If you love snow but are currently enjoying the warmth of home while searching for films set in the snow, here you will find what we consider to be the best films set in winter (up to November 2025). Each and every one of the films we are going to list has something worthwhile to offer, and their genres are varied enough to appeal to almost every type of audience. So, whether you’re looking for the best snow films on Netflix, snow films based on real events, or even films shot in the best ski resort in the world, here you’ll find films that will help you set the mood in your living room for the harshest winter under the shelter of a thick blanket. Sounds good? Then read on.
These films set in the snow will transport you to frozen, inhospitable lands, featuring top-tier actors such as Leonardo DiCaprio in The Revenant, Jack Nicholson in The Shining, James Caan in Fargo, and Jeremy Renner in Wind River. Travel to winter weather and don’t hesitate to contact us to include the works of the seventh art that we should add to this selection of films set in the snow! Wrap up warm, let’s begin.
Table of Contents
Arctic
Director: Joe Penna
Cast: Mads Mikkelsen, María Thelma Smáradóttir
Release date: 1 February 2019
Synopsis: After a plane crash in the middle of the Arctic, a man finds himself trapped in a frozen landscape where every decision counts. His days are spent performing survival routines, sending distress signals and constantly battling the extreme cold.
His life takes an unexpected turn when he finds a seriously injured young woman, forcing him to rethink his priorities. The film offers an intimate and realistic portrayal of human fragility in the face of a relentless environment, where perseverance becomes the only way to keep going.
Snow Dogs
Director: Brian Levant
Cast: Cuba Gooding, James Coburn, Sisqo, Nichelle Nichols, M. Emmet Walsh, Brian Doyle Murray, Joanna Bacalao, Jean Michel Pare.
Release date: 18 January 2002
Synopsis: On a very sunny day, Ted Brooks, a dentist from Miami, receives the news that he is named in the will as the heir of his biological mother, who has included him in her last wishes.
Ted didn’t think twice, as he was completely blinded by the money and decided to travel to Alaska to claim what was rightfully his. But due to an important circumstance, his monetary dreams were soon to disappear. Instead of the stacks of banknotes he had hoped to receive, he found himself with seven dogs. They were very affectionate, but it is true that they would only cause him more problems.
Jack was a very stubborn mountaineer who tried everything he could to keep the litter that had been left to him in Ted’s will, so that he could send Ted back to his homeland and prevent him from staying in Alaska.
What seemed like a logical solution slowly changes for the dentist, who, in addition to hating Jack, gradually grows fond of the seven dogs and finds them useful.
Ted will train to be able to drive the sledge and participate in an important local race that could provide him with the prize he was hoping for, as he has always been very attracted to the idea of earning money.
Eight Below
Director: Frank Marshall
Reparto: Paul Walker, Bruce Greenwood, Moon Bloodgood, Jason Biggs, Gerad Plunkett, August Schellenberg, Wendy Crewson.
Release date: 17 February 2006
Synopsis: This film is set in the Arctic, where three members of a scientific expedition are forced to leave behind their guide dogs, who accompanied them constantly and everywhere, due to a totally unexpected accident and horrific weather conditions.
Because of this decision, the poor dogs will have to fight against everything that comes their way in order to survive until the adventurers can send a rescue expedition.
This very wintery film is based on a true story that took place in 1958 during a Japanese expedition to the South Pole.
Belle and Sebastian
Director: Nicolas Vanier
Cast: Tckéky Karyo, Dimitri Storoge, Félix Bossuet, Urbain Cancelier, Jan Oliver Schroeder, Andreas Pietschmann, Andrée Damant, Margaux Chatelier, Éric Soubelet, Tom Sommerlatte, Mehdi El Glaoui.
Release date: 18 December 2013
Synopsis: During the German occupation of France, a friendship develops between Sebastien, a very lonely boy, and his dog Belle, who provides him with companionship and affection because Sebastien has no one else.
The story of the other characters revolves around this connection. Sebastien lives with his cousin and grandfather in a very quiet village in the French Alps, very close to the Swiss border. There was hardly any activity in this village; they could go out without any problems because it was inhabited by the same people as always and there was never any commotion of any kind.
However, the arrival of German soldiers completely disrupts the peaceful life of the inhabitants of this town, who can no longer continue their lives as before.
White Fang
Director: Randal Kleiser
Reparto: Ethan Hawke, Klaus Maria Brandauer, Seymour Cassel, Susan Hogan, James Remar, Bill Moseley.
Release date: 18 January 1991
Synopsis: If you want to watch a film set in the snow and you are passionate about dogs, White Fang is the film for you. The film takes place in the vast snowy expanse of the Yukon, in north-western Canada. Under the care of his mother, a wolf pup spends his first months of life without any contact with humans. His mother lived with a family of indigenous hunters and was part of a pack of sled dogs, but after an accident she got lost and never heard from them again. After surviving the cold winter and heavy snowfall, they manage to reunite with the pack and the hunting family. Their leader, Grey Beaver, is overjoyed to see Kiche again and recognises the great potential of the puppy, whom he names White Fang.
The incomparable spirit of survival forged during his wild childhood makes him the best dog among sled dog drivers. The bravery of this dog attracts Beauty Smith, a corrupt and violent man who makes large amounts of money organising dog fights and who will stop at nothing to get his hands on the animal.
Let the Right One In
Director: Tomas Alfredson
Cast: Kåre Hedebrant, Lina Leandersson, Per Ragnar, Henrik Dahl, Karin Bergquist, Peter Carlberg, Ika Nord, Mikael Rahm, Karl-Robert Lindgren, Anders T. Peedu
Release date: 26 January 2008
Synopsis: This winter film is about a boy named Oskar. He is 12 years old and is constantly bullied by his stronger classmates. There comes a point when he can’t take it anymore, as he finds himself alone with no one around to talk to or lean on at certain times.
Her desire to have a close friend seems to come true when she meets Eli, a girl her own age who has just moved in with her family next door. Eli looks very mysterious: she is always very pale, very serious, only goes out at night and does not seem to be affected by the extremely cold temperatures outside.
Shortly after the girl arrives in the neighbourhood, a series of inexplicable murders and disappearances begin to occur mysteriously. This leaves everyone very concerned, unable to understand the situation surrounding them.
