Blood Glacier (2013) User Reviews

Stop Eating That Banana While You're Crying!

[jabrbi · 6/10 · 25 July 2014]

You know how things are. There you are in a scientific research station 3000m up a mountain when suddenly all sorts of horrific creatures start turning up wanting to eat you. We've all been there and laughed about it the next day.

There's nothing really special about this film. It's a solid workman-like horror film that doesn't do anything wrong compared to other horror films, but it doesn't lift itself up to iconic-level cult status. The acting is good, the scenery is fantastic (or very bleak and forbidding depending on the mood required), the setup works as a way of isolating a group of people and the mechanism for creating the creatures, whilst being completely bonkers tripe, does allow for any crazy mix of chimeras that you care to think up in your worst out of body experiences.

It's never explained where the 'organism' that creates the nightmare creatures comes from, and whether every chimera created survives to become a viable creature, or why this organism has suddenly appears and in such numbers. However, most horror films are just as bad at explaining things so I don't hold it against this film.

Although the number of people is limited, there is a high death rate, most of them being suitable gory but, sadly, the one you really want to survive is the first to get it in the neck.

The minister's character is superb. The minister is a woman, thankfully breaking the stereotype/cliché of useless women, and boy has she got guts, presence and a working brain. Anyone who says something stupid, does something stupid or just gets in the way are soon put in their place, hence the "Stop eating that banana while you're crying" title.

Yes, there are the obligatory idiots, but you know they're idiots, as does the minister. As well as the minister there are three other capable characters. Sadly, the hunky body guard gets it in the chest before he has a chance to take his shirt off (boo), but the technician and his ex at least realise the danger they're in and don't stand around screaming, carelessly leaving doors open, or walking straight into the jaws of some nightmare creature.

At one point a young woman appears being chased by a creature and she seems to then fill the role of screaming bint and incubation chamber. There seems to be no point to this character, and the role of incubator could easily have been given to banana-eating woman.

The ending is a bit flat. There's the inevitable scene where we know that the crisis is only just beginning, there's the jump scare at the end, but you can spot it coming if you're paying attention, and everybody left alive makes it off the mountain. But there's no great feeling of achievement at the end. One of the survivors telephones for a helicopter, just like phoning for a taxi, and off home everybody goes.

This is a competent film that stays well within its intended milieu and delivers a solid experience that many will appreciate, if not enjoy. I liked the film, but a little more attention to the plot, and a bit more slapping from the minister would have raised this film to an 8.

"We Will change forever".

[lost-in-limbo · 6/10 · 31 May 2014]

Walking through my local DVD shop I came across this title, "The Station". Quite plain sounding, but it was the comment at top of the case that caught my attention; "A slice of horror reminiscent of John Carpenter's 'The Thing' ". Being at massive fan of that film, I decided to take the chance and in some regards the Austrian made "The Station" comes close. Hey I even enjoyed it more than the prequel / remake that came out a year or two back. What it has in common with Carpenter's film is more so the ice setting, an unknown threat that is a single-form alien organism transforming the local wildlife into gigantic monster mutations and hybrids. It's like "Day of the Animals", but on steroids! Then there's the ending that only paints the apocalyptic mood playing out. This is a basic straight-face creature-feature at heart with a climatic cautionary warning, which tells a simple story that effectively lays it out with a strong grizzled protagonist (a very solid showing by Gerhard Liebmann), well timed suspense, gruesome thrills and a sense of mystery of mankind's fate. The final frame of the film is surprisingly effective in its suggestion, but they spoil it on an uncalled for tacky jump scare.

The premise is far from unique and quite down-pat; a group of scientists/ technicians discover a glacier of blood (an inspired image when shown) high in the mountains, which after testing the liquid discover it contains an alien organism. As they try to survive and hold up against the effects of this organism, on a hiking trip to the station for an official visit is the Minister of the Environment.

The feature is slickly photographed (despite some shaky camera movement early on) and makes excellent use of its vast, breathtaking backdrop. There's a definite sense of isolation and uneasiness, but never does it struck a feeling of claustrophobia and dread. The tension seems to unfold from threatening situations and the punctuated shocks. Its momentum is fairly sedate, but it becomes crazy, excessively so as it goes along and the director keeps a fairly tight hold.

What I got a kick out of was that CGI was virtually little, if unseen, opting mainly for traditional special effects and they do pay-off. The creature designs are creative and horrific with beetle-fox hybrids, giant wood lice, flying crossbreeds. There's a whole range of beasties… and they're not friendly. Squamish moments are plentiful and there a creepy developments. While the generic script doesn't over feed itself, still it had some issues like an appearance of a sudden character for them to only disappear with a poor explanation. The performances are adequate, without anyone really standing out, other than Liebmann.

Clichéd, but fun, strange sci-fi / horror monster romp.

