Not bad! This retro, violent creature feature out of Austria is a blast. It unfolds at a sparsely populated mountainside research facility. On the eve of a visit from an important politician, the scientists find a mysterious glacier imbued with blood-red, mutation-causing microorganisms, and mayhem ensues. With neither shame nor mercy, the film pinches from such iconic titles as Alien and John Carpenter's The Thing, but it is clearly a loving ode made by people with nerdy enthusiasm for science-fiction horror. The goo-drenched, wildly contorted creatures, including a flying ibex, are almost entirely realized with old-school practical F/X, and the film knows how to have fun with its absurd premise without sacrificing its dignity or becoming a lampoon of itself. It builds to a perverse left-field ending defying logic and taste, but might just put a satisfied smile on David Cronenberg's face.

B