Downhill Racer
Original title: Downhill Racer
Title in Spanish: The Descent of Death
Director: Michael Ritchie
Cast: the late Robert Redford as David Chappellet, Gene Hackman as Eugene Claire, coach of the American ski team, Camilla Sparv as Carole Stahl, Karl Michael Vogler as Machet, Jim McMullan as Johnny Creech, Kathleen Crowley as an American journalist, Dabney Coleman as Mayo.
Release date / year: 1969
Synopsis: David Chappellet (Robert Redford) is a young alpine skier from Colorado—ambitious, solitary, and highly talented—who seeks to climb to the top of the sporting elite. His coach, Eugene Claire (Gene Hackman), introduces him to the US ski team to replace an injured champion. Despite his skill, Chappellet’s attitude creates tension: his pride, his pursuit of speed, and his individualistic approach separate him from other team members and create conflicts with the coach’s expectations.
As he participates in international competitions, David learns that fame and success come at an emotional cost: pressure, isolation, personal sacrifices. In his first external races, he experiences frustration; he reaches a point where he refuses to compete to avoid risk or because of his own fears, which causes internal moral and professional conflicts.
The film not only portrays the excitement of racing and skiing as an extreme sport, but also the psychology of the athlete: ambition, ego, the price of success, and the relationship between a competitive athlete and those around them (coach, rivals, press, etc.).
Duration: 1 hour 42 minutes
Genre: Drama / Sport (alpine skiing)
The Day After Tomorrow
Director: Roland Emmerich
Reparto: Dennis Quaid, Jake Gyllenhaal, Ian Holm, Emmy Rossum, Sela Ward, Arjay Smith, Tamlyn Tomita, Austin Nichols, Jay O. Sanders, Nestor Serrano, Rick Hoffman, Richard McMillan
Release date: 28 May 2004
Synopsis: Research by climatologist Jack Hall indicates that global warming could trigger a sudden and catastrophic climate change on Earth. Hall warns political leaders of the need to take immediate action to prevent this from happening, but his warnings come too late.
A series of strange climatic phenomena are beginning to occur in different parts of the globe, and global warming has brought the planet to the brink of an ice age, with extremely low temperatures, heavy snowfall and bitter cold.
The snowman
Director: Tomas Alfredson
Reparto: Michael Fassbender, Rebecca Ferguson, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Val Kilmer, J.K. Simmons, Toby Jones, Chloë Sevigny, Jonas Karlsson, Michael Yates, Ronan Vibert
Release date: 12 October 2017
Synopsis: The film The Snowman features an impressive cast of actors, is based on a global bestseller, and can be considered one of the best films set in winter.
Against the backdrop of a frozen winter landscape and a sociopath who calls himself “The Snowman Killer”. The egocentric killer, hungry for popularity, chooses the chief investigator of a criminal brigade to show off his unimaginable talents. With very simple provocations, he hopes to find a worthy opponent to continue his terrible reputation.
The intrigue begins with a woman who disappears after the first snowfall of winter. Detective Harry Hole, who struggles with alcoholism, attempts to link the woman’s disappearance to other crimes from the past, given that the modus operandi is similar: a snowman and one of the victim’s garments are found at the scene.
Fearful that an elusive serial killer whom everyone believed to be dead has returned to his old ways, the detective enlists Katrine Brat to help him find the connection between the cases that occurred decades ago and the current ones. If they succeed, they will be able to lure the psychopath out of his dark hiding place, where he enjoys murdering women every winter.
The Revenant
Director: Alejandro González Iñárritu
Reparto: Leonardo DiCaprio, Tom Hardy, Domhnall Gleeson, Will Poulter, Forrest Goodluck, Duane Howard, Arthur RedCloud, Melaw Nakehk’o, Grace Dove, Lukas Haas
Release date: 25 December 2015
Synopsis: The Revenant is a film in which Leonardo DiCaprio won his first Oscar. A film based on real events in a completely authentic winter setting, given that the vast majority of the shots were filmed in Canada, Montana and Ushuaia. It is an epic story based on survival and constant transformation that takes place during the winter in the wild, cold American West.
During an expedition into uncharted territory, legendary explorer Hugh Glass (Leonardo DiCaprio) is brutally mauled by a bear after a fierce fight. To make matters worse, he is also abandoned by his own hunting companions who were with him on the expedition.
Dying, alone and suffering from the onset of frostbite, Glass refuses to perish. He is driven by his willpower, by his love for his wife (a Native American) and his son, so he embarks on a journey of more than 300 kilometres across the untamed West in pursuit of the man who betrayed him: John Fitzgerald. What at first glance appears to be a story of revenge becomes a heroic tale of seeking home and redemption in one of the best films set in the snow.
The Shining
Director: Stanley Kubrick
Reparto: Jack Nicholson, Shelley Duvall, Scatman Crothers, Danny Lloyd, Barry Nelson, Joe Turkel, Anne Jackson, Barry Dennen, Tony Burton, Philip Stone
Release date: 23 May 1980
Synopsis: The Shining is a legendary and iconic psychological horror film by the great master Stephen King. It stars Jack Torrance, a married man with a son, Danny. One day, Jack accepts a job as a caretaker at an isolated hotel because he was looking for work. This job involves spending the entire winter there with his family, looking after the premises.
His family accepts the job offer and they all move there, but what they don’t know is that their lives are going to change when they walk through the hotel’s main entrance. Little by little, little Danny begins to sense something strange: dark spirits inhabit the hotel and take control of the people who live there.
Jack begins to gradually lose his mind and, due to the whole situation unfolding inside, he becomes a violent psychopath capable of murdering his entire family and anyone who gets in his way. Only little Danny can try to stop him in this intense horror film set in the snow.
Once Upon a Snowman
Directors: Trent Correy and Dan Abraham
Reparto: Michael Fassbender, Rebecca Ferguson, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Cloë Sevigny, Val Jilmer, J.K. Simmons, Toby Jones, James D’Arcy, Alec Newman
Release date: 23 October 2020
Synopsis: This winter film tells us the never-before-told origins of Olaf, the innocent and perceptive snowman who loves summer and who caused admiration and much tenderness in the film Frozen.
