15. The Grey (2011)
If you enjoy classic survival films like 1993’sAlive, thenThe Greyis definitely for you! At first glance, it might appear to be an entertaining but forgettable film (like every other Liam Neeson action flick). But this one stands out for its visceral moments.
The brutality ofThe Greystays with you long after the credits roll, even making renowned film critic Roger Ebert walk out of a different same-day movie screening because he couldn’t getThe Greyout of his head!
Director Joe Carnahan treats the surviving passengers of an Alaskan plane crash as individuals rather than a group. Commanding them all is Neeson’s suicidal sharpshooter John Ottway, who goes head-to-head with a den of wolves that symbolize fear itself.
Related:The Best Movies About Wolves
14. The Day After Tomorrow (2004)
There’s a whole section of cinema dedicated to stories of the world ending. And we don’t just mean zombie apocalypses! We’re talking about the literal Earth falling apart at the seams.
The threats are numerous: meteors (Deep Impact,Melancholia), aliens (Cloverfield,War of the Worlds), viruses (Contagion,I Am Legend), and more. But what about the weather?
Climate change takes an extreme turn in Roland Emmerich’s sci-fi disasterThe Day After Tomorrowwhen natural disasters in the form of deadly hail and huge tornadoes threaten human extinction.
The Day After Tomorrowunfolds mainly in Manhattan, where knee-deep floodwater freezes and traps Sam (played by Jake Gyllenhaal) in a public library. For similar antics, check out the film2012.
13. The Snowman (2017)
The Snowmanis a snowy murder mystery that leans more on the side of thriller than drama, unlike some of the other movies on this list.
Tomas Alfredson directs Michael Fassbender as Inspector Harry Hole in Oslo, Norway. A chain-smoking and reclusive alcoholic with questionable methods, Harry becomes obsessed with tracking down a serial killer who leaves snowmen at his crime scenes.
The film is based on Jo Nesbø’s 2007 novel in his Harry Hole detective series. Though a little incoherent at times, there’s a compelling story to be found beneathThe Snowman’s cold, stylish surface.
Related:The Best Whodunit Murder Mystery Movies, Ranked
12. The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe (2005)
C. S. Lewis’s classic children’s book series was magically translated to film by Andrew Adamson in the first (and best) installment of the franchise. You likely already know the premise of a little girl who steps through a wardrobe into the fantasy land of Narnia.
There, the girl meets an evil witch and a brave lion… as well as James McAvoy shirtless in the snow, sporting goat legs and a scarf.
Thanks to the White Witch (played by Tilda Swinton), Narnia is cursed with a never-ending winter, and all without Christmas.The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobeis an escapist adventure fit for the whole family!
Related:The Best Fantasy Worlds and Magical Realms in Movies, Ranked
11. Wind River (2017)
A character-driven neo-Western minus the desert cacti,Wind Rivertakes place on the snowy Wind River Indian Reservation in Wyoming.
Director Taylor Sheridan wrote the script in order to raise awareness for the vast numbers of indigenous women who are killed in America every year, with a plot that’s woven together by an FBI murder investigation.
A chilling tale—both literally and thematically—Wind Riverboasts stellar performances from Jeremy Renner and Elizabeth Olsen, who both tap into a more humanistic side to the murder mystery genre.
Related:The Best Movies With Female Detectives
10. Everest (2015)
From the poster alone, you can already guess what kind of harsh survival story awaits in this film. Based on true events,Everestretells the story of the 1996 Mount Everest disaster where eight climbers were caught in a blizzard and tragically died.
Baltasar Kormákur directs this unforgiving biographical drama, honing in on two expedition groups who are fighting for their lives.
One is led by Rob Hall (played by Jason Clarke) and the second by Scott Fischer (played by Jake Gyllenhaal), and both must learn to cooperate if they’re to beat overexertion, high altitudes, and broken equipment.
Related:The Best Wilderness Survival Movies
9. Against the Ice (2022)
Peter Flinth’s historical dramaAgainst the Icewas sourced from Captain Ejnar Mikkelsen’s 1912 memoirsTwo Against the Ice.
Way back in 1909, the Danish explorer set off to uncover the lost records of a tragic Denmark expedition. After one failed attempt, only a young and inexperienced engineer is willing to join him on his bitter mission the second time around.
A polar bear, lost supplies, and two dead dogs later, the duo are left to spiral into isolated madness in an abandoned shed. With everything turning against them, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau and Joe Cole give stunning performances as two men at the mercy of a miracle.
Related:The Best Movies Where Nature Itself Feels Like a Character
8. The Hateful Eight (2015)
The Hateful Eightis a bloody revisionist Western movie that has all the makings of your classic Quentin Tarantino flick: an ensemble cast (including Samuel L. Jackson), riveting dialogue, and a bloodbath finale.
Set in 1877, a misfit group of bounty hunters, prisoners, and cowboys wait out a blizzard while tensions rise and guns cock. This lengthy film slots neatly as the eighth movie in Tarantino’s bloody, violent filmography.
