PLOT: On this ’80s revenge story, the defiant Fox breaks out of an abusive commune in quest of her household. However when the queenpin kidnaps her little sister and sends a crooked cop after her, Fox has no alternative however to infiltrate the very place she escaped.
REVIEW: I at all times love an excellent crime movie and have loved Kiernan Shipka and Krysten Ritter for therefore lengthy that Stone Chilly Fox appeared like a great movie for me. I additionally love a film set within the 80s. Its plot is fundamental sufficient, with Fox (Shipka) stealing a duffel bag filled with cocaine and attempting to get away from her outdated life. Now her ex (and head of the legal group), Goldie, and a crooked Cop (Sutherland) are after her. They seemingly kidnap Fox’s sister and drive her to confront her previous.
It’s a reasonably run-of-the-mill story, however that’s not at all times a nasty factor, particularly when you’ve such a stellar solid. Shipka is a enjoyable, albeit vanilla lead. Her solely little bit of drive is extra reliant on the viewers not understanding one thing, versus her truly having a correct mission. Krysten Ritter’s Goldie is manipulative and abusive, however fails to actually make a large influence. Ritter is a bit too excessive, and feels a tad miscast, as she’s not a really plausible crime boss. So, Fox operating away from her doesn’t really feel very tense.
Kiefer Sutherland is the standout of the movie, as his Sergeant Billy Breaker is one unhealthy dude. He’s a racist and is extraordinarily corrupt. As somebody who grew up with Sutherland as Jack Bauer, I at all times get pleasure from it when he takes a extra villainous function. The writing lets him down a bit, as Breaker is fairly one-note, however his scenes are simply probably the most intriguing. I preferred Jamie Chung as Officer Corbett, a cop who’s suspicious of Breaker and is sizzling on his path. However she might have been lower, and little or no of the story would have modified.
Regardless of being set within the 80s, Stone Chilly Fox tries to have this unusual 60s/70s drug aesthetic at occasions. It’s acquired loopy tie-dye visuals, and even a little bit of roller-skating disco. It feels just like the editor is attempting so as to add a little bit of life to what’s in any other case fairly visually mundane. And there’s a persistent excessive grain filter that makes each shot look very tender. Lots of the characters get an over-stylized introduction, which simply provides to the odd tone of the movie.
Sophie Tabet makes her characteristic directorial debut with Stone Chilly Fox, and it’s a somewhat sterile affair. Not one of the characters have a lot life to them, and it’s laborious to take the movie very critically. There are too many detours from the primary story to make it really feel just like the stakes are excessive sufficient. It’s tonally inconsistent, and one thing concerning the visible fashion actually threw me off. And the ending is an incoherent mess that tries to neatly tie up all its plot threads in a bow, leading to lots of silliness and a few really head-scratching moments.
Stone Chilly Fox falls a bit on its face and, regardless of needing extra character to make it work, it’s all very generic. Nothing feels distinctive, and it’s all very “been there, done that.” Regardless of boasting an excellent solid, many of the characters mix collectively, and it could all be a bit nonsensical. It desires to be a cool crime thriller, however the poor writing prevents it from gaining any correct momentum. The solid does its greatest to raise the fabric, however the brief runtime prevents it from actually greedy onto something fascinating. It lacks the crime component and tries to be quirky with out understanding what that entails.
Stone Chilly Fox releases on November seventh, 2025.