This short film follows in detail and with precision the first steps of the snowman Olaf when he comes to life, follows the adventures he embarks on alone even though he knows it will be a little difficult, and shows us what he is really like.
Olaf searches for his true identity in the snowy mountains outside Arendelle. Will he find it?
Everest
Director: Baltasar Kormákur
Reparto: Jake Gyllenhaal, John Hawkes, Sam Worthington, Jason Clarke, Keira Knightley, Josh Brolin, Robin Wright, Clive Standen, Emily Watson, Michael Kelly
Release date: 10 September 2015
Synopsis: Everest is a film inspired by the incredible events that took place during an attempt to climb the world’s highest mountain in 1966, considered by many to be one of the most beautiful mountains in the world.
Everest recreates the journey of two expeditions that had to face one of the worst snowstorms ever known to humankind. As a result, the difficulties and dangers were quite noticeable, but unimaginable friendships emerged.
The mountaineers’ mettle was tested by the disproportionate natural elements they all endured, forcing them to face unthinkable obstacles and turning their lifelong dream into an impressive struggle for survival.
Fargo
Director: Joel Coen.
Reparto: Frances McDormand, William H. Macy, Steve Buscemi, Harve Presnell, Peter Stormare, John Carroll Lynch, Steve Park, Kristin Rudrüd, Tony Denman, Gary Houston.
Release date: 8 March 1996
Synopsis: Jerry Lundegaard is a car salesman from a small town in Minnesota who finds himself broke. His dire financial situation and an endless list of debts he cannot pay prompt him to carry out a desperate plan in Fargo, considered one of the best films set in winter.
The plan in question is to hire two gangsters to kidnap his wife and demand a large ransom from her father, in order to compensate for all his financial problems and be able to pay them off.
What seemed like a simple job ends up leading to a series of murders, causing the authorities to start investigating the case closely and Jerry’s plan to falter.
Frozen: The Kingdom of Ice
Director: Chris Buck
Reparto: Kristen Bell, Idina Menzel, Jonathan Groff, Josh Gad, Santino Fontana, Alan Tudyk, Ciarán Hinds, Chris Williams, Stephen J. Anderson, Maia Wilson
Release date: 20 November 2013
Synopsis: Frozen is a famous Walt Disney computer-animated film in stereoscopic 3D, which won two Oscars for Best Animated Feature Film and Best Original Song for the theme Let It Go. Anna and Elsa are two sisters who will have different destinies. Elsa’s ice powers cause the entire kingdom to freeze and plunge into eternal winter. Anna joins Kristoff, a mountain ice seller, on an epic journey to find the Snow Queen and put an end to the evil spell that is causing the entire kingdom to suffer from the low temperatures of the winter climate.
Anna and Kristoff, along with a friendly snowman named Olaf and a reindeer, will face extreme temperatures and mystical creatures never before seen to melt the ice and rescue Anna’s sister Elsa in this story inspired by Frozen. and a reindeer, will face extreme temperatures and mystical creatures never before seen to melt the ice and rescue his sister Elsa in this story inspired by Hans Christian Andersen’s The Snow Queen, considered by children to be one of the best films set in the snow.
Frozen II
Directors: Chris Buck and Jennifer Lee
Cast: Idina Menzel, Kristen Bell, Jonathan Groff, Josh Gad, Aurora Aksnes.
Release date: 20 December 1019
Synopsis: This film is a continuation of the ending of Frozen, which ended with Elsa wondering why she was born with magical powers. The answer to all this is calling her and threatening her kingdom once again.
Together with the protagonists Anna, Kristoff, Olaf and Sven, you will embark on a very dangerous journey, with many setbacks and adventures, but above all, it will be unforgettable for all of them.
Elsa was afraid that her magical powers would be too much for the world, as they were something never seen before; now she will wish with all her might that her powers are sufficient.
Olaf’s Frozen Adventure
Directors: Kevin Deters and Stevie Wermers
Cast: Kristen Bell, Idina Menzel, Josh Gad, Jonathan Groff.
Release date: 22 November 2017
Synopsis: Olaf, the famous snowman, will try to soak up and learn as much as he can about family traditions during Christmas, as it is a very special time of year and ideal for organising the best Christmas parties in the castle.
As Elsa and Anna have been away from home for so long, travelling around and having so many adventures, they are not used to family gatherings, so Olaf decides to go door to door in Arandelle (the village) to find out exactly what other families do at this time of year.
The snowman wanted his new home to have the same family and Christmas traditions that have been carried on year after year, and he is willing to do whatever it takes to make that happen and enjoy these holidays together.
Force Majeure
Director: Ruben Östlund
Cast: Johannes Bah Kuhnke, Lisa Loven Kongsli, Clara Wettergren, Vincent Wettergren, Kristofer Hivju, Fanni Metelius, Karin Myrenberg, Brady Corbet, Johannes Moustos, Jorge Lattof
Release date: 15 August 2014
Synopsis: A family spends their winter holidays in the Alps at a magnificent ski resort. The sun is shining and the slopes are perfect for enjoying winter sports, but while they are having lunch in a restaurant, a huge avalanche occurs. All the customers in the restaurant are frightened, and Ebba, the mother, calls her husband Tomas to help her try to save their children, but what she doesn’t know is that Tomas has fled to save his own life…
The avalanche stops in front of the restaurant, causing no damage, but nevertheless, the family universe has been shattered. From that fateful moment on, doubts increase about Tomas, who desperately tries to regain his position as patriarch of the family.
Hanna
Director: Joe Wright
Reparto: Saoirse Ronan, Eric Bana, Vicky Krieps, Cate Blanchett, Tom Hollander, John MacMillan, Tim Beckmann, Paul Birchard, Christian Malcolm, Jamie Beamish.
Release date: 7 April 2011
Synopsis: Hanna is a 16-year-old girl who is very curious and devoted. Exceptionally, she possesses the strength and energy of a soldier, probably because she was raised by her widowed father, Erik, a former CIA man in the wilds of northern Finland.
