Cold Skin is a 2018 French-Spanish sci-fi horror movie directed by Xavier Gens and based on the 2002 novel of the same name by Albert Sánchez Piñol.
In 1914, an unnamed young Englishman (David Oakes) travels to a remote island in the South Atlantic to work a one year shift as a meteorologist. On arrival he finds the previous meteorologist missing and meets the lighthouse keeper, Gruner (Ray Stevenson), and discovers the island is under constant attack from strange humanoid creatures from the ocean.
Tropes
- Apocalyptic Log: The previous weather technician left a journal that begins with beautiful natural history drawings of the island, seashells, penguins, seals, and whalebones... then dissolves into grotesque scribbles of frogs eating and mating with people in the style of medieval margin illuminations.
- Crazy Survivalist: Gruner comes across as one, having all kinds of traps and defences rigged, enjoying his seclusion and relishing fighting the toads.
- Death Equals Redemption: Gruner ultimately finds some redemption by allowing the toads to kill him after Friend reminds him of his love for his wife and that he is capable of human emotion.
- Doomed Predecessor: When the protagonist arrives for his new job as a weather technician, his predecessor is missing and his cabin ransacked. Gruner the lighthouse keeper claims that the previous technician died of Typhus, and/or committed suicide by walking into the ocean, although it quickly becomes apparent that the monsters that emerge from the ocean every night are the true cause. Then it turns out that the previous technician is Gruner, it was actually the previous lighthouse keeper who was killed under unexplained circumstances while the weatherman assumed his identity in order to stay on the island once his tour at the weather outpost was up.
- Even Evil Has Loved Ones: A major thematic element is the discovery that even the monstrous Gruner is not totally devoid of human emotion, as his love for his wife is what allows Friend to talk him down at the climax and spurs a Heel Realization.
- Fish People: The film is about a colony of these who get into a feud with a lighthouse keeper. In an inversion of the usual trend of fish men going after human women, this guy keeps a fish woman as basically a sex slave, so it's implied that the constant attacks on his lighthouse are, at least partly, attempts to rescue her.
- Here We Go Again!: At the end, after Gruner's death, the team sent with the new weather technician discover 'Friend' sleeping in Gruner's bed, almost exactly as 'Gruner' was found at the start of the film. He tells them the previous technician died of Typus...
- Humans Are the Real Monsters: It gradually transpires the sea creatures might well be peaceful if Gruner would stop killing them. And was not keeping one of them as a sex slave.
- Interspecies Romance: Friend slowly develops an attraction for the toad Gruner is keeping prisoner. At first he calls her "the mascot" but then names her "Aneris". Grunner abuses her physically, emotionally and sexually.
- Madness Mantra: "No one leaves Gruner! No one leaves Gruner! No one leaves Gruner!"
- Only Known by Their Nickname: The protagonist's name is never stated, "Friend" is what Gruner calls him after they become properly acquainted at the waterfall.
- Reasonable Authority Figure: Captain Axel, whose ship delivers Friend to the island. He takes time to personally see Friend ashore and investigate the disappearance of his predecessor even though he isn't specifically required to, and asks Friend if he's sure he wants to stay there.
- Sex Slave: Gruner keeps Aneris chained up in his room.
- Wide-Eyed Idealist: Friend, when he first arrives is an educated man hoping to find some peace and meaning in his time on the island. From the beautiful illustrations in his journal, so was the previous weather technician.