And the title "Blood Glacier" sounds so much better.

Into the Fire

[nogodnomasters · 4/10 · 17 April 2018]

A group of scientist are studying the recession of a glacier. Global Warming has caused some issues, but it is about to get worse. Janek (Gerhard Liebmann) is the main character. He has been stationed up here for 5 years. When they lose contact with one of their remotes, he investigates only to find the "blood glacier," a red colored glacier which places a red filter on the camera for a few scenes for no reason other than to scare us. When more samples must be collected, the glacier is gone, but there is a mutant rabid fox running around.

40 minutes into the film we are provided with an explanation as a team which includes the prime minister is on its way, lead by Janek's ex-gf Tanja (Edita Malovcic).

The action builds slow. The special effects were better on small creatures, but comical on larger ones. The big horror scene shows people uncontrollably screaming as lights flash and a big fake creature head comes through the door. The dialogue was extremely dry. Some might find this entertaining for various reasons, I did not.

Parental Guide: F-bomb. No sex or nudity.

Old and new school effects with no glossy teen beef dripping

[amesmonde · 6 January 2014]

A team investigating climate change discovers a mysterious organic substance that has the ability to transform both animals and humans into terrifying mutations.

This is an entertaining well made eco-horror film in the vein of the Thing (1982). Director Marvin Kren as with zombie flick Rammbock delivers a satisfying and interesting entry into a saturated horror genre with surprisingly effective at times well realized gory effects. There's some jump moments, old and new school special effects and It benefits from an un-Hollywood quality cast including Gerhard Liebmann as Janek and Edita Malovcic as Tanja but the real star of the show breathtaking Alps setting and H. G Wells-like impressionable provoking ending.

While not as tense or physiologically claustrophobic as The Thing (1982) this German language science fiction is adult orientated for those tired of glossy, poorly directed, teen beef and pork dripping tripe. Recommended

Inept climate change warning?

[dalxray · 3/10 · 5 November 2021]

Went in to this after reading many IMBD reviews that compared it poorly to John Carpenter's "The Thing" (a masterpiece of horror and most importanly suspense) so my expectations were low. Even poorly made copies of the original ( and yes I know Carpenter's version was a remake but so much better than the original, a rare thing itself) can be entertaining. So I went in with an open mind, willing to forgive and not make comparisons .

Unfortunately this movie has zero suspense, bad acting ( although you can't really blame the actors given the purile banal script, no one could pull that off seriously). Pseudo-scientific explanations that a second-grader would doubt, characters reacting moronically to further the plot, and a seriously dissappointing ending.

Also, if you read some of the reviews that propone that the special makeup/creature are good, prepare to be dissappointed. Sub-par and usually shot in low light so you can't see how crap they are.

Giving this a 3 out of 10 and tht's generous.

Fun Mutated Thrills

[gregsrants · 7/10 · 14 September 2013]

Gleefully mixing the best elements of films such as John Carpenter's The Thing, David Cronenberg's The Fly and Frank Darbont's The Mist, director Marvin Kren (Rammbock) brought his latest effort, The Station to the Toronto International Film Festival as an entry in the Midnight Madness Series that showcases the best in horror, thrillers, science fiction and fantasy. The Station takes place in the remote and scenic location of the German Alps where three males, one female and a dog work tirelessly in their modest laboratory monitoring climate change through glacial reduction. On the day before a VIP from the Ministry is to visit, the researchers stumble across a glacier that is leaking a red liquid that makes the ice look as if it is bleeding. The red compound is determined to be organic and is having an effect on the local wildlife morphing ordinary creatures into modified and mutated beasts. Infections soon appear in human hosts which add to the terror and the some of the life-and-death decisions that the group must make in an effort to stay alive until help arrives in 24-hours. Large cockroach type creatures, mutated foxes and goats and a modified bird of prey are just some of the interesting and devilishly deadly beasts that rampage upon the outpost putting human lives in jeopardy as The Station dives head first into the horror genre. And the visiting crew of six add both a sub-plot (a former love interest) and appreciated humor via actress Brigitte Kren who just happens to be the director's real-life mother. Gore and 'yuck' moments in The Station abound and thanks to the ingenious method to which the mutations occur, there is no shortage of creatures lurking both inside and out of the shack the survivors find themselves holed-up. And director Kren seems to relish in the freedom the genre parameters allow him. The eco-disaster backdrop has a small social commentary attached and the setting of the film all but ensures that dumb big-titted teenagers are not around to dumb down the proceedings. This all adds up to an exceptionally fun and wild ride and was a crowd-pleaser during its World Premiere at the Toronto Festival. Some too quick editing and a very ill-advised and implausible final scene keep the film from being compared to on the levels of The Thing, The Fly and The Mist instead of just referencing the titles with the lead-in 'in the vein of'. The Station should be sought out despite the two aforementioned flaws. Hollywood doesn't make too many horror films that stay focused on the horror and the story without shoehorning sex, good-looking stars and enough sub-plots to choke a Voorhees. The Station, in contrast, stays focused in delivering the entertainment value and is likely to end up on our list of one of the Top-10 horror films when the year is clear of genre entries.

