In Cold Light’s best scene is a confrontation between Maika Monroe’s Ava and her father, Troy Kotsur’s Will.  She, fresh out of prison and on the run from a crooked cop chasing her for a crime she didn’t commit, and he, bitter and resentful at his family being torn asunder, have the conversation that they should have had years before. The scene plays out nearly wordlessly as they speak in sign language, and as a result, the performances are almost entirely body language, facial expression, and tone.  Standing opposite each other in Will’s backyard under motion-activated floodlights, one has to reach out every few minutes to make sure the light stays on so their connection stays open. 

The scene is nearly funny, the kind of funny that comes from the small absurdities that happen in real life.  Monroe and Kotsur are both incredible, each dedicated performers who put all of themselves into the roles. The relationship between these estranged family members works because you really believe in the history between them, despite it also being nearly entirely unspoken.  

It’s a shame that, with one exception, the rest of the movie never really gains momentum.  Director Maxime Giroux is clearly good at coaxing great performances from his actors and ensuring scenes are shot in ways that make them visually engaging, but the script contains little in the way of surprises.  Ava, arrested for drug dealing in the prologue, is out of jail after a two-year stint and wants to reclaim her empire. Before she can do that, she’s framed for a murder by corrupt cop Bob (Alan Hawco) and sent on the run, not so much to clear her name but simply to escape the fate everyone knows is coming from her. 

The story then plays out much like you’d expect, with Ava at times a step ahead but often a step behind, with twists and betrayals, none of which are unexpected.  It’s fine, but the performances deserve so much better. 

Rounding out the cast is Helen Hunt as the crime boss that Bob works for.  She only has one scene, a long conversation with Ava, who finally arranges to meet the person trying to kill her face-to-face.  This conversation, the one exception, is also spectacular.  Hunt gives her best performance in recent memory, her demeanour both warm and chilling as they discuss the relationships between parents and children, and what is in store for Ava, and whether that is escapable.  It’s the kind of performance that reminds you why she won an Oscar and makes you hopeful she’ll return to more high-profile film roles in the future. 

In Cold Light is, in short, an extremely well-performed and consistently average film.  Giroux captures the prairie crime vibe well and highlights a societal underbelly that accompanies the prosperity of an oil patch in rural towns and cities, but it also doesn’t meaningfully engage with that in a satisfying way. The end result is a film that is at once frustrating in its content and compelling in its performances.  

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In Cold Light, in cinemas February 27th, 2026