Erik has taught Hanna to hunt, trained her with a rigorous self-defence programme, and taught her to read and write using only an encyclopaedia and a book of fairy tales. Hanna is a girl who has lived a life completely different from anyone else her age, as her entire education and training have been focused on a single goal: to be the perfect assassin.
In the real world, there is unfinished business with Hanna’s family, and with a mixture of paternal pride and fear, Erik realises that he can no longer hold his daughter back. It is at this moment that Hanna changes abruptly and embarks on the mission for which she was destined.
Hold the Dark
Director: Jeremy Saulnier
Reparto: Russell Ackerman, Eva Maria Daniels, John Schoenfelder.
Release date: 28 September 2018
Synopsis: Hold the Dark is a film with a very wintry atmosphere, which tells the story of Russell Core, a veteran wolf expert who travels to a remote village in Alaska to help a very young mother named Medora Slone hunt down the wolves that took her son when he was a baby.
In this Netflix snow film, Medora’s husband Vernon is fighting in the Iraq War, and she wants that when her husband returns, she can at least show him the corpse of the wolf that took her son in revenge.
Ice Age 2
Director: Carlos Saldanha
Cast: Ray Romero, John Leguizamo, Denis Leary, Seann William Scott, Queen Latifah.
Release date: 3 March 2006
Synopsis: In this film with a lot of ice, the most important characters return: Manny the mammoth, Sid the sloth, Scrat the hyperactive squirrel with enormous teeth, and Diego the sabre-toothed tiger.
In this new adventure, they all stick together, with Manny ready to start his own family, although with the disadvantage that no other mammoth has been seen for a long time; in fact, they all think he is the only one left of his species and that all the others have become extinct. When they had lost all hope, they miraculously encountered Elli, the only female mammoth left on Earth. This was good news, but it would have been better if they had got along, as they did not get on very well.
Elli always carried with her two possums, who are sisters: Crash and Eddi, who are very playful and very boisterous at all times.
Manny, Sid, and Diego quickly realise that global warming has caused a gigantic ice raft containing thousands of litres of water to form, and it is about to break, threatening the entire valley. Their only chance of survival is to cross to the other side of the valley, where they could be safer and free from these dangers. They all embark on this new adventure, forming a somewhat peculiar family, against a backdrop of a winter landscape that is both changeable and dangerous.
Ice Age: The Ice Age
Directors: Chris Wedge and Carlos Saldanha
Reparto: Ray Romano, John Leguizamo, Denis Leary, Goran Visnjic, Severiano, Cedric the Entertainer, Stephen Root, Jack Black, Diedrich Bader, Alan Tudyk y Chris Wedge.
Release date: 8 March 2002
Synopsis: Many years before our era, specifically twenty thousand years ago, a rodent named Scratch breaks the ice bank and triggers a new Ice Age. In this new Ice Age, a cohort of mammals and many other types of animals gather and begin to migrate south, as they have no other choice if they want to survive and continue with the lives they led before.
Manny, a solitary, stubborn and very big-headed mammoth, insists on going against everyone else and decides to head north, where he soon meets Sid, a small sloth who is looking for protection and finds it with Manny.
This forces him to pick up a human baby named Roshan, whom his mother entrusted to him before she died so that he could take him to his father and he could be well cared for and not orphaned. His father was a nomadic hunter who also left for the north. On the long and daunting journey, the two companions, whether by choice or obligation, will have to protect Roshan from Diego, a tiger with very sharp teeth who has been ordered by his boss, Soto, to capture the baby and take him away.
Klaus
Director: Sergio Pablos
Cast: Jason Schwartzman, J.K. Simmons, Rashida Jones (voices)
Release date: 8 November 2019
Synopsis: This Spanish animated film is a true work of art, and we are not exaggerating when we say that it is perhaps one of the best Christmas films made in a long time. However, this should come as no surprise to readers familiar with the fabulous career of its director, Sergio Pablos. The film, made using a combination of 2D and 3D techniques, is about an arrogant young postman who is sent to a remote Arctic village where Father Christmas is hiding and the inhabitants are embroiled in a seemingly endless conflict.
His encounter with a mysterious carpenter named Klaus, voiced by Luis Tosar, who makes toys, triggers a series of events that transform the community. Without being sentimental, the film combines humour, emotion and a snowy landscape that becomes an essential part of the spirit of the story, offering a warm and luminous reinterpretation of the Christmas myth.
Antarctica
Director: Manuel Huerga
Cast: Ariadna Gil, Carlos Fuentes, José Manuel Lorenzo, Francis Lorenzo, Walter Vidarte
Release date: 8 September 1995
Synopsis: María was a woman addicted to heroin and also a frustrated rock singer, who lost her boyfriend to an overdose. Until then, there was nothing that could motivate her, bring her back to the real world or restore her hope, until one unexpected day she met a man named Rafa.
This man was considerably younger than her, but also had much more concise and clear ideas. Rafa convinces María to steal some heroin (taking advantage of her addiction), but what at first seemed to be only a few grams turns out to be no less than nine kilos of drugs.
Velasco, who was an unscrupulous man with the backing of the police, is the man who lost the drugs. At that moment, Rafa and María embark on a journey of no return and no end, a journey to a place where life will, luckily, give them their last chance to do the right thing, survive and not be persecuted or accused for the crimes they have committed so far.
Beauty and the Beast
Director: Bill Condon
Reparto: Emma Watson, Dan Stevens, Luke Evans, Kevin Kline, Josh Gad, Ewan McGregor, Stanley Tucci, Audra McDonald, Gugu Mbatha Raw, Ian McKellen y Emma Thompson.
Release date: 27 November 1992
Synopsis: Bella is a very ambitious, bright and beautiful young woman who uses reading as an escape from her routine life in her small town. When her father leaves and is imprisoned in a mysterious castle, Bella quickly goes in search of him and offers to take his place, becoming the one who is now imprisoned in the gloomy and mysterious castle.
The castle is a building haunted by a Beast, as Bella will eventually discover. Later on, she will see that the Beast is only a young prince under the effects of an evil spell, which changed his life completely.
Only when the prince discovers true love will he be able to return to his real human form. Until then, he will remain the hideous beast that everyone now talks about. Little by little, thanks to the help of his servants, who have been turned into household objects, Belle will discover that beauty lies within and not only on the outside or in physical appearance.
