In Cold Light

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In Cold Light

R

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1h 36m

Mystery & Thriller

Action

Crime

Drama

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

45%

Tomatometer

22 Reviews

Popcornmeter

Fewer than 50 Ratings

Ava is trapped. Like a bull in a bucking chute, seconds before exploding onto the rodeo stage. She is hunted. Pursued by those who killed her brother, pursued by her own demons. Ava needs to make a choice. To either save herself and fight another day or to push and become the woman she wishes she could be.

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Peter Travers

The Travers Take

5d

2/4

Maika Monroe plays a drug dealer facing off with her rodeo champ dad Troy Kotsur in a by-the-numbers thriller minus any real thrills. It’s the hints of a better film—fiercer, funnier, more attuned to a woman’s point of view—that nag at you.

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Sheila O'Malley

RogerEbert.com

6d

A lot of thrillers are exciting but empty. 'In Cold Light' is thrilling but very full in unexpected and complicated ways.

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Richard Whittaker

Austin Chronicle

Jan 22

2/5

In Cold Light is far better constructed and executed than its generic, straight-to-video title might imply, but it’s too monotonous – in the literal meaning of the word – to reach its aspirations or to really use its cast.

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Sarah Vincent

Sarah G Vincent Views

2h

French director Maxime Giroux’s first English language film defies the conventions of a narco crime thriller to transform writer Patrick Whistler’s sophomore feature’s sparse dialogue script into a character study.

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Tara McNamara

Common Sense Media

2d

2/5

It's not great, but at least this crime thriller makes one thing clear: No good can come from selling drugs.

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Joseph Neff

Spectrum Culture

3d

In Cold Light is ultimately a standard issue thriller, doing nothing to reinvent and too little to invigorate its genre.

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Mr Hollywood

4d

Gritty looking. Was entertaining. It doesn’t shy away from violence. If you don’t mind that in movies then you’ll enjoy it

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Robert W

5d

One of the worst movies I’ve seen in awhile.

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TheMovieSearch R

@TheMovieSearch 20h

In Cold Light (2026) is a thriller that promises suspense but largely fails to deliver. The story follows a young woman caught in a criminal investigation, leaving viewers unsure of her guilt. While the premise hints at tension and action, the film drags over an hour and 40 minutes, making it tedious and often frustrating. The screenplay lacks momentum, cohesion, and urgency, with key plot points underdeveloped or ignored. Direction shows little investment in building suspense, and acting is stiff and uninspired, leaving characters flat and unrelatable. Visually, the film is generic, offering no striking cinematography or memorable sequences. Overall, it feels like a streaming project unfit for theaters, leaving audiences disengaged, bored, and disappointed. The concept had potential, but the execution falls short on nearly every level.

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3asygoing

3d

One of the worst movies youre going to see all year. Helen Hunts career is done, thats apparent. The movie is 100% garbage. 1/6th of the movie is in sign language, with no subtitle soyou know in case your one of the millions of people that no sign language.

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John O.

@jayfo 3d

Dark and depressing, I couldn’t possibly recommend it. Pretty much about drugs leading to great potential

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joel g

@davidbondo 4d

looks like it was shot on a cell phone and looks like it had a total budget of $1000 to make this movie.. Acting was barely tolerable.. Plot was even worse. Shot mostly during the night to save money..There was this bearded guy that communicated in sign laguage and they didnt even have the decency to put down subtitles for the stuff he was saying.. What a disaster. I dont even think Netflix would pick this up. No I KNOW netflix wouldnt pick this up and show.Too low quality.

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Maxime Giroux

Director

Maika Monroe

Ava

Troy Kotsur

Will

Helen Hunt

Claire

Allan Hawco

Bob Whyte

Jesse Irving

Tom

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Synopsis

Ava is trapped. Like a bull in a bucking chute, seconds before exploding onto the rodeo stage. She is hunted. Pursued by those who killed her brother, pursued by her own demons. Ava needs to make a choice. To either save herself and fight another day or to push and become the woman she wishes she could be.

Director: Maxime Giroux
Producer: Yanick Létourneau, Mike MacMillan
Screenwriter: Patrick Whistler
Distributor: Saban Films
Production Co: Périphéria, Lithium Studios
Rating: R (Language|Violence/Bloody Images|Some Drug Material)
Genre: Mystery & Thriller, Action, Crime, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Jan 23, 2026, Limited
Runtime: 1h 36m

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