It ain't no Thing.

[BA_Harrison · 4/10 · 23 November 2018]

Scientists collecting data on climate change in the Austrian Alps discover a strange organism that attacks the local fauna, resulting in vicious hybrids.

With its remote sub-zero setting and hideous genetic mash-ups, comparisons between Blood Glacier (AKA The Station) and John Carpenter's The Thing (1982) are inevitable, but really there is no contest: Carpenter's film isn't perfect, but it more than delivers with its amazing special effects; on the other hand, the extras on the DVD of Blood Glacier include a gallery of impressive pre-production sketches, but the film fails to make good on the promise of weird and wonderful creatures, most of its monsters only seen in fleeting glimpses (and what we do see isn't great, which is probably why they remain hidden for most of the movie).

Blood Glacier also suffers from a raft of thoroughly unlikable characters that are nigh impossible to care about: the only death that has any impact is that of Tinni the dog. The movie's mountainous scenery is great, but breath-taking vistas only count for so much - Blood Glacier's stunning cinematography cannot compensate for the weak script (they never explained why a girl was running down the mountain in shorts and a vest), dreary pacing, and a lack of memorable mutations.

3.5/10, generously rounded up to 4 for IMDb.

Intense gore horror ride with an environmental message in an unusual setting

[kluseba · 7/10 · 23 December 2015]

With "Blood Glacier", also known as "The Station", Austrians prove once more that they are among the most diversified, interesting and underestimated movie makers in Europe. While the movie can't equal the neo-noir western "The Dark Valley" that can be considered a future cult classic due to its cool story line, intriguing settings and unusual genre mix, this movie here should be a treat for fans of brutal horror movies, mountain settings and survival stories.

"Blood Glacier" has a slightly dystopian feeling since it's taking place in the near future where global warming has brought aggressive parasites back to life that transforms and breeds terrible hybrids of different organisms. They are first discovered by four scientists and engineers in Austria when they discover reddish organisms on glaciers and find something resembling a mutated fox in a sinister cave. Soon, different animals and human beings get infected and the four men and women are fighting for survival. At the same time, they disagree about the best way to deal with the unexpected problem and serious tensions arise. Meanwhile, a minister and her crew who want to get more information about the researches are already on their way to the remote station. Partially unaware of the potential dangers, their arrival could mean that the scientists might all be saved or that even more people could get infected and die.

After a slow start that introduces the characters and settings in the first thirty minutes, the final hour of the movie will keep you on the edge of your seat. The clash of the diversified characters, the constant tense action scenes and numerous gore effects are the main elements for an intense ride until the debatable and slightly surprising ending.

Obviously, the movie also has its flaws. The story line isn't very clever and a few weird and unintentionally humorous scenes towards the end might diminish the enjoyment of the film. Some lines by the characters are so awkward that they are actually rather catchy. The acting isn't exactly stellar and especially the main characters could have been a little bit more convincing. With a better cast, the movie could have worked much better. The special effects and especially the looks of the original monsters are rather cheaply made if compared to more expensive productions but it's not an abominable case either.

If you are a sucker for intense gore horror movies in an intriguing environment, these obvious flaws won't bother you much because the last hour of the film is much too intense to think about these elements anyway. Genre fans will find a true gem with this explicit roller-coaster ride. Movie connoisseurs will be pleasantly surprised that germanophone countries are able to produce something else than depressive, exchangeable and old-fashioned crime flicks. Over another episode of "Tatort" and the likes on television and this monster b-movie with a slightly environmental message, my choice is quickly made for the latter.

Birdemic and a bucket of frozen feces,

[dontasker · 2/10 · 4 May 2014]

Apparently starting with global warming gives you free reign to rewrite all logic and science.

It is understandable that some mention the similarities between Blood Glacier and John Carpenter's The Thing, but other than an organism being released as ice melts and it forming "hybrids," there is little in common.

The Thing was a monster horror coupled with suspense and paranoia. Blood Glacier attempts to draw it's terror from a sudden loud noise and a GoPro camera in a blender.

The only saving grace is that Gerhard Liebmann seems to have potential as an actor. Unfortunately, even this becomes a moot point due to the laughable writing. His character's alcoholism was probably probably an improvisation given the fact that you'd have to be falling-down drunk to agree to be a part of the production.

Perhaps we should all take a more serious stance on global warming. The Day After Tomorrow, Birdemic, Blood Glacier... all would have never been made if only we had cut back on CO2 emissions.

