City Cinema: Dead of Winter

Thriller, 14A, violence, language.
Dir: Brian Kirk, Canada/US/Germany, 2025, 98 min.
Emma Thompson, Judy Greer, Marc Menchaca.

“Emma Thompson and Judy Greer go head-to-head in a kidnapping thriller set in a forsaken Northern Minnesota snowstorm? I am so in! Director Brian Kirk relies on nuanced character work, gorgeously isolating cinematography, and the desperation of human nature to keep you guessing. Thompson is Barb… Despite the weather forecast, she puts on the ol’ snowsuit, warms up the even older pick up, and heads to faraway Lake Hilda to do some ice fishing… But she gets a little turned around and hears chopping in the distance, so she goes to ask directions… Barb finds a bearded man in camo who – very startled by the sight of her – directs her to the lake. But blood on the snow has Barb a little troubled, and soon enough, she sniffs out a kidnapping. Thompson… is so utterly convincing that you’re hooked. And that’s all before the glorious Greer makes her entrance… Dead of Winter sidesteps cliché, delivers thrills, and finds new ways to showcase two tremendous talents.” —Hope Madden, UK Film Review

“Poignant and captivating, Dead of Winter is dominated by the magnetic presence of Emma Thompson who plays a heroine who’ll stop at nothing to fulfil her mission. It keeps the audience on the edge of their seats with a story full of unexpected twists and turns, a tale both tense and cruel but also tender and full of humanity.” —Muriel Del Don, Cineuropa