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Freezing Feature Films: Movies to Watch as the Temperature Drops

Freezing Feature Films: Movies to Watch as the Temperature Drops

snowscape

We’re sure there are plenty of parents out there who’ve been dragged kicking and screaming by their little loved ones to go and watch the global juggernaut that is Frozen 2. And, I’m sure many of you at least mildly enjoyed that experience, although it may start to grate after the 48th screening, or due to the fact the soundtrack is now on an endless loop at your 5-year-olds behest.

The thing is, it’s that time of year when we generally find ourselves trapped indoors thanks to some god awful weather leaving the outdoors colder than a polar bears toenail. But one seasonal saving grace is it’s also the perfect period to snuggle down and watch some quality moves, especially those set in chilly climes that will make you feel positively toasty. Here are 9 freezing feature films to get stuck into.

Misery (1990)

Film poster for Misery

Misery remains to this day, the epitome of the taut, edge of your seat thriller. Featuring two career-defining performances from James Caan and Kathy Bates, the former playing a famed author who Paul Sheldon who crashes his car in the icy wilderness and is taken in by an obsessive fan (Bates). The tension ramps up to boiling point throughout as Sheldon tries to escape his twisted captor. Despite the modest setting and subtle narrative, this one is a true gem.

A Simple Plan (1998)

A simple plan poster

This under the radar thriller directed by Sam Raimi features an outstanding cast including Bill Paxton, Billy Bob Thornton and Bridget Fonda in one of her last screen outings. This tension-filled flick sees three men discover a crashed plane housing a dead pilot and four million dollars in cash. The trio concoct a scheme to split the money, but surprisingly things quickly go wrong. You know what they say about best-laid plans and all that.

Alive (1993)

Alive poster

The tale of the Uruguayan Rugby Team and a group of associates, fifteen of whom survived a plane crash in the Andes in unimaginable circumstances. Based on a true story, the survivors having been stranded for weeks without food and facing the prospect of death before any rescue team locates them, must consider the unthinkable question of whether to eat the dead? Some great performances capture the raw emotion and fraught situation as starvation kicks in and moral compasses go out of the window.

30 Days of Night (2007)

30 days of night

A blisteringly brilliant Carpenteresque vampire flick set in a remote Alaskan town, where for one whole month the frozen landscape is plunged into complete darkness. Full of shock and gore, the narrative makes the most of a great concept, as during the blackout, husband and wife team Josh Hartnett and Melissa George battle a bloodthirsty vampire mob, intent on sucking the life from everyone and everything in their path.

Arctic (2018)

Arctic movie poster

Mads Mikkelsen pulls out all the stops in this gripping one-man survival show. Stranded in the deep, dense Arctic climes following an airplane crash, he must decide whether to setup up camp and wait for an unlikely rescue mission or make the daunting and dangerous trek through perilous and freezing conditions. This one may be light on dialogue, but it’s laden with tension and offers up a compelling performance from Mikkelson as a man trying to persevere against all odds.

The Edge (1997)

The Edge film poster

If you can handle a bit of maniacal overacting from Alec Baldwin, then there’s plenty to enjoy with The Edge. Reprising his go-to role of the 90s, Anthony Hopkins plays the all-knowing billionaire tycoon who after accompanying his beautiful young model wife on a remote photo shoot in Alaska, finds himself stranded following a plane crash with the man he understands to be his wife’s lover. Perhaps the perfect opportunity to remove him from the equation?

Frozen

frozen poster 2010

No, we’re not talking about the cartoon every kid under the age of eight is obsessed with, instead, the horror tinged survival-drama about three snowboarders whose fun day on the slopes turns into a nightmare when they’re left stranded on the chairlift in a resort closed until the following weekend. Cue some serious drama and desperate measures as the trio try to avoid freezing to death up in the air and the hungry wolves below.

The Grey (2011)

The Grey movie poster

Having mentioned wolves and survival we can’t not talk about The Grey. With echoes of Alive, this exciting thriller sees a plane crash in the remote Alaskan wilderness, where survivor Liam Neeson and a group of oil-rig workers are faced with battling mortal injuries, merciless weather and some bloodthirsty wolves. It’s a suspenseful tale that takes you on a journey right up to the final frame.

Force Majeure (2014)

Force Majeure poster

This award-winning black comedy tells the story of a Swedish family on a skiing holiday in the French Alps. While eating lunch at a mountainside restaurant things are turned upside down by the oncoming of an avalanche. Faced with death, the mother, Hebba, holds her two children, while dad, Tomas, disappears, leading to some charged emotional drama. It’s a great, often hilarious glimpse into how people react very differently during a crisis.

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