Spawned right off of "The Thing"...

[paul_haakonsen · 6/10 · 14 July 2017]

I didn't know anything about "Blutgletscher" (aka "Blood Glacier") prior to finding it in the horror section. And my love for the horror genre and the movie's DVD cover made me pick it up and give it a chance.

For some odd reason I ended up with an English dubbed version of "Blutgletscher", which was a an insult to the original German language. Why? Well, because the dubbing was so questionable and dubious that it was atrocious to listen to. And without the option to switch to German, I was forced to suffer through laughable dubbing work because I really wanted to watch the movie. The English speaking voice over cast that was doing the dubbing had no conviction, no heart or spirit in their voice work, so it was unfathomably monotone, dull and lifeless, and it didn't match the characters on the screen one bit. It was like watching a dubbed Hong Kong movie from the early 1980s.

"Blood Glacier" is definitely inspired by Carpenter's "The Thing" and there is a number of similarities between the two. Whether or not this was intentional, I have no idea. It could be an homage or pure coincidence. I can only guess.

Director Marvin Kren actually managed to set up a fairly good atmosphere in this movie, and again very reminiscent of Carpenter's "The Thing". But oddly enough, it worked well enough in favor of "Blutgletscher". Just a shame that the horrible English dubbing was destroying it effectively with its laughable dubbing work.

As for the acting in "Blutgletscher", then I will say that the people were doing good jobs, and it was nice to see a cast ensemble of all unfamiliar faces. But again, their performances were toned down by the atrocious dubbing audio layer.

There is some pretty interesting creature design in the movie, and the creatures do look rather convincing and realistic, which really works very well in favor of the movie, especially when it is a horror movie of this type of setting.

The special effects in "Blutgletscher" was quite good and realistic and it helped to add to the overall movie, giving it flavor and more enjoyment for the audience. And the make-up effects were also quite good, and came off as rather realistic and good looking. So thumbs up to the special effects department who worked on this movie.

Visually then this movie turned out to be rather interesting. There were some very nice scenes and shots throughout the course of the movie, and the cinematography was definitely in good hands.

The music used in "Blutgletscher" was also quite good, very fitting for the atmosphere of the movie. It was well enough composed to be serving as background music, but at the same time be audible enough to instill an unnerving layer to the visuals portrayed on the screen.

"Blutgletscher" is a rather entertaining movie, especially if you enjoyed the otherworldly element that was in "The Thing", because it is also present here. However, it does not have the same quality to it to render it a classic like "The Thing". But all in all, an entertaining movie with a good story and good effects.

The Thing Meets Alien

[rstef1 · 5/10 · 25 July 2023]

Despite some indifferent dubbing, the movie begins quite well as a re-imagining of Carpenter's The Thing. The practical effects are fun and suitably icky. The Alien face hugger twist later in the film is effective and a nice nod to that earlier movie.

The problem is that in the final third of the film all the characters start behaving like total idiots, even more so than characters in other films like this. It really takes you out of the story and makes you stop caring what happens to them. Also, there are more flaws in the logic established by the film, such as the mutant flies scene. Why don't all the people stung by these flies become carriers of more mutants like the first guy who got stung?

A near miss that could have been terrific with a better final act.

Tight and uncompromising eco-thriller

[IndustriousAngel · 8/10 · 2 May 2014]

Not really a creature feature, but a very good nature-turns-against-humanity thriller set in the eastern Alps, in and around a secluded research station - and if that reminds you of "The Thing", you've already got the most important influence. Two other big influences that come to mind are "Alien", some of Cronenberg and even a bit of "Jaws" (the potential dangers are hushed up, to not disturb the impending visit by the environment minister).

"Blutgletscher" doesn't disown those classics it's modeled on - sometimes it rather revels in them; there's even a face-hugger scene - but ultimately it succeeds in finding its own voice. I liked how it's playing against expectations - the story deviates quite a bit from "The Thing"; there's more than one survivor; and the minister, instead of being the paragon of incompetence usually reserved for politicians, is actually the most competent and capable of the humans.

A note on the actors: The performances are a bit over the map - Janek and Tanja very good and intense, but the three science guys rather stiff and laughable (the lady a bit better); the others are up to their task but not much more.

While the mediocre acting keeps "Blutgletscher" from becoming a classic, there's much here to like - the tight, focused direction; the set and backgrounds - but most of all, the make-up and creature effects and designs, done in reality rather than CGI wherever possible. This is a perfect example of how good a film you can shoot on a more-or-less shoestring budget (less than 3mil US$); in fact this looks a lot better than many productions that cost 10 times as much. Highly recommended!