The Thing
Director: John Carpenter
Reparto: Kurt Russell, Wilford Brimley, T. K. Carter, David Clennon, Keith David, Richard Dysart, Charles Hallahan, Peter Maloney, Richard Masur, Donald Moffat
Release date: 25 June 1982
Synopsis: This winter-set film takes place at a remote research station in Antarctica. A group of American research scientists are stationed there when they witness a Norwegian helicopter shoot a sled dog at their base camp.
When they take in the animal to help it, it brutally attacks both humans and other dogs in the camp. As a result, they discover that the beast, of unknown origin, can take the form of its victims, making it extremely dangerous.
The Chamois
Director: Philippe Lefebvre
Cast: Julie Depardieu, Francois Vicentelli, Stéphanie Crayencour, Francois Beléand, Isabelle Gélinas, Lou Gala, Eduard Court, Simon Parmentier, Charlie Joirkin, Talid Ariss.
Release date: 12 November 2017
Synopsis: Les Chamois is an eight-episode television series in which the Leroy and Bernard families are complete opposites, with nothing in common.
The eldest daughter of the former and the eldest son of the latter love each other very much, much to the dismay and surprise of their parents, as it was something neither family ever expected or wanted.
Étienne Leroy runs a factory where Krystel Bernard is a union representative, and they hate each other. Each episode of this series features numerous adventures, each more controversial and surprising than the last.
The Hateful Eight
Director: Quentin Tarantino
Reparto: Samuel L. Jackson, Kurt Russell, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Walton Goggins, Demián Bichir, Tim Roth, Michael Madsen, Bruce Dern, James Parks, Dana Gourrier
Release date: 25 December 2015
Synopsis: Set in winter, this film shows us idyllic landscapes of the North American Rocky Mountains. Specifically, it was filmed in the vicinity of Telluride (Colorado). The curious thing is that during filming, there was no snow in the Telluride area, and after waiting several weeks, Tarantino, together with locals, ended up invoking the snow gods by making an offering to them. Two days later, snow began to fall from the sky, giving the landscapes the winter atmosphere that the great filmmaker was looking for. After this interesting anecdote, we will proceed to give a brief summary of this great film.
Several years after the Civil War, a stagecoach races through the winter landscape of Wyoming. The passengers, bounty hunter John Ruth and his fugitive Dasy Domergue, are trying to reach the town of Red Rock as quickly as possible, where Ruth, known there as “the Hangman”, will deliver Domergue to justice.
Along the way, they meet two strangers, one of whom is a former black Union soldier turned bounty hunter with a very bad reputation, and the other a Southern renegade who claims to be the new sheriff of the town. A blizzard is about to hit, so they all take refuge in Minnie’s Haberdashery, which used to be a stagecoach stop on a mountain pass.
There, instead of being welcomed by the owner as usual, they encounter four unfamiliar faces, and as the storm descends upon the mountain stop, those eight travellers discover that, after all, they may not make it to Red Rock.
Vertical limit
Director: Martin Campbell
Reparto: Chris O’Donnell, Robin Tunney, Bill Paxton, Scott Glenn, Izabella Scorupco, Nicholas Lea, Temuera Morrison, Alexander Siddig, Stuart Wilson, Augie Davis
Release date: 8 December 2000
Synopsis: While climbing a mountain with his father and sister Anie, Peter Garret was forced to cut the rope that connected the three of them. He had no choice if he wanted to save his and his sister’s lives, but he had to pay the high price of his father’s tragic death.
Since that incident, the two brothers have completely cut off contact with each other and gone their separate ways. Fate has brought them back together on an expedition financed by tycoon Vaughn Elliott that will take them to the summit of K2.
Misery
Director: Rob Reiner
Reparto: James Caan, Kathy Bates, Richard Farnsworth, Frances Sternhagen, Lauren Bacall, Graham Jarvis, Rob Reiner, J.T. Walsh, Jerry Potter, Archie Hahn.
Release date: 30 November 1990
Synopsis: Paul Sheldon made his living as a writer, but a totally unexpected turn of events forced him to keep writing in order to stay alive.
A writer named Paul Sheldon (James Caan) has been wasting his time and talent for years writing commercially successful romantic stories featuring a woman named Misery. Paul Sheldon decides to put an end to this situation, kills off the character, and takes refuge in Colorado to write a new serious novel. Once his work is finished, he sets out on his return journey, but while driving on a mountain road, he loses control of his car and suffers a terrible accident.
Annie Wilkes (Kathy Bates), an impetuous and abrupt woman who was a great admirer of everything he wrote, rescues him and takes him to her home to care for him meticulously. This woman became obsessed with the character of Misery, so she holds Sheldon captive to force him to write a new story in which he resurrects the character so she can read it and see it again.
Cliffhanger
Director: Renny Harlin
Reparto: Sylvester Stallone, John Lithgow, Michael Rooker, Janine Turner, Rex Linn, Caroline Goodall, Leon, Craig Fairbrass, Gregory Scott Cummins, Denis Forest
Release date: 28 May 1993
Synopsis: Gabe Walker is a highly experienced mountaineer who works for the Rocky Mountain Rescue Service, where extreme weather conditions and heavy snowfall are commonplace. The equipment of a climber crossing the cornice fails, so Gabe tries to save her from falling into the precipice, but fails. Because of this accident, he decides to retire from the service.
A year after the accident, Gabe returns to the area to try to win back his girlfriend, park ranger Jessie Deighan, who knew the deceased climber. Deighan hears the news that a plane has crashed in the mountains and all the passengers are missing, so she asks Gabe for help in finding them.
Those asking for help turn out to be a group of thieves who had hijacked the plane and were attempting to exchange money in the bush, losing several suitcases in the accident. Gabe will therefore have to face a risky mission if he wants to save the passengers from their attackers.
Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
Director: Andrew Adamson
Reparto: Tilda Swinton, Georgie Henley, William Moseley, Skandar Keynes, Anna Popplewell, Rupert Everett, Dawn French, James McAvoy, Shane Rangi, Patrick Kake, Elizabeth Hawthorne, Kiran Shah, James Cosmo, Judy McIntosh, Sala Baker, Jim Broadbent, Stephen Ure, Ray Winstone, Liam Neeson
Release date: 7 December 2005
Synopsis: This film tells the story of four adventurous youngsters who play hide and seek with each other in the country house of a very elderly professor.
