Cast: Ingrid Bolsø Berdal, Rolf Kristian Larsen, Marthe Snorresdotter, Ida Marie Bakkerud Review by Colin Dibben
A group of twenty-something actors playing teens hike out to a snowbound and deserted hotel. The place has a sinister reputation and the would-be kids are about to find out why.
The sequel goes all Halloween 2 (1981), with the last woman standing from the first film now safely ensconced in a hospital. But then the police bring all the bodies from Cold Prey to the hospital’s morgue – and the mayhem starts again.
Part 3 goes all Wrong Turn (2003) in telling the origin story of the Cold Prey killer. We delve back to the 1980s and visit the same geographical area but in wet, dreary autumn. Another bunch of young hikers gets into trouble …
The trilogy is worth a peek because of the strong female characters and the laughably weeny, weedy blokes. There are also some pretty cool shots – not just the realistic hotel interiors and bleak snow deserts: the penultimate shot of Cold Prey 3 looks positively Tarkovskyian in its desolate beauty.
The films are also good at getting you to feel sympathy for the victims, which is not always the case in slasher films. On the other hand, some of the assaults and deaths are quite brutal and there is a disturbing child abuse theme in the third film.
This limited edition comes with lots of extras, in a rigid slipcase with a 120-page book featuring new essays on the films and 5 collector’s art cards.
Cold Prey Trilogy is out from Second Sight Films in a limited edition Blu-ray box set on 6 July 2026.
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