Hit-and-miss sci-fi horror hybrid of THE THING/THE MIST & FOOD OF THE GODS

[george.schmidt · 7/10 · 4 May 2014]

BLOOD GLACIER (2014) **1/2 Sci-fi horror from Austrian filmmaker Marvin Kren blends the paranoia/creature feature of THE THING, THE MIST & FOOD OF THE GODS when a scientific expedition in the Alps discovers a microscopic organism has literally taken over a glacier wall and find themselves fending for their lives from the nasty hybrids attacking them. A few moments of unease and atmospheric dread outweigh the faults of the screenplay (including some truly laughable dialogue). While the production feels low-budget at best particularly with some of the monsters, the film works on its own merits for the most part but feels reigned in with the ick factor and could've been even more gorier and frankly fun.

Twitch Plays "The Thing/The Fly"

[imdbreview-39-87508 · 1/10 · 28 June 2014]

I wish to preface this by saying that the version I watched was the dubbed version and the review is based on the assumption of accurate translation (which the quality of the dubbing may bring into question).

Starting off on a positive note, the dog steals every scene that it is in and gives a wonderful performance. The effects weren't bad (though I am easy to please in this regard).

A movie where one of the smarter characters says, "{That our results being outside of expectations} means that science has reached its limits" is certainly worrying. The portrayal of "science" and "scientists" in this movie is not merely inaccurate, but potentially dangerous. This may sound melodramatic, but ideas are the foundation upon which decisions are made and decisions made believing the "science" portrayed in this movie can only serve to hinder progress. Science is a method, not an answer and results being wrong means that the data was wrong (or incomplete) not that science has reached a limit.

On a related note, every character in this film lacks basic reasoning skills. For example, *spoiler*if you discover a substance that can make chimeras that have already displayed hostility do you A)Immediately seek help/notify authorities B)Ensure that if something goes wrong you can remain safe C)Attempt to hide said substance for "science" and effectively sabotage all means of seeking help should you need it ? If you chose C, then you are a character in this movie. */spoiler* A large number have of movies have one to many of these idiots to move the plot along, but this movie consists entirely of them.

This movie seems to throw in ideas like climate change and *spoiler*abortion*/spoiler* simply to have them in the movie. It does nothing with them. You could remove them and the story would be the same. The climate change thing seems like an after thought added at the end to rile up the late adopters, but it doesn't have anything to do with the antagonism in the movie at all. The movie even fails at being a propaganda film.

Slow, then Bad, then Hysterical, then..who cares?

[Rabh17 · 4/10 · 7 September 2014]

This flick, I ALMOST rented from iTunes, but something told me: "Wait..." I'm glad I listened to my inner critic...so even though I slated this baby for a Saturday Night B thriller, it did itself in two ways: It Excelled and it Bombed at the same time.

The set-up for the 'horror drama' is so predictable and derivative of 'The Thing' that it made me gag. Nevermind the side complaint that considering it about a 'Glacier' I didn't see all that much snow...nor did anyone even give the impression that it was cold at any time during the movie.

Next-- they dubbed this movie. They really, REALLY should have gone with subtitles. But because they went with dubbing, by the time I heard "Don't eat bananas while you're crying!" I could only double over with hysterics. For the life of me, I don't know WHERE that line came from or what the script writer was thinking...but that line is Immortal in my view now.

The Characters...they were just doomed. They were all going to die. They all DESERVED to die. And their Deaths had nothing to do with the Plot. They just deserved death on principle. And then the Director and the Script Writers deserved to spill blood on the rocks alongside them for good measure.

The only person who I liked and who was spared was the Minister: She was a battle-axe of a woman. And evidently most Austrian women are battle-axes, because all the men were wimps or alcoholics in this movie.

The screaming was good. It's ironic, because there was no tension or suspense by this point. It was just non-stop screaming and mayhem and I couldn't STOP LAUGHING...because this was NOT the intent of the Movie!!! Oh...and the Monsters were done pretty well. That's what the 4 stars are for.

Good Monsters. Many Screams. Hysterical Dubbing.

Watch this mess with Friends, Beer and Sarcasm on a Saturday Night.

Return of the Son of the Ibex-fly Thing

[Kingkitsch · 6/10 · 10 December 2015]

Really, how many movies feature ibexes, let alone a mutant ibex-fly that gets a drill in the noggin by a feisty granny? This may entice you to watch "Blood Glacier" next time you see it in the Netflix lineup of terrible, terrible horror/scifi movies. If you dimly remember having heard about this Alpine tale of terror, it's worth a six-pack and a bag of chips.

While beautifully photographed, offering amazing views of bleak ice and mountains, this movie hasn't got a clue what it wants to do. Convince you of global warming? Scare you with mutant hybrid creatures that look like stuffed animals you'd win at a carnival? Tear your heart out with thwarted love and dog death? Make you laugh uproariously at the absolutely insane behavior of "smart" scientists? Teach you not to cry while eating bananas? BG is all this, and more.

