Cold Fish (2011)

79% of critics liked it
(19 reviews)
76% of users liked it
(1,020 ratings)

From Sion Sono, the director of Love Exposure and Suicide Club. Cold Fish has won acclaim at both the Venice and Toronto Film Festivals. In the film, mild-mannered Shamoto's teenage daughter gets caught shoplifting. A generous fellow fish-store owner and his wife appear to help resolve the situation… More From Sion Sono, the director of Love Exposure and Suicide Club. Cold Fish has won acclaim at both the Venice and Toronto Film Festivals. In the film, mild-mannered Shamoto's teenage daughter gets caught shoplifting. A generous fellow fish-store owner and his wife appear to help resolve the situation by having her work at their fish store. Too good to be true? You bet! Shamoto soon discovers the horrific truth about this seemingly perfect couple...who inextricably weave him into their grisly rituals. Inspired by true events, Cold Fish is a twisted, brutal, blood-soaked drama that reveals the underlying insanity of an ordinary man pushed well beyond the brink. -- (C) Bloody Disgusting

Play Trailer

Rating, Runtime: Unrated, 2 hr. 24 min.
Directed By: Sion Sono
Written By: Sion Sono, Yoshiki Takahashi
Genres: Drama, Art House & International, Mystery & Suspense

In Theaters: Aug 5, 2011 Limited
On DVD: Aug 23, 2011
Studio: AMC/The Collective/BloodyDisgusting

Critic Reviews

Jeannette Catsoulis, New York Times
A deliciously warped wallow in misogyny, depravity and dead-eyed manipulation, "Cold Fish" charts the twisted alliance of two tropical-fish salesmen with baleful glee.
Mark Olsen, Village Voice
Cold Fish is wild, head-turning, stomach-churning stuff, and it makes a bracing addition to the overstuffed canon of serial-killer cinema.
Simon Miraudo, Quickflix
Overlong? A tad. Still, at two-and-a-half hours it's 90 minutes shy of its predecessor Love Exposure. Insane fun? Absolutely. Darkly funny and deliriously absurd in all of its bloody glory, I found it impossible to look away.
Mike McGranaghan, Aisle Seat
Cold Fish is artful and unnerving and, at times, repulsive. Its merit lies in an unrepentant willingness to be all of those things.
Scott Weinberg, FEARnet
Smart, devious, and confrontational filmmaking from a man who's quickly becoming a master at this sort of stuff.
Bill Gibron, Filmcritic.com
hilarious, harrowing
Jaime N. Christley, Slant Magazine
Don't let me talk you out of it--after all, I'm no kibbitzer.
Allan Hunter, Daily Express
There are gruelling, gleeful scenes of blood-drenched murder and dismemberment that will test even the hardest stomach.
Kevin Harley, Total Film
Gallows humour and character twists offer welcome reprieve from the largely hysterical acting and rivers of viscera.
Virginie Sélavy, Electric Sheep
Just as with Suicide Club, the deliberate weirdness and detached tone of Cold Fish may initially leave audiences befuddled, but this a sign of its complexity.
Chris Buckle, The Skinny
The climax is formidably bloody, but if you've got the stomach for it, Shion Sono's ludicrous spectacle makes for compelling viewing.
Shaun Munro, What Culture
Slack pacing aside, this is a disarmingly brutal, feral social satire.
Philip French, Guardian [UK]
Overlong, drenched in blood and rather like attending a school for apprentice butchers.
Derek Malcolm, This is London
Sono orchestrates his tale with a skill that allows irony to match the horror and realism to dampen down the melodrama. Altogether, it's quite a feat.
Peter Bradshaw, Guardian [UK]
The grisly, absurd violence of the final hour puts a wrecking ball through whatever interest this film might have accumulated.
David Parkinson, Radio Times
Purportedly based on fact, this is knowingly played with respective manic glee, anguished regret and slinky sexuality by Denden, Fukikoshi and Kurosawa.

Read all 16 critic reviews

Critic ratings and reviews powered by RottenTomatoes.com

Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)

Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)

Featured Audience Ratings

Lewis C

A chance encounter between two fish store owners pushes a meek, emasculated man to the edge and beyond, in this twisted, horrific tale. Cold Fish is one of the most brutal, bloody, and deranged serial killer flicks I've ever seen. Seriously, this is one of those "you have… More
A chance encounter between two fish store owners pushes a meek, emasculated man to the edge and beyond, in this twisted, horrific tale. Cold Fish is one of the most brutal, bloody, and deranged serial killer flicks I've ever seen. Seriously, this is one of those "you have to see it to believe it" movies that's almost impossible to write a review for, because, well, what do you compare it to? Cold Fish is mean-spirited, misogynistic, bleak, and quite the experience. I don't know if I "recommend" it, you could easily despise this, but I definitely want you try it out if you're brave enough.
Francisco G

Well.... it's just like I Saw The Devil. My review stands the same for both. Can't say which one came out first, but they share the same pros and cons
John M

"ColdFish" is a good serial killer movie based on real events. It is very graphic and violent. It is a psychological horror thriller with some dark humor at times. My only issue with the movie and that's why I didn't give it a half star more is because of the… More
"ColdFish" is a good serial killer movie based on real events. It is very graphic and violent. It is a psychological horror thriller with some dark humor at times. My only issue with the movie and that's why I didn't give it a half star more is because of the pace though engaging it is slow at times and the running time of the movie is 144 min BUT if you are looking for a thriller and psychological horror with some depth and originallity check this movie.