What happens is something they could never have imagined or dreamed of by chance: while playing, the four of them stumble upon an enchanted wardrobe that will take them to incredible places they have never seen before. The four decide to cross the threshold of the wardrobe, leaving World War II in London far behind, and without thinking twice, they enter a spectacular parallel universe called Narnia.
Narnia was an enchanted kingdom, full of indescribable magical things, where forest animals could talk and where you could also find many mythological creatures roaming freely and living their normal lives.
However, Narnia was not as beautiful as it seemed, for it had fallen under the chilling and intimidating spell of the great evil witch, known as the White Witch, who condemned these lands to an endless winter.
These four children were helped by Narnia’s rightful champion, the wise lion Aslan. It was there that the four siblings discovered their own individual strengths and attempted to lead Narnia in a spectacular battle to free its inhabitants forever from the White Witch’s icy reign, as none of them deserved it. The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe is a great classic winter fable that is still relevant today.
White Christmas
Director: Michael Curtiz
Cast: Bing Crosby, Danny Kaye, Rosemary Clooney, and Vera Ellen
Release date: 14 October 1954
Synopsis: Two singers and dancers, named Bob and Phil, join forces after the Second World War to earn a living performing musical numbers, leaving the army behind.
Thanks to their decision, they met two sisters who were engaged in the same profession and shared the same tastes. Following them, they ended up at a hotel in Vermont, which was experiencing serious financial problems and many difficulties in getting ahead.
The hotel manager turns out to be the former boss of the two lads in the army, which is why they decide to help him get back on his feet.
Noelle
Director: Marc Lawrence
Reparto: Anna Kendrick, Shirley MacLaine, Bill Hader, Kingsley Ben Adir, Julie Hagerty, Billy Eichner, Maceo Smedley, Diana Maria Riva, Anthony Konechny, Michael Gross, Billy Griffith, Aliza Vellani.
Release date: 27 November 2020
Synopsis: Noelle Kringle is a person with a great deal of Christmas spirit and a strong desire and enthusiasm to do something important, just like her brother Nick, who is taking over from their father, Kirs Kringle, as Father Christmas this Christmas.
However, unlike Noelle, Nick is not as enthusiastic about this idea nor does he have the same Christmas spirit as her. He is on the verge of breaking down due to the pressure of the recently mentioned village and everything that comes with it. Noelle was alarmed to see her brother’s situation and feelings and suggested that he take a weekend off to rest.
This proposal triggers a historic event that had not occurred for more than two thousand years: it was going to be the first Christmas in a long time where Santa Claus had disappeared without a trace and without warning. Now Noelle, accompanied by the elf Polly, must find her brother and bring him back immediately in order to save Christmas, because without Father Christmas, it would not be a complete Christmas and this tradition could not be lost.
Olaf presents
Director: Hyrum Virl Osmond
Reparto: Josh Gad and Paul Briggs
Release date: 12 November 2021
Synopsis: Olaf Presents is a cartoon series featuring short films about Olaf, the snowman and favourite character from Frozen.
After many people were captivated by the character when he told the story of Elsa and Anna in Frozen 2, Olaf returns, but this time he will tell the mythical stories of Disney films.
The snowman creates scenes to tell Disney’s most famous animated stories in his own way, with his shapes and his unique style. All this while entertaining Arendelle with his amusing versions.
Hostile Planet
Director: Anthony Pyper
Reparto: Bear Grylls, Renee Godfrey, Mateo Willys, Justin Maguire, Pete Caliss, Paul Stewart, Tom Hugh Jones, Mark Macewan, Andrew Worwood, Gabriel, Mat Richards.
Release date: 1 April 2019
Synopsis: The series Hostile Planet explores wildlife in the most hostile environments on Earth. It consists of six episodes, exploring the extremes of high and low, cold and hot, the extraordinary ways in which some animals survive in their environment, and how they have evolved to make it easier for them to hunt and live in such adverse conditions.
The world has changed radically in the last 40 years, much more than it has at any other time in the last 65 million years. For this reason, animals living in the most hostile places on earth have to adapt to new circumstances and evolve just as their environment has done.
In this intrepid series, we encounter extremely dangerous climates, threats from predators, and intense competition for resources. It is quite a challenge.
Snowpiercer
Director: Bong Joon-ho
Reparto: Chris Evans, Song Kang-ho, Ed Harris, John Hurt, Tilda Swinton, Jamie Bell, Octavia Spencer, Ewen Bremner, Go Ah-sung, Alison Pill
Release date: 1 August 2013
Synopsis: The film Snowpiercer is based on a failed experiment that sought to solve global warming and ended up wiping out most living beings on the face of the Earth. Snowpiercer is the last train that travels in circles around the world, with an engine that is in perpetual motion, whether through desert, ice or snow.
The last survivors on earth crowd into their carriages to fight for their lives. They are divided into the exploited class, who live in the rear section, suffering from hunger and cold, and the powerful class, who travel in the front carriages with all kinds of privileges and excesses.
Life on the train is a vicious circle, until one day the young Curis, leader of the tail section, decides to change the situation and incites a revolt. Curis discovers the surprising secrets of the train and of the human condition itself in this film about survival and class struggle set in a snowy environment.
Frozen river
Director: Courtney Hunt
Reparto: Melissa Leo, Misty Upham, Charlie McDermott, John Canoe, Jay Klaitz, Dylan Carusona, James Reilly, Michael O’Keefe, Mark Boone Junior, Betty Ouyang
Release date: 1 August 2008
Synopsis: Frozen River is a film with stunning winter landscapes between Canada and the US border, in which Melissa Leo gives a superb performance that earned her an Oscar nomination for Best Actress (which she later won for her performance in The Fighter). This snowy film is on Netflix and can be found under the title “Frozen River”.