Throw these movies into a blender: The Thing, Alien, Day of the Animals, Old Yeller, Sound of Music, and that moldy oldie from the 50s, Night of the Blood Beast (the very first movie to speculate that humans make great hosts for birthing alien infants). Turn on blender. Wait about 80 minutes. Pour out your scifi smoothie and wonder how this ever got made. Take a drink of your liquid every time someone says "rabid fox", which in German sounds like "rabbit fuxes". Tack on one of the strangest endings you'll ever see and wonder if someone slipped LSD into your movie smoothie. No kidding.

Pray there's no sequel. Four stars for insanity. One star for Tinni, the best goshdarn dog actor in the world. One star, because ibexes. Six is the magic number for this smelly sausage of a movie that features someone walking around a glacier in dirty underpants.

Enjoy the schadenfreud!

This movie worst thing to come out of Germany in the last 70 years.

[Orion80202 · 1/10 · 12 May 2014]

Simply put, this movie is bad. It's not even so bad it's good. It certainly does not help that the English version was dubbed from German by uninspired voice actors. The dialog is embarrassingly awful with such gems as "stop eating that banana while you are crying!" The special effects are worse than those in a SyFy Channel movie. Random characters appear out of nowhere, such as a young woman who looks like she just left a rave running down a 12,000 foot high mountain. The plot makes very little sense. I am still trying to figure out what the Minister was a minister of. She was some sort of government official who required an armed body guard. But her exact role or importance in the government is a mystery. And while she is no spring chicken herself, she has no problem telling an older man that he is too old to help out. The movie also has an abortion subplot that is thrown in only to accomplish a silly plot twist. I am a huge fan of mindless scary movies. Blood Glacier did not satisfy.

The Thing ... in the Gletscher

[kosmasp · 7/10 · 2 August 2020]

Yes this is heavily inspired by The Thing (the Carpenter Remake that is from the 80s) and yet it does somewhat try to tell a different and own story. If you are into creature features, if you like well done special effects in movies and are not afraid or squeamish when it comes to blood and gore ... well I wonder why you are still reading this and haven't started watching the movie yet? All kidding aside, yes this is not an instant classic, but it doesn't need to be either.

Yes characters sometimes paper thin and decisions are bad at times, if not completely crazy. But that's the way things go down. You are here for the horror, the blood, the make up and the tension. Welcome and enjoy ...

"WILL YOU STOP EATING THAT BANANA WHILE YOU'RE CRYING?!"

[KatieMang · 1/10 · 20 April 2018]

How is this not a comedy?! While reading another users review on this movie, describing it as: "The Thing, 1982, but located in the Austrian Alps", I became committed fast. But.. Long review short? This film, "ain't no THING."

It's a fairly good horror film, nothing more, nothing less

[Internethatred · 6/10 · 4 September 2018]

This is a fun horror, which has found a simple scenario (combining different rabid creatures that grow inside the victim) that allows the threat of the story to appear and mutate freely. The lead role is driven excellently and believably by Gerhard Liebmann, a heroic character set somewhat apart from his biologist visitors. It is mostly well-paced (unlike many here I have a mental age that developed before the Marvel franchise), suspenseful, and has just enough brooding tension between the characters to keep the plot occupied.

The special effects are organic and generally excellent. The cinematography seems to me to be decent as well, and the setting is the Austrian mountain range.

The only real slip-up is the strange timing that the Liebmann character's love interest makes in delivering heavy news after a sad loss. And perhaps at the end where she decides to take something with them that should definitely be left there. Otherwise the film is fun and the minister who arrives is a strong character too. The acting is good almost all round.

There seem to be some pretentious, Ebert-disciple types here who think that monster horror films are sophisticated enough to be judged by their subtlety and the cohesion of character nuances with political messages, but theyre not - this film has scary creatures, good acting, suspicion and a decent pace, in an isolated setting where the helplessness of the characters is well-expressed. Its a 5.9 out of 10 for me, and while the dubbing was noticably not very well matched with the original speech, that was fairly easy to overlook, for a film that, ultimately, is a mutant-horror, not a treatise on how to consolidate the The Matrix's and Fight Club's Anarcho-primitivism for a political solution to the struggle for autonomy. Save your battles!

Fun movie but nothing more

[s_j_rd · 5/10 · 31 October 2015]

It's a fun movie to watch if you don't have any better one to watch. The location of the movie makes you feel isolated and far from help which contributes to the overall ambiance. Although the movie never is extremely scary it can keep your attention throughout. The "monsters" or hybrids in the movie aren't that scary and the idea is something similar to the monsters from "The Mist". Some hybrids are not very convincing taking into account they should have DNA of both organisms. The movie is a refreshing view on climate change and shouldn't be taken too seriously, although the first few minutes can stimulate you to think about climate change. Overall a fun movie but nothing memorable.

