The icy landscape of The Terror is a classic Gothic trope we love

Winter has come in the form of AMC’s The Terror, an ecogothic treat where the polar world serves as an inhuman horror. If it leaves you wanting more, here are a few icy movies to chill you to the core.

In 1845, Captain Sir John Franklin led HMS Erebus and HMS Terror on an ill-fated expedition to explore the Arctic. This terrifying true story ignited a niche horror genre, the polar Gothic. This was led in part by the dramatisation of the lost expedition in a 1850’s play titled The Frozen Deep, written by Wilkie Collins and produced with the assistance of Charles Dickens. The tale has once more been re-imagined, in the new AMC series The Terror.

The Terror is based on the 2007 fictionalized novel of the same name by Dan Simmons. It stars Game of Thrones’ Ciaran Hinds as Franklin. As reviewed by Entertainment Weekly, the frigidity of The Terror envelops its viewers. The ice is a key character in itself, an all-pervading force that physically and emotionally isolates the characters from civilization in “the apocalyptic emptiness of the Arctic.”

Harsh weather, blizzards, snowstorms and endless ice have become classic Gothic tropes we love. Wintery ecogothic and ecohorror tales entrap inhabitants in unforgiving environments. Cabin fever sets in, leading to the degradation of sanity and humanity. Steven King books and their movie adaptations often use cold as a catalyst for supernatural and horrific narratives. In Dreamcatcher, four friends fight against alien lavae in a remote snowy forest. In Misery, novelist Paul Sheldon’s car crashes in a blizzard and he is retrieved by crazed fan Annie Wilkes.

Here are a few other classic movies featuring fights for survival in bone-chilling environments.

30 Days of Night (2007)

This horror starring Josh Hartnett is set in Barrow, an aptly named and remote ice-bound town in northern in Alaska. During a month-long period of night, the community is attacked by a nasty gang of vampires. The undead take advantage of the darkness, and the town’s disconnection to the world, and embark on a mass slaughter. A nod to this horror was recognizable in a recent episode of The Walking Dead when Jadis cleared the undead with the aid of a junk yard grinder.

The Shining (1980)

Of course, our favorite axe-wielding delusional manic makes the list. The Shining stars Jack Nicholson as Jack Torrance, who takes a job as an off-season caretaker at an isolated hotel in the Rockies. A winter storm leaves Jack, his wife and young son Danny, snowbound. Paranormal activity abounds and Jack’s sanity deteriorates, leading to a chase in a literal snow maze. Warner Bros. is currently developing a sequel, based on Steven King’s novel Doctor Sleep. It will feature an adult Danny Torrance who has inherited the alcoholism and rage of his father.

Let the Right One In (2008)

This Swedish romantic horror tells the story of a bullied 12-year-old boy who befriends a child vampire. There is a tranquility and ethereal beauty in the winter environment. This aesthetic serves to highlight the muted mental and physical violence of the film. There is an American-British remake called Let Me In. If you haven’t seen either, watch the original. You’ll be in for a treat.

Alive (1993)

This unsettling drama is based on a true tale of a plane transporting an Uruguayan rugby team that crashed in the Andes. Trapped in a harsh snowscape devoid of food, the survivors are forced to make a horrific decision — starvation or cannibalism.

We may expect a similar predicament for those in The Terror based on an historical 1854 Admiralty report on the expedition:

From the mutilated state of many of the corpses and the contents of the kettles, it is evident that our wretched countrymen had been driven to the last resource — cannibalism — as a means of prolonging existence.

The Thing (1982)

This John Carpenter cult classic stars Kurt Russell as one of a group of researchers who uncover an alien life-form in Antarctica. The parasitic creature has the ability to replicate humans. Thus, the tale escalates to fear and paranoia, where anyone could be the “Thing” in disguise. The Thing is referenced in Stranger Things many times. Mike’s movie poster on his wall looks like the Demogorgon. Plus teacher Mr Clarke is seen watching the movie with its over-the-top special effects.

If summer becomes too hot for you, then settle in for an icy Gothic movie binge.

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