‘Cold Storage’ (2026)

Opening on a prologue centred on the decommissioning of US space-station Skylab in 1979, ‘Cold Storage’ tracks a rogue oxygen tank that survived the station’s re-entry into Earth’s atmosphere and was not reclaimed by the recovery crew. Made into a makeshift tourist attraction, a farmer in rural Western Australia contacts the authorities warning them of an imminent threat. Biochemist Dr. Hero Martins (Sosie Bacon) accompanies Pentagon bio-terror operatives Robert Quinn (Liam Neeson) and Trini Romano (Lesley Manville) as they deal with the fallout.

Almost 20 years later, having contained the highly volatile and adaptable fungus in a military storage facility in Atchison Caves, Kansas, the complex has since been sold and operates as a commercial storage facility. Working the graveyard shift Travis (Joe Keery) meets his new colleague Naomi (Georgina Campbell) who both bond over their shared dislike for the storage manager Griffin (Gavin Spokes). Hearing a persistent beeping sound emanating from somewhere within the facility Travis and Naomi follow the alarm and uncover the site’s former purpose and the location of the highly contagious fungus.

Contacting the military, Naomi and Travis are instructed to bunker down and avoid contact with the fungus, as shown in the prologue, the substance is highly volatile and will infect any living organism, start controlling it and do anything it can to spread more of itself around. With Quinn having written about the dangers of rising temperatures affecting the storage facility, he, Romano and military control centre employee Abigail (Ellora Torchia) work together to reach the storage facility and eliminate any possible contamination or outbreak.

Having to also deal with Griffin as he and his biker gang attempt to shift stolen HD TVs out of the storage facility, Travis and Naomi fight to avoid contamination and save the others. Meeting Quinn, Travis and Naomi are instructed to deliver a backpack nuke to the underground level of the storage facility to eradicate any potential escape. Eventually realising that they’re on a suicide mission, the two scramble to escape and eventually meet Quinn and Romano topside, with the group managing to evade nuclear annihilation.

Hitting the ground running, ‘Cold Storage’ opens on some disconcerting exposition about potentially lost NASA space station experiments landing on Earth. Fast-paced and relentless however, biochemist Martins and bioterrorism agents Quinn and Romano set the stage for the severity of the situation. Suffering a terrible loss despite their best efforts, only Quinn and Romano escape what could have developed into a worldwide pandemic.

Avoiding a fungal apocalypse, the film teeters between comedy and thriller as we’re introduced to Travis – a low-wage nobody working the graveyard shift at the storage facility. Quickly opening up to new colleague Naomi, the two share their dislike both for being stuck in a dead-end job and for having to work for sleazy Griffin.

Pursuing what turns out to be a breached containment unit, ‘Cold Storage’ doesn’t concern itself too much with making Travis or Naomi absolute heroes, as we discover Travis is a parolee conditioned to hold down a job and Naomi is just trying to get her life together and do right by her daughter. Fumbling and stumbling along, the two find their way to a hidden subterranean level, where a flashback reveals the fungus was able to breach containment and benefit from a rise in temperature through an underground stream that had previously cooled the unit, and held the goop at bay.

Not too preachy however, the film really kicks it into high gear after Griffin and his biker gang friends show up to shift some boosted TVs. First infecting Naomi’s ex Mike (Aaron Heffernan) who had followed Naomi to her work out of desperation, a contagious Mike morphs into a fungus-carrying vessel that is bursting at the seams, looking for anyone to infect. Taking the bikers out a few at a time, Mike spews and oozes all over the place until the majority are also infected. Props to the makeup and visual effects team for making one of the most disgusting and vile character designs to grace the screen this year, - if nothing else, this film knows how to deliver an anti-fungus warning.

Besides the amazing visual effects, the story can seem a little predictable. Hitting a few highs early on, the narrative slows a little during its second act as our protagonists try their best and fail at containing the outbreak. Even though the story may lack novelty and surprise, the visual effects more than make up for this. Thrilling and hilarious, ‘Cold Storage’ leans heavily into the splatter and delivers a fun, if not-so-serious, caper.

Score: 3/4