A dramatic film that has revived American audiences’ interest in independent cinema by focusing on illegal immigrants entering the United States from Canada. A husband lost to gambling steals the money from the entrance to his wife Ray’s family home. Faced with the possibility of seeing her family on the street suffering the harsh cold of those latitudes, Ray is attracted by the possibility of earning £1,200 for smuggling illegal immigrants across the border. Easy money that she can earn thanks to a Mohawk smuggler who knows a route that is poorly controlled but almost impassable due to the snow and cold ice of winter. A fateful journey on Christmas Eve with a Pakistani couple and a fire in Ray’s caravan sets off the alarms of the law enforcement agencies, forcing the two women to embark on a desperate escape for survival.
Smilla’s Sense of Snow
Director: Bille August
Reparto: Julia Ormond, Gabriel Byrne, Richard Harris, Jim Broadbent, Tom Wilkinson, Robert Loggia, Vanessa Redgrave, Bob Peck, David Hayman y Peter Capaldi.
Release date: 28 February 1997
Synopsis: The film, based on a best-selling novel, is almost entirely shot in breathtaking snowy landscapes in Denmark. The film stars Smilla Qaaviqaaq, the daughter of a Greenlandic Inuit woman and a Danish doctor, who investigates the death of a child in her care in a neighbourhood of Copenhagen.
Apparently, the child has fallen to his death from the roof of his snow-covered building, but Smila has her suspicions and decides to go to the police. However, sensing their indifference and hostility, she decides to investigate on her own, uncovering a huge conspiracy.
Stalingrad
Director: Joseph Vilsmaier
Cast: Dominique Horwitz, Thomas Kretschmann, Jochen Nickel, Sebastian Rudolph, Dana Vávrová, Martin Benrath, Sylvester Groth, Karel Heřmánek, Heinz Emigholz, Oliver Broumis
Release date: 21 January 1993
Synopsis: Just from the title, you can imagine that the film is about the Battle of Stalingrad (1942) during the Second World War. German troops from the Third Reich occupy the snow-covered banks of the Volga River with the aim of taking the city of Stalingrad in a historically cold environment.
Having failed in their attempt to cross the Volga and launch a counteroffensive, the Soviet troops are forced to retreat. However, a few soldiers manage to reach the enemy’s side of the river, where they remain in hiding and meet a beautiful girl.
In the midst of the bloodiest battle in human history, love blossoms. A group of soldiers will try to protect the young woman while they remain entrenched in a building resembling the legendary Pavlov’s House in Stalingrad.
Home Alone 3
Director: Raja Gosnell
Reparto: Alex D. Linz, Olek Krupa, Rya Kihlstedt, Lenny von Dohlen, David Thornton, Haviland Morris, Kevin Kilner, Scarlett Johansson, Seth Smith, Marian Seldes
Release date: 19 December 1997
Synopsis: They were a group of thieves who finally managed to steal a valuable microchip from the United States Department of Defence, with the aim of making a lot of money by selling it to the highest bidder as soon as possible. Unfortunately for them, they lost their chance to do so when, at airport security, the device was mistakenly hidden in a toy car, where it fell into the hands of Mrs Hess, an elderly woman who was on her way to Chicago at the time.
In Chicago, Alex Pruitt is a very mischievous nine-year-old boy whose neighbour, Mrs Hess, gives him a toy car in which the object he worked so hard to get his hands on is accidentally hidden.
Alex, the boy, catches chickenpox and realises that thieves are in the neighbourhood looking for his toy car. So he talks to his parents and the police to prevent anything from happening, but no one believes him or pays any attention to him. They think it’s just another story and don’t give it much importance or significance.
Alex is left home alone after his parents have to leave for work and his siblings go to school. He will have to use all his wits to deal with the thieves and come up with a good plan to make them run away, so that they don’t steal his toy car, which he loves so much, especially since it was a gift.
The Great North
Directors: Minty Lewis, Wendy Molyneux, Lizzie Molyneux.
Reparto: Nick Offerman, Jenny Slate, Will Forte, Dulcé Sloan, Aparna Nancherla, Paul Rust.
Release date: 3 January 2001
Synopsis: This is an animated series that follows the adventures of the Tobin family, who live isolated in the cold wilderness of an Alaskan village, strictly adhering to the traditional customs of the region. At least, this is what the father of the family, Beef, expects. Since he was left alone with his children, he has tried to ensure that they do not abandon the traditional and typical way of life that their family had in the past and that they had carried on for years and generations.
In his opinion, this is the only way Beef can continue to live with his children and not be left alone, but the reality is that it will not be an easy task for any of them, as they are getting older, changing, and it will be very difficult to keep them around.
An unexpected turn in the lives of all of them is the news of the opening of a new shopping centre in the small town. This catches their attention because the customs and activities that their father has instilled in them, such as fishing, are difficult for them to do or enjoy. However, the children do not see the shopping centre as just a place of entertainment; they also see it as a way to express themselves and develop their interests.
Togo
Director: Ericson Core
Reparto: Willem Dafoe, Julianne Nicholson, Christopher Heyerdahl, Richard Domer, Adrien Dorval, Madeline Wickins, Michael Greyeyes, Nive Nielsen, Nikolai Nikolaeff, Thorbjorn Harr, Catherine McGregor, Michael McElhatton, Brandon Oakes, Paul Piaskowski, Michael Gaston, Shaun Benson, Jamie McShane, Sean Hoy, Tom Carey, Chad Norbert, Malik McCall, Mark Krysko, Elena Porter, Dave Trimble, Barb Mitchell, Steven McCarthy, Sarah Wheeldon.
Release date: 20 December 2019
Synopsis: When a deadly epidemic strikes the town of Nome, Alaska, and the only cure is more than 1,000 kilometres away, the population turns to sled dog trainer Leonhard Seppala. He was the only one who, with his sled and dogs, could transport the antitoxin serum much more quickly.
Seppala turns to Togo, a modest, elderly, small Siberian husky dog to be his guide on the long journey he had to undertake. His wife had cared for Togo since he was a very playful and mischievous puppy, and Seppala, observing the dog’s confidence and loyalty, knows that he is their only chance and hope for survival on this mission.
The two of them remained unmoved by the news of the great storm that was approaching and also by the pressure from his wife, who did not agree with the mission they were going to carry out because of all the risks they would face.
