A slow-paced indie mystery à la Sherlock Holmes could be either inviting or disastrous. Luckily, "Cold Weather" is a welcome entry into the mumblecore canon, inasmuch as one exists. Director and writer Aaron Katz's third film is at first quiet and quirky but soon moves into much more profound territory.
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Cris Lankenau perfects the slacker everyman as Doug, a dropout forensic science student who has temporarily given up on his dreams, but still maintains his obsession with Sherlock Holmes. He moves back home to Portland with his older sister Gail (the excellent Trieste Kelly Dunn) from Chicago. Doug works a mindless job in an ice factory and he and Gail pass the time playing board games and the lottery.
The beginning of the film is methodically plotted, reminiscent of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's classic mystery stories. Portland's majesty slowly unravels across the screen through Andrew Reed's lush cinematography.
Although it takes almost 40 minutes, the plot does get interesting. The film's tone suddenly shifts to the surreal. One of Doug's co-workers at the ice factory, Carlos, suspects that his ex-girlfriend Rachel may be the victim of a crime. He naturally enlists the help of skeptical and reluctant Doug ("God damn, dude, how much Sherlock Holmes you been reading?").
The two never entertain the idea of contacting the authorities and work in secret. Doug discovers that there's more to Rachel's past than he had known — which is typically how these stories go. What separates this one from the rest, however, is the well-crafted mood of the piece. The playful brother-sister relationship between Doug and Gail is a delightful new iteration of the Holmes-Watson dynamic. Kelly Dunn portrays Gail with reason and ingenuity, bringing the practical Watson to life.
Although the mystery genre is new to mumblecore, the film still feels quite small, and one gets the feeling that Katz was more interested in the journey than the destination. The mystery is engrossing, but it is really the quieter moments that lure the viewer in and make this snapshot of life in limbo a trip you'll be happy to take.