Despite its controversial handling of sex and race,The Hateful Eightwas praised for its carefully constructed scenes and brilliant performances, which all take place in one Haberdashery lodge.
Related:The Best Chamber Drama Movies
7. Groundhog Day (1993)
The snow inGroundhog Dayisn’t apocalyptically fatal, but it’s still annoying for uptight weatherman Phil (played by Bill Murray).
Despite having a career in weather, Phil misjudges the duration of an impending blizzard and finds himself stuck in a small Pennsylvanian town. Not ideal for a cynical man.
On February 2nd, Phil gives a dull report on the outcome of Punxsutawney’s Groundhog Day festivities (which supposedly predicts the length of winter). But the next day, it’s still February 2nd. And the next. And the next…
Groundhog Dayremains stuck in a hilarious never-ending winter, minus the magical whimsy ofNarnia.
Related:The Best Time Loop Movies Like Groundhog Day
6. The Thing (1982)
The North and South Poles are both often used as metaphorical representations for the edge of the world. A cold, uninhabitable end to the map. It’s here, in a barren Antarctica, that a group of American scientists meet a creature from another planet.
InThe Thing, Kurt Russell plays the helicopter pilot who’s investigating the ruins of a snowy Norwegian research base. What ruined it, you ask? Well, it’s difficult to say…
Horror master John Carpenter was initially criticized for making such a trashy, over-the-top alien sci-fi flick. Years later, the eponymous “thing” (there’s really no other way to describe the shapeshifting creature) has grown into a cult symbol of 1980s horror cinema.
Related:The Best Paranoid Movies Full of Fear and Uncertainty, Ranked
5. Misery (1990)
ThoughMiseryisn’t the most enticing title, it sure is accurate! Paul Sheldon (played by James Caan) really does have a miserable life after stumbling into the falsely caring arms of nurse Annie Wilkes.
Perfectly played by Kathy Bates, Annie claims to be Paul’s number one fan. Annie loves his romance novels featuring a woman named Misery Chastain, but the author Paul wants to write more serious books—much to Annie’s hatred.
Unfortunately for Paul, a blizzard breaks both his legs and traps him in Annie’s warped prison. Rob Reiner’s adaptation of the 1987 book is still hailed as the best Stephen King film adaptation to date!
Related:The Best Movies About Kidnappings
4. The Gold Rush (1925)
Calling all old movie and Charlie Chaplin fans! We’re stretching back a little further for this one.The Gold Rush(originally released in 1925 and re-released in 1942 with an added voice-over) takes place during the Klondike Gold Rush of the 19th century.
Inspired by the Donner Party—a group of pioneers who got stuck in the Sierra Nevada and resorted to eating each other—Chaplin turns tragedy into comedy per his usual style.
Iconic gags, cartoonish characters, and the sweet old Tramp caricature madeThe Gold Rushan instant silent movie success. That said, we recommend the later version with Chaplin’s narration!
Related:The Silent Movie Era, Explained (And Must-Watch Silent Films to See)
3. Doctor Zhivago (1965)
British director David Lean loved making epic films, from 1957’sThe Bridge on the River Kwaito 1962’sLawrence of Arabia.
Next in store for Lean was 1965’sDoctor Zhivago. The original novel had to be smuggled out of the Soviet Union by a left-wing Italian publisher before it could land in the lap of MGM.
So, why all the hubbub? Well, Boris Pasternak’s Pulitzer Prize-winning book details the events of the Russian Civil War that immediately succeeded WWI, and it was banned for many years.
Winter in Russia was a big contributing factor to Germany losing WWII in 1945—that’s how cold it is there! Rewind a few decades and the fictional physician Yuri Zhivago (played by Omar Sharif) is writing poems and falling for the wrong woman in Moscow.
2. Fargo (1996)
Fargois one of the most—if notthemost—famous movies by the Coen brothers. Their trademark offbeat humor, eccentric characters, and collaboration with Frances McDormand and Steve Buscemi emerge as early examples of their iconic style.
Set in snowy North Dakota during the 1980s,Fargofollows a pregnant police chief investing a homicide that came about from a failed attempt at kidnapping for ransom.
A bumbling (in a good way), original, and wonderfully entertaining black comedy, Joel Coen and Ethan Coen set a high bar. Then, a subsequent five-season TV show adaptation was conceived in 2014.
Related:The Best Black Comedy Movies
1. The Revenant (2015)
Like many of the films on this list,The Revenantis a true story about one man’s fight for survival against the frigid elements of nature.
Finally bagging himself an Oscar for his performance, Leonardo DiCaprio drags himself across the Dakotas in 1823, battling not only the freezing temperatures but also grizzly bears and Arikara warriors.
Director Alejandro González Iñárritu injects this epic survival drama with sweeping wide-shot views of the snow-covered mountains, balancing out the savage violence with tender and abstract emotion, making it feel like a man wandering through a dream.
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