So Cold the River

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So Cold the River

R

2022

1h 35m

Horror

Mystery & Thriller

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Popcornmeter

58%

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12 Reviews

40%

Popcornmeter

50+ Ratings

A chilling, suspenseful adaptation of "The New York Times" bestseller, SO COLD THE RIVER by Michael Koryta. Acclaimed documentary filmmaker Erica Shaw (Bethany Joy Lenz, "Dexter") is hired by Alyssa Bradford-Cohen (Alysia Reiner, "Orange is the New Black") to profile her dying father-in-law, the enigmatic millionaire Campbell Bradford. Erica is presented with a substantial sum of money and a relic, an antique bottle filled with water from a local spring, one of the few clues connecting Bradford to the town he once dominated. While researching Bradford as a guest of a massive, opulent resort with a dark past, Erica meets unofficial town historian Anne McKinney (Tony Award-winner Deanna Dunagan), fanatical intern Kellyn (Katie Sarife, Annabelle Comes Home) and hotel maintenance worker Josiah (Andrew J. West, "The Walking Dead"), a descendant of Bradford's who reveals the familial curse of mysterious deaths and suicides. Seemingly possessed by the relic, Erica begins drinking from the antique bottle, experiencing terrifying visions and, ultimately, unleashing unspeakable evil. Can Erica make her way through the darkness or is Campbell's evil undercurrent too strong?

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Noel Murray

Los Angeles Times

Mar 25, 2022

Writer-director Paul Shoulberg effectively captures the spooky, “Shining”-like vibe of Koryta’s story; although given the rich source material, this movie should be a lot grabbier than it is.

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Randy Myers

San Jose Mercury News

Mar 23, 2022

3/4

“So Cold the River” is rather ridiculous, but it’s also quite thrilling and comes armed with a sinister, dread-mongering mood.

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Rich Cross

Starburst

Oct 17, 2022

2/5

Everything is beautifully lit, and the unnerving mood is built through impressive sound design and an edgy musical score. Yet the film is littered with unresolved plot points, while other opportunities are squandered.

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Eddie Harrison

film-authority.com

Sep 6, 2022

3/5

…intrigue gives way to annoyance when So Cold the River fails to provide cut and dried answers, but it’s a journey worth taking in this striking and yet somehow incomplete film…

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Tyler Doupe

Dread Central

May 16, 2022

2/5

So Cold the River is visually stunning but never delivers the goods.

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Abbie Bernstein

Assignment X

Apr 1, 2022

B

It’s a fun exercise in the cursed-something horror subgenre.

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K

Mar 29, 2022

Phenomenal score. Suspense kept me on the edge of my seat. Time goes by quickly as you try to figure out the movie.

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S D

@Stheday Jun 28, 2026

The book was really good. The movie is just horrible. The director decided to change the main characters from male to female and got rid of the black character.

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Craig B

@Boundsy Oct 30, 2024

Overall, a well acted movie. Fairly creepy at times and kept you guessing where it was all going to end up. However, I just found the story a tad incoherent which detracted from the overall quality of the movie. Some will like it, some won't... I'm on the fence for his one.

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brad p

@Bradster69 Feb 21, 2023

So Cold the River is visually stunning but never delivers the goods.

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Aug 5, 2022

So awful this movie. I should preface this by saying that I have read the book. I also grew up in southern Indiana. I *wanted* to love this movie. This movie was so different than the plot of the book. For example, the book had a plot and the movie did not. Every ounce of interesting plot and subplot was removed. Everything that was added was terrible. The writing was awful. The acting was awful. The directing was even worse. The cinematography was…well, awful. The only similarity between the book and the movie was the hotel, character names (although many of their genders and ethnicities had been changed), and a scene with dynamite. If I could leave zero stars I would.

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Jun 26, 2022

I am a frequent visitor to French Lick and West Baden, my first visit was back in 2003 before there was a casino and before they renovated the West Baden hotel, it was still a crumbling mess. I read the book a few year ago and really loved it. I love the history of the area and it's ghost stories. The only thing that was good about this movie was the setting. It had very little in common with the story in the book other than a few similar names and a handful of scenes. They left out everything that was good about the book, everything that tied the story together. The movie was very hard to follow, so confusing that it made no sense, even though I knew what it was supposed to be about. Maybe my expectations were too high, but I REALLY wanted to like this movie, so much that I bought it and now I wish I hadn't. I won't ever watch it again. This was a huge disappointment. If you like the setting and the hint of a plot that the movie showed for a few brief minutes, definitely read the book. Now I need to go re-read it to get the awful experience of watching that movie out of my brain.

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Paul Shoulberg

Director

Bethany Joy Lenz

Erica Shaw

Alysia Reiner

Alyssa Bradford-Cohen

Katie Sarife

Kellyn Cage

Andrew J. West

Josiah Bradford

Deanna Dunagan

Anne McKinney

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Synopsis

A chilling, suspenseful adaptation of "The New York Times" bestseller, SO COLD THE RIVER by Michael Koryta. Acclaimed documentary filmmaker Erica Shaw (Bethany Joy Lenz, "Dexter") is hired by Alyssa Bradford-Cohen (Alysia Reiner, "Orange is the New Black") to profile her dying father-in-law, the enigmatic millionaire Campbell Bradford. Erica is presented with a substantial sum of money and a relic, an antique bottle filled with water from a local spring, one of the few clues connecting Bradford to the town he once dominated. While researching Bradford as a guest of a massive, opulent resort with a dark past, Erica meets unofficial town historian Anne McKinney (Tony Award-winner Deanna Dunagan), fanatical intern Kellyn (Katie Sarife, Annabelle Comes Home) and hotel maintenance worker Josiah (Andrew J. West, "The Walking Dead"), a descendant of Bradford's who reveals the familial curse of mysterious deaths and suicides. Seemingly possessed by the relic, Erica begins drinking from the antique bottle, experiencing terrifying visions and, ultimately, unleashing unspeakable evil. Can Erica make her way through the darkness or is Campbell's evil undercurrent too strong?

Director: Paul Shoulberg
Producer: John Robert Armstrong, Zachary Spicer, Claire Tuft
Screenwriter: Paul Shoulberg
Distributor: Saban Films
Production Co: Pigasus Pictures, 1804 Productions
Rating: R (Some Violence|Language|Bloody Images)
Genre: Horror, Mystery & Thriller
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Mar 25, 2022, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Mar 29, 2022
Runtime: 1h 35m

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