, it is very good. You might remember that i reviewed a winter horror film a couple of years ago called Winterskin from director Charlie Steeds. I enjoyed that film and i really enjoyed his film A Werewolf In England. I have seen some of his other films as well and reviewed some of them and i think he is a talented independent horror director. I got a chance now to see his latest film called Freeze, another winter horror film but with a completely different plot than in Winterskin. Is this another highlight from director Charlie Steeds, or have he lost his magic touch with Freeze completely?

Captain Roland Mortimer ( Rory Wilton ) and his team is on a rescue mission to the North Pole to retrieve an old friend and his lost expedition crew. When their ship is stuck inside the ice they suddenly get visitors on board, creatures like they have never seen before. They have no other option than abandon the ship and continue their rescue mission.

When you have seen the work of Charlie Steeds in the past, you know this will be something for people who appreciate independent horror films with practical make up effects. And trust me, these creatures that you will see in this film actually looks pretty cool. They kind of look like sea creatures that we have seen in old horror films from the 50´s and the 60´s. One of the things i have always appreciated about director Charlie Steeds is that he tries to capture different time periods in history, and he manage to do so with the right backgrounds and settings. You can tell that he have a limited budget to work with and i am completely fine with that. What matters is that you show passion for your project, and that is something i can always tell that director Charlie Steeds have. So how is the film Freeze compared to the previous films in Charlie´s filmography? Perhaps the biggest difference is that this film actually tries to look like an old school adventure horror film from the 50´s. I was reminded of the classic Creature From The Black Lagoon from 1954, a film i have seen years ago. There are some big differences when it comes to the creature design and the plot as well, but the old school monster vibe can be found in Freeze for sure. The acting in general in this film are ok. I especially enjoy actor Rory Wilton ( who can be seen in the Charlie Steeds film The Haunting Of The Tower Of London ) as the character Roland Mortimer. Roland is the kind of man you want to have as a guest at your Sunday roast dinner, because you know that he will make sure that the party never stops. I also enjoy the performance of actor Johnny Vivash as the character Barnabas. It feels like Johnny just have a natural way to deliver dialogue, without making it too complicated. Best acting performance definetely comes from actor Tim Cartwright ( who have been in several of Charle Steeds films ). I just love his acting style and amazing British voice. And that is why he fits so well with his character William since the character was definetely a perfect match for him. Anything i feel could have been improved? Perhaps that since they are supposed to be in the arctic it looks kind if strange that they just walk around in their sailor clothes outfits. Maybe they didn´t bring winter clothes, but if i understand this correctly they knew thety were going here and that comes across as strange why no one brought winter clothes on board the ship. Anyway, in general this is a horror film i enjoyed for trying to be a throwback to old monster films. I am a big fan of Charlie Steeds films and i had a good time with Freeze as well. Not one of his best films so far but still entertaining for fans of this genre. If you want to see a horror film with practical make up effects and monsters look no further, Freeze might be what you want to experience. Director Charlie Steeds manage to deliver another enjoyable horror film, and i am looking forward to see his future films. Perhaps he could try doing a doll horror film set in the 1960´s in England? If anyone could pull this off i truly believe Charlie Steeds would be the one to do it.

Rating: DDD