Dead Of Winter Serves Up Frozen Tension

In the frozen and remote part of Northern Minnesota a battle to survive is taking place in the new movie “Dead of Winter”.  Emma Thompson stars as Barb;  a widower who is attempting to take the ashes of her husband to the site of their first date.

After becoming lost and asking for directions; Barb finds herself in the midst of a kidnapping as a man and his wife (Judy Greer) have kidnapped a young woman. Unable to flee; Barb attempts to help but soon finds that the couple will resort to homicidal lengths in order to keep their efforts secret and Barb must play a deadly game of cat and mouse in order to free the girl and escape.

The  movie avoids many Hollywood tropes in that Barb and the others are real people who find themselves in extra-ordinary circumstances. They are not trained soldiers but people who are willing to do what they have to in order to survive and have a raw and scrappy approach to things versus the polished style of a combat vet.

The characters are people who make bad choices as their emotions and fear drive them and while each has their own motivations; survival is the key factor and the movie underscores just how far some people are willing to go.

The bleak and barren setting works for a movie with a minimal cast as the remote location becomes almost as big of a threat as those that Barb is facing.

The cast does solid work and propels the movie beyond what could otherwise become a routine action/drama and makes the movie an enjoyable film experience.

3 stars out of 5

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