Seppala and Togo finally embark on the most dangerous and deadly stretch of their lives, with winds so strong that they leave no one indifferent, temperatures of 50 degrees below zero and virtually zero visibility on most stretches. This intense journey will make the veteran musher realise how much he loves and needs his guide dog, as well as the unbreakable bond they share with each other and with all the people around them. It is all spectacular and special, but it will leave you frozen with those cold, wintry landscapes.
The Other Side of the Mountain
Director: Larry Peerce
Reparto: Marilyn Hassett, Beau Bridges, Belinda J. Montgomery, Nan Martin, Bill Vint, Dabney Coleman
Release date: 14 November 1975 (US)
Synopsis: In 1955, Jill Kinmont is a promising young American skier, slalom champion and with her sights set on the 1956 Winter Olympics. But weeks before her 19th birthday, during a decisive competition in Alta (one of the best resorts in Utah), she suffers a terrible accident that leaves her paralysed from the shoulders down.
The film, which premiered in the UK under the title “A Window to the Sky”, is based on the true story of ski champion Jill Kinmont and had a sequel in 1978, but it was not as successful. The skier was inducted into the National Ski Hall of Fame in 1967. The film follows not only the athlete’s physical recovery but also the enormous emotional challenge of accepting a completely different life, far from the competition she loved. With the support of those around her, Jill faces a new test: rediscovering herself, teaching and finding meaning in her reality.
Inspiring and moving, the story portrays the value of resilience and the power of will in the face of an environment as unforgiving as the mountains. The frozen landscape and the demands of the sport provide the story with a natural setting that intensifies the central human drama.
Cold Pursuit
Director: Hans Petter Moland.
Reparto: Lian Neesonm Emmy Rossum, Tom Bateman, William Forsythe, Laura Dern, Julia Jones, Raoul Trujillo, Domenick Lombardozzi, Aleks Paunovic, Benjamin Hollngsworth.
Release date: 8 January 2019
Synopsis: Nels Coxman works as a snowplough driver in a remote and isolated mountainous area of Canada. But one day, his quiet life is shattered when he receives a call informing him that his son has died from a drug overdose.
At that moment, Nels Coxman undergoes a radical change of heart and seeks revenge at any cost, even though this leads him to become embroiled in a dangerous war between drug traffickers and unprecedented events in which he will be fully involved and responsible for many of them.
Iron will
Director: Charles Haid
Reparto: Mackenzie Astin, Kevin Spacey, David Ogden Stiers, August Schellenberg, Brian Cox, George gerdes, John Terry, Penelope Windust
Release date: 14 January 1994
Synopsis: A young man named Will Stoneman seems destined for a bright future until a great misfortune, the death of his father in a frozen river, completely changes the course of his life. Unexpectedly, he and his mother find themselves without resources or money, on the brink of poverty, so Will must abandon his dream of studying at university as he cannot afford it.
The young man suddenly finds himself an adult, matured and with the responsibility of getting his family out of the financial predicament they are in, or at least trying to, and being able to earn some money to live on.
He decided to go big, that is, he decided to go for the £10,000 prize, but the only way to get all that money was to participate in a gruelling dog sled race. That becomes his sole purpose in life. Will he succeed?
Alive
Director: Frank Marshall
Reparto: Ethan Hawke, Vincent Spano, Josh Hamilton, Bruce Ramsay, John Newton, David Kriegel, Kevin Breznahan, Sam Behrens, Illeana Douglas, Jack Noseworthy.
Release date: 15 January 1993
Synopsis: This winter film is based on a true story. It recounts the harrowing experience of a group of players from Uruguay’s national rugby team whose plane crashed in the Andes mountain range in October 1972.
Completely isolated and alone, the days passed without any sign of help, so their only option was to resort to cannibalism.
Among them, they ate the flesh of their deceased companions, while the strongest prepared a desperate journey across the mountains in order to find help or a solution to their situation.
Wild Japan: Snow monkeys
Director: Joseph Pontecorvo
Cast: Liam Neeson
Release date: 23 April 2014
Synopsis: Wild Japan: Snow Monkeys will transport you to the snow-capped mountains of central Japan, where you will meet Hiro, a brave snow monkey with a charming personality, leading to a very unusual friendship.
Join Hiro and his large family on a year-long adventure, where they will have to face storms, sudden changes in weather, and situations in which they will have to demonstrate their wits to survive.
This is a story of family, friendship, affection, and constant, immersive struggle in the Japanese Alps.
Wind River
Director: Taylor Sheridan
Cast: Jeremy Renner, Elizabeth Olsen, Gil Birmingham, Kelsey Asbille, Teo Briones, Tantoo Cardinal, Matthew Del Negro, Hugh Dillon, Julia Jones, and James Jordan.
Release date: 3 August 2017
Synopsis: Wind River is a rugged Arapaho and Shoshone Indian reservation in the middle of Wyoming. Cory Lambert, a taciturn hunter who protects herds from wolves and other predators, lives and works there. One day, he finds the body of a young woman in the snow who has been raped and ran several kilometres barefoot before dying. The discovery shocks him, as the girl was the best friend of his own daughter, who was murdered years ago in similar circumstances. So he immediately agrees to help Jane Banner, a rookie FBI agent who is unfamiliar with the area.
The unsettling music of Nick Cave and Warren Ellis underpins a criminal investigation full of tragic twists and turns set in the snow, which gradually sculpts the mournful souls of the protagonists. Souls as hardened as the landscapes they wander through, but also with the same flashes of beauty, poetry and mysticism.
Thus, the brutal explosions of violence and revenge generate a special revulsion, highlighting the savage animalisation of so many human beings, including those who appear to be the best. And these solid dramatic and formal foundations are filled with authenticity thanks to the great performances of the main cast.
In conclusion, here is a list of the best films set in winter, with a synopsis of each one, the director, the cast, the release date and a trailer so you can see some scenes from the coldest films of winter.
By the way, it’s not a film about cold weather and snow, but if you like documentaries, we highly recommend “The Snow Leopard”. It’s a 92-minute film shot entirely in the heart of the Tibetan highlands, where photographer Vincent Munier and writer Sylvain Tesson set out in search of the snow leopard.
