MovieChat Forums > Cold in July (2014) Discussion > Starts out OK, then...

Starts out OK, then...

posted 10 years ago by silentmovie
7 replies | jump to latest

...straight into the crapper with a mess of an ending.
So many plot holes.
So many unexplained or implausible jumps in logic.
So many changes in tone.

**SPOILERS***

The shooting of the intruder, and the effects on the family, was fascinating. The stalker father was at first terrifying.

But then, the whole thing falls apart. I'm still not sure why the cops were motivated to fake the identity of the deceased burglar. Don Johnson's detective character just appears and his wise-cracking comedy is completely out-of-sync with the rest of the film. The massacre at the end was totally unnecessary and accomplished nothing. And as another poster points out, what possible motive did the Michael C. Hall have to participate? He just goes back to his wife and kid at the end -- ear half gone and all -- as though everything is fine and he will never be caught? Ridiculous. And the bad guys -- SNUFF FILMS, for God's sake! What a sleazy, tired, lazy old movie cliche.

Four stars out of ten only because of some good violence.

[–] DreamsAgain 10 years ago

This movie started out very interesting and intriguing...I agree.
But as you said, towards the end, things got a bit "surreal" (as somebody else said).

Sometimes I like to watch good movies twice, but for this one---one time was enough.

Too bad, because Michael C Hall is such a good actor! Plus, there were other really good actors in this movie, but the crazy plot at the end sort of ruined it.

[–] OtisLovesUs 10 years ago

It was almost as if there were three different directors, one for each of the three acts. Or maybe it was just the one. And he's bipolar, or suffers from multiple personality disorder.

That high IMDb score really suckered me in.

[–] fairy_depp 9 years ago

I agree it was a really odd film - it did feel like at least two or three completely different movies on the same subject.. The beginning seems really normal and then the end completely over the top 80s action... I couldn't help but like it though. I see it kind of like Dusk till Dawn where you think you understand the film and then it just goes somewhere different to what you expect. I think the mistake is in trying to take it seriously

[–] targa9 8 years ago

Totally agree.

[–] minhas4 8 years ago

Well I can't explain everything in this flawed movie. And it did seem to have 3 very different parts to it. And I agree, snuff film with a mysterious sexual abuse porn ring was cliched.

But I can explain a couple things. Why did the cops fake the identity? The idea was that they wanted the Dixie Mafia to stop looking for Freddy by pretending he was dead. The person that actually died is assumed to be some random vagrant who would not be missed or looked for. What the cops did not expect was Freddy's dad to come exact revenge. Afraid that this could raise questions about the body, they opted to just kill Freddy's dad too, since he would not be missed either. It's a stretch, that much is for sure. But that's the reasoning behind all that.

And for the protagonist, he got involved because his story was about his own insecurities. In the beginning of the movie he's a scared man. He kills the intruder but is quick to admit it was an accident. There are other scenes that show his meekness (other characters suggesting he was a weak man). He requires protection from the police to save his family from Freddy's dad. He feels helpless. As the movie progresses he begins to find his own strength. When Ben says he will kill Freddy, our protagonist refuses and goes back home. But his feelings of weakness are still there (this is evidenced in the montage of him being unable to sleep and whatnot). He goes back to help them kill Freddy because it's symbolic of him taking control of his life again. It isn't until they exact revenge that he finally feels like he is a protector and in control. The final scene with him going to bed wasn't supposed to suggest everything would go back to normal. It was to show he was content with himself and where he was in his life. It also shows things have gone full circle --> the movie started at night in bed with his wife. It ends in the day with him again in bed with wife. The nightmare is over.

[–] therealman 8 years ago

My take was a little different. I thought the police intentionally lured Freddy's father in so they could kill him. I thought that was why Freddy's name appeared four times in the Houston paper and only once in Memphis (or whatever other city was mentioned).

Until, they watched the video I thought the movie was going to pull another twist that being that Freddy's father really wasn't his father but a hit man from the Dixie Mafia and Dane and Jim Bob were just used to locate him but that wouldn't make much sense either.

I liked that the movie had a lot of twists. I just wish the final third of the film was as strong as the rest because miss identifying the intruder was a great twist.

[–] mathew5000 8 years ago

No, the police certainly did not want to lure Ben to the funeral. The newspaper articles (mentioning Freddy's name four times) were so the Dixie Mafia would be sure to get the news of Freddy's death (so that Freddy would be safe, in the witness relocation program).

Then when the police realized that Ben intended harm toward Richard's family as revenge for killing Freddy, the police decided to kill Ben so as to ensure that an innocent child would not be killed because of the lie. The police saw Ben as a "bad guy" and so had no qualms about killing him, although he would certainly have been convicted of entering Richard's house and assaulting the cop, if he had gone to trial. But by that time, Richard was already inquiring about why the guy he shot looked nothing like the guy on the wanted poster; the police of course did not want Ben to hear those rumours even from prison.