Cold Prey 2006 Movie Scene The killer dragging his victims to a crevasse to dump their bodies there

Fritt Vilt AKA Cold Prey [2006]

October 16, 2009

Taking the classical American slasher premise and placing it into unforgiving Norwegian cold, this is a movie that will feel strangely familiar. Cold Prey follows five young friends who end up stranded in an abandoned hotel in the middle of nowhere. As you can already guess, there’s evil lurking in the cold and decrepit hallways of this hotel. This is the second Nordic movie featuring this type of plot, with the first one being the zombie horror comedy Dead Snow. So, you might want to check it out if you’re looking for more of the same.

Refreshing and rivaling any of its Hollywood counterparts, Cold Prey is a competent and entertaining movie. It sits somewhere between horror and thriller genres leaning more towards the former. And while it is a bit predictable that doesn’t make it any less entertaining. Add to this a suspenseful atmosphere and excellent production values and you got yourself one hell of a movie. If you’re a fan of slasher movies, I’m sure you’re going to appreciate this European take on the genre. And if you’re a regular movie fan, you’ll still enjoy this one because it’s just an all-around good movie.

The acting was good although I don’t know any of these actors. And that mesmerizing Norwegian scenery was a cherry on the top. The contrast between the whiteness of the snow and the darkness of the hotel punctuated that vibrant atmosphere even more. As always, I recommend you watch Cold Prey as you would any other European movie, in its native language, without dubbing. Not just because the cast did an excellent job but also because sometimes these dubbing efforts turn out horrible.

Five friends can’t wait to hit the slopes this weekend. They’re slowly driving through winding and snow-covered mountain roads toward their ultimate destination Jotunheimen. All of them are veteran snowboarders who take every precaution there is. However, sometimes accidents happen and that was the case this weekend. Only this seemingly small accident is going to change their lives forever.

Cold Prey or Fritt Vilt does deviate a bit from the standard slasher formula. There will be no drugs or nudity, just pure, distilled tension. While most of the genre movies opted for a lot of graphic violence, this one keeps it to a minimum. However, that minimum is very effective and it also opens the movie up to a lot wider audience. Another thing that’s interesting is that the whole killing stuff happens in the second part of the movie. A movie that’s only ninety minutes long, so you might call this one a slow-burner.

Finally, you should know there’s a sequel out, Cold Prey 2: Resurrection. It’s not half-bad and you might want to take a look at it. As far as the third one goes, it’s a prequel explaining the history of this cursed place. It’s a solid movie and it nicely wraps up the franchise until the inevitable Hollywood remake.