A Cold Night's Death
"A chilling picture. An icy climax."
Two scientists suspect that there is someone other than their research primates inhabiting their polar station.
Top Cast
-
Robert Culp
Robert Jones
-
Eli Wallach
Frank Enari
-
Michael C. Gwynne
Val Adams
-
Vic Perrin
Ryan Horner / Project Director (voice)(uncredited)
Overview
Two scientists suspect that there is someone other than their research primates inhabiting their polar station.
Rating
6.1
/ 10
34 Reviews 1 Popular
1 Reviews
-
John Chard7 Mar 13, 2016Monkey See - Monkey Do! One of the finest TV movies of the 1970s, A Cold Night's Death (AKA: The Chill Factor) pitches Robert Culp and Eli Wallach at the Tower Mountain Research Station. They play research scientists who are investigating what has happened to the researcher who was working there, he was doing altitude tests on primates, but all has gone quiet and when the two men get there, they find a bizarre set-up, but more tellingly things start to happen to shake them into a state of paranoia. In this day and age of multi million pound blockbusters, of intricate sets and big buck production design, it's refreshing to come across a TV movie that shows you don't need those things to make a successful film. With just two actors, a minimalist set-up, and a smartly written script, you can achieve great unease and a sense of foreboding atmosphere. Culp and Wallach are polar opposites of the male scale, they are like some long term married couple, which amplifies when suspicion and mistrust starts to take a hold. Jerrold Freedman directs and he has a skill that utilises the sparse sets for maximum impact. The murky corridors of the research station tingle the spine, the snowy exteriors seem to hide terrors unknown, whilst his camera work (jarring angles) and the sound work are perfectly in keeping with the suspenseful and mysterious flow of the narrative. Complimenting the story's tone is Gil Melle's score, which blends synth pulse beats with electronic shards of shock. The resolution to the mystery isn't exactly a surprise, but it delivers the requisite whack, enough of a jolt to raise the hackles. 7/10
Recommendations
When paleontologist Kate Lloyd travels to an isolated outpost in Antarctica for the expedition of a lifetime, she joins an international team that unearths a remarkable discovery. Their elation quickly turns to fear as they realize that their experiment has freed a mysterious being from its frozen prison. Paranoia spreads like an epidemic as a creature that can mimic anything it touches will pit human against human as it tries to survive and flourish in this spine-tingling thriller.
The Thing
6.2 2011
A research team in Antarctica is hunted by a shape-shifting alien that assumes the appearance of its victims.
The Thing
8.1 1982
Young graduate student Jane Chase becomes the new assistant to an eccentric zoology professor at the remote home he shares with two brilliant chimpanzees and an elderly orangutan butler named Link. But when one of the chimps is found dead and the professor mysteriously disappears, Link becomes dangerously aggressive towards Jane. Now, the time for “monkey business” is over and the true terror is about to begin.
Link
6.2 1986
Fifteen years after his father's experiments with matter transmission fail, Philippe Delambre and his uncle François attempt to create a matter transmission device on their own. However, their experiments have disastrous results, turning Philippe into a horrible half-man, half-fly creature.
Return of the Fly
6.1 1959
On a trip to Colombia, a group of college students encounter a fifty-foot boa constrictor, hungry for blood.
Megaboa
6.3 2021
When brilliant, eccentric scientist Seth Brundle makes a huge technological breakthrough in teleportation, he decides to test it on himself. Unbeknownst to him, a common housefly manages to get inside the device and the two become one.
The Fly
7.4 1986
When researchers rescue a fellow scientist who survived a meteorite strike in the Arctic, they discover she may not be who they think she is. Is she some-how changed?
Blood and Snow
6.2 2023
A small island community is overrun with creeping, blobbish, tentacled monsters which liquefy and digest the bones from living creatures. The community struggles to fight back.
Island of Terror
5.9 1966
A rogue scientist near a small desert town arouses the suspicion of the town's doctor when his lab assistant is found dead from a case of acromegaly, which took only four days to develop. As the doctor investigates, aided by the scientist's new female assistant, they discover that something is devouring local cattle and humans in increasingly large quantities.
Tarantula
6.5 1955
In the Pacific, 1944, a Japanese soldier and a British prisoner of war are stranded on a deserted island, hunted by a deadly creature. Two mortal enemies must come together to survive the unknown.
Monster Island
6.1 2025