Cold Comes the Night (2013)

Cold Comes the Night: Directed by Tze Chun. With Alice Eve, Ursula Parker, Logan Marshall-Green, Sarah Sokolovic. A struggling motel owner and her daughter are taken hostage by a nearly blind career criminal to be his eyes as he attempts to retrieve his cash package from a crooked cop.

“I assume I was drawn to u0026#39;Cold Comes the Nightu0026#39; for the same reason as many viewers: Bryan Cranston. Iu0026#39;ve worked my way through u0026#39;Breaking Badu0026#39; three times, and believe that even in a time of strong dramatic TV leads (e.g. Michael C. Hall, Jon Hamm, Charlie Hunnam), Cranston stood out as the greatest. I struggle to imagine even someone like Daniel Day-Lewis handling certain u0026#39;Breaking Badu0026#39; scenes as well as Cranston. I was therefore surprised to find that the strong performer in Tze Chunu0026#39;s u0026#39;Cold Comes the Nightu0026#39; is actually an actress Iu0026#39;d never heard of before: Alice Eve. Iu0026#39;ve long believed that a strong lead performance can elevate an otherwise bad film into mediocrity, and an otherwise mediocre film into a good one. Alice Eve shows the kind of protectiveness and desperation familiar to those whou0026#39;ve seen Jennifer Lawrence in u0026#39;Winteru0026#39;s Boneu0026#39;, although she isnu0026#39;t as subtle as Lawrence. Although Eveu0026#39;s talents certainly make her scenes more enjoyable, I feel that the star attraction – Cranston – was woefully underused. His forced Russian accent stifles his ability to express himself, and his characteru0026#39;s near-blindness could have been explored in far greater depth. These deficiencies prevent u0026#39;Cold Comes the Nightu0026#39; from rising above mediocrity. Tze Chun is a director Iu0026#39;m entirely (sans this film, of course) unfamiliar with. In bolder hands, u0026#39;Cold Comes the Nightu0026#39; could have been a very good crime drama. Unfortunately, the film doesnu0026#39;t escape the tropes of the genre, despite having sufficient scope and talent to do so.”