Liam Neeson’s latest film “Cold Storage” is a little different to his usual films. In fact, “it definitely is,” the action thriller veteran told dpa in London.
It is a wild blend of zombie horror, action film and comedy. For almost 20 years, the character actor and former Oscar nominee from “Schindler’s List” has been the go-to tough guy in the action genre.
Since the cult film “Taken”, two to three films a year have been released in cinemas or on streaming in which Neeson takes charge and ruthlessly clears villains out of the way. Most recently, the Irish actor also charted a success with the comedy reboot “The Naked Gun”.
In “Cold Storage” Neeson now takes on a dangerous parasitic fungus and zombie-like creatures. Alongside Neeson, “Stranger Things” star Joe Keery and British horror veteran Georgina Campbell from “They See You” play the lead roles.
The film is based on the novel of the same name by renowned screenwriter David Koepp (“Jurassic Park”, “Mission: Impossible”). “It’s a great script,” Neeson enthused, recalling reading the novel by David Koepp, whom he’s been a fan of for years.
A parasitic fungus spreads
The story takes us to Australia in 2005. From an old oxygen tank that once belonged to a NASA space laboratory and is now part of an open-air museum in a desert town, a highly infectious mutated fungus escapes.
Shortly afterwards, everything living in the immediate vicinity is dead. Many have simply exploded.
The Pentagon sends Robert Quinn (Liam Neeson) and Trini Romano (Lesley Manville), two specialists in biochemical weapons. The duo decontaminates the area and takes a sample of the fungus, which is stored in a secret high-security cryogenic facility on a military base in Kansas.
Decades later, the remote building of the former base has become a self-storage facility. Travis, also known as Teacake (Joe Keery), and his new colleague Naomi (Georgina Campbell) are working the night shift there when they hear a strange noise.
Zombies that spit green slime
Following the mysterious sound, they discover the remains of the military base behind a thin wall. The noise is an alarm signalling a temperature drop in the cryo safe.
The fungus has already escaped and is wreaking havoc. The infected spit green slime and try to spread the fungus. Teacake and Naomi inform the authorities.
Specialist Robert Quinn comes out of retirement for the operation. With Teacake and Naomi he battles zombie-like animals and humans while trying to stop the highly dangerous micro-organism and save the world.
The underground, abandoned laboratory with its narrow corridors, tunnels and old equipment creates a claustrophobic, oppressive atmosphere. Some nocturnal visitors add further tension — Naomi’s ex-husband Mike (Aaron Heffernan) and Teacake’s unpleasant colleague Griffin (Gavin Spokes), who wants to haul away a few stolen televisions with his gang.
Neeson sends up his action image
The tension and horror are repeatedly lightened by comic moments. One highlight is the brief, entertaining appearance by British acting veteran Vanessa Redgrave as Ma Rooney. Neeson said he was delighted she appears in the film, calling Redgrave – the mother of his late wife Natasha Richardson – a “legend.”
With plenty of good humour, Neeson sends up his image as a grizzled veteran action man and fixer in “Cold Storage”. Quinn suffers from back problems that hamper his special mission. Neeson says he appreciated the human weakness of the character. The plot has great science-fiction and fantasy elements, but ultimately “everything returns to the human.”
“Pay Attention – This shit is real!” we are told at the start of the film. In fact, there is a real parasitic tropical fungus called Ophiocordyceps unilateralis that infects the nervous system of ants and influences their behaviour.
It is also known as the zombie-ant fungus, and inspired the zombie apocalypse plot of the game “The Last of Us” and its TV series adaptation.
“Cold Storage” takes things to more comic extremes, and as the fungus spreads, viewers are treated to musical accompaniment — pop songs like “I Get Around” by the Beach Boys and Blondie singing “One way or another I’m gonna get you”.
The zombies are slimy, unpredictable creatures with a penchant for self-destruction that are also very funny.
Director Jonny Campbell’s film intentionally has the aura of a trashy B-movie. The horror is grotesque and overdrawn, but it works. “Cold Storage” is all-in offbeat fun and popcorn cinema, the kind that has become far too rare today.
A parasitic fungus is stored in an underground laboratory. When it breaks out, humans and animals start turning into zombies. “Stranger Things” star Joe Keery and Georgina Campbell call on Liam Neeson for help. Reiner Bajo/Studiocanal/dpa