Land of 'rabid foxes'

[bowmanblue · 8/10 · 2 September 2014]

Here's a fun game... watch 'Blood Glacier' and give yourself ten points every time someone mentions rabid foxes. I would say drink an alcoholic drink, but you'd probably need hospital treatment if you did that.

In 'Blood Glacier' we join an assortment of bearded geologists studying a glacier somewhere in the natural wilderness. Then, one fateful day, their glacier looks like it's made up of blood. Although it's quite pretty it does have the drawback of produces rabid foxes. Okay, so the 'rabid foxes' turn out to be an assortment of monsters, but the geologists still seem to refer to them as 'rabid foxes' for much of the film (even when Santa Clause arrives with his butt-kicking wife).

What you have here is a homage to John Carpenter's classic, 'The Thing.' I don't say 'rip-off' because that would be running Blood Glacier down and, despite its reliance on rabid foxes and baldy-beardy men, it's actually pretty fun. Yes, it has subtitles, so be prepared for that, but the effects are cool, the monsters well thought out and not that much (if any?) CGI effects which ruin so many films. The cast does as well as any cast in these situations. Of course there are always going to be a few daft moments where people do that thing Ripley does in Alien where they sacrifice humans to save animals, but, apart from that, if you're a fan of foreign horror, or liked The Thing, I'd give this one a go.

It also includes the rather surreal line, 'Stop eating that banana while you're crying!' I don't know why that amused me so, but it did.

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Scary Concept and Solid Output

[Reviews_of_the_Dead · 7/10 · 8 March 2024]

This was a movie that I discovered when looking for winter-based horror. I'll be honest, I almost passed on this since I saw that it was streaming on Tubi and the poster wasn't great. The name also sounded generic. What changed my mind was that this is from Austria. Since it has a release date of 2013, it doubled as a Traverse through the Threes.

Synopsis: scientists working in the Austrian Alps discover that a glacier is leaking a liquid that appears to be affecting local wildlife.

We start here with a title card stating that in 2014, the last skeptics fall silent against global warming. The climate disaster is worse than ever imagined and Antarctica's ice will be gone within a decade. The alpine glaciers will disappear. The consequences are unclear, but one thing is known, life on Earth will forever change.

The movie then takes us to meet our group. Janek (Gerhard Liebmann) is the maintenance man for the group. There is an alarm going and he has passed out drunk. He lives in a cabin with his dog, Tinnitus (Santos). He is woken up by Birte (Hille Beseler) to see what is wrong. She is a scientist and she works alongside Falk (Peter Knaack) and Harald (Felix Römer). He looks at the alarm and states that one of the stations is offline. He is tasked to go there with Falk to get it back online. Tinnie comes with them.

It is here that we see the glacier has all but melted. Where it was is this odd red liquid. It is in slushie form. Falk takes samples to test it. Janek works on fixing the equipment on the station when Tinnie goes into a nearby cave. Inside is a fox that is infected with something and it bites the dog. Janek finds both animals and is concerned.

They head back to the station that they work at, relaying what happened. Minister Bodicek (Brigitte Kren) is coming there for a visit. Janek doesn't think it is a good idea. He is shot down though, because if she doesn't, they could lose their funding. Even more so if the reason they share is a rabid animal. Birte studies the sample that was brought back, but she can't make sense of it. She needs a fresh model. Janek denies taking her as night approaches and it isn't safe, especially with what he calls a 'rabid' fox out there.

Things get more complicated from here. Janek learns that his ex-girlfriend Tanja (Edita Malovcic) is coming with the group to their station. He is even more concerned now with the fox that is out there for their safety. This group discovers something even scarier though. They brought back a specimen that is part woodlouse as well as a fox. They try to make sense of what they're seeing. Janek also reveals that the thing he saw had a beetle face. Birte gives a rough explanation of what could happened and this odd liquid is involved. This nightmare gets even worse as other mutants emerge.

That is where I'm going to leave my recap and introduction to the characters. Where I'll start then is that I could see people being turned off by the social commentary here. Global warming and the negative effects it has on the world is a hot button topic. This movie is going hard into it being real. I'd say that it is even more exaggerated for the sake of the story. This is from 2013 and set in the year after as if the effects of this phenomena completely melted the glaciers on the Alps. I don't think you need to believe in this to enjoy the movie and just watch it as a work of fiction.

Now that I have that out of the way, I love the setting here. We are on a mountain where you can only get there by walking/climbing or helicopter. It is supposed to be cold, but I love that it is sticking line with concept. There are lower temperatures due to the altitude. It feels warm up here though and it shouldn't be. I'll credit for bringing that all to life with the cinematography. Also sticking with the isolated location, being hurt or sick ramps up the tension since you can't easily get back to civilization. That is amplified as well by the fact that our characters are trapped and bombarded by mutants.

Let me then go into the science here a bit. We have Birte, Falk and Harald here as our scientific minds. What is interesting there though is we don't lean into that too much. I think that makes it more enjoyable since we aren't bogged down trying to explain things with science. What works here is that Birte just explains how she can as to why the fox looks as it does and how they end up with this giant pill bug looking creature. It is from there that we get other monsters like a falcon, a ram-like animal and even a mosquito that is carrying the liquid. This is also going to lead me into social commentary that I wasn't expecting here.

The other commentary I'm alluding to is government funding and the lengths people will go to keep it. These scientists almost come off as being too smart for their own good. They are at odds with Janek as they don't want him to share what is going on as it could keep the minister from coming. If she doesn't then they could lose funding. They are willing to put their lives at risk to continue their research. The scientists try to explain this under the guise of 'safety of the public'. There is a bit of that and I mean governments are known to lie to their citizens about this. It is used here to trap our characters and it isn't the worse idea. I will say that it also isn't new.

I do have a negative though. One part was that on Tubi, this was dubbed. I'm more of a guy who likes to watch movies in their native language with subtitles. There were times that I was taken out of the movie. I also can't blame them for what is available to me from a streaming service. The other part is that this has such good premises, set up and commentary. This loses steam though. I think for me, this is too ambitious and would be too hard to survive so it loses me. Not enough to ruin this. It just didn't hold me until the end like I wanted.

I'll then finish the filmmaking aspects. I'll confirm here that the cinematography is good. Not only does it capture the setting, but I also thought they frame the attacks well. I think that helps to hide the seams. The practical effects get here with blood and even a surgery scene works. My issue comes from CGI. There are times where I noticed and it took me out. Again, not enough to ruin it. Other than that, there was a great track from the music that gives an eerie atmosphere that I appreciated. The rest worked for what was needed. I did like the use of walkie-talkies and satellite phones as well.

All that is left then is acting, which I thought was solid. Liebmann is great as this guy who has been beaten down by his breakup with Tanja. He has elected to stay as the tech here on this mountain longer than anyone else. It is to avoid dealing with his feelings. That fits his character. Malovcic is solid in her role. She becomes his counterpart as they fight to survive. Santos was a good boy. Beseler, Knaack and Römer work as scientists. Kren and the others in her party are good at ramping up the body count. No one is great here, but I thought they work for what is needed in this creature feature.

In conclusion, this movie has good elements to it. The social commentary about global warming is there, but you don't need to believe to enjoy this. I also like the idea of how ineffective government can be as well. The acting here is solid enough. The focal should be the mutants, but I do think that takes a bit of a backseat. I'm not fully sure this movie knows what it wants to do. That could also be budgetary. This is still well-made in my opinion. If you like animal run-a-muck movies, I think this is a decent one. Be advised, this is from Austria and I watched it dubbed. I'd recommend it if what I said sounds interesting.

My Rating: 6.5 out of 10.

A cold sack of meh.

[gamerfreq · 5/10 · 29 August 2018]

Overall I would say that much of the best this film has to offer is within the roughly last 20 or so minutes of it's run-time. This is were the director really seems to shine in his creativity giving us some seriously fun and crazy moments. So I would say if your up to digging through some fairly bog standard and outright boring scenes to get to some interesting and pretty enjoyable moments then I would recommend checking out Blood Glacier. Otherwise there is just not to much this film has to offer either for the casual viewer or the hardcore horror fan and left me with an overall feeling of meh.

SyFy channel meets Austrian CGI horror

[davannacarter · 1/10 · 29 June 2014]

I'm not even going to waste too much time writing this review. This is basically an Austrian version of a SyFy channel movie. Don't let the high-gloss cinematography fool you. The technical problems of the movie first: horrible English voice dubbing reminiscent of Chinese Kung Fu movies. You'll have the voice actors stop speaking but the live actors are still moving their mouths. Plus, the voice actors did not fit their live actors. Voice actors who sound like they are in high school or college should not be dubbing for live actors who look like they're in their 40s. The other technical problem: get a tripod. These filmmakers need to get the stupid idea that swaying the camera from side to side throughout the entire movie heightens the realism out of their heads. No movie has ever suffered because camera wasn't shaking or swaying. But every movie that has constant swaying or shaking has suffered. Fact.

As far as the story goes, there are characters acting real dumb and stuff that doesn't make sense. If you asked me to list at least two dozen really stupid things characters did in this movie, I could give you three dozen in one minute. Just goes to show you that SyFy channel doesn't own the monopoly on really stupid horror.

By the way, the creature effects range from mediocre to terrible depending on who you ask.

So if you want a SyFy channel movie with an Austrian flair and horrible Kung Fu movie-type dubbing, Blood Glacier is the movie for you.