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As humans, our emotions are intertwined with our surroundings. We make choices about where to live, how to spend our time, and are even subconsciously affected by seasonal settings. It is only natural when the human mind is so connected to our physical environment that seasons would appear in prominent roles in artistic endeavors painting, music, photography and of course… film.  

With temperatures dropping nationwide as winter rolls in, many are preparing for the cold weather to take a toll on their mental health. In film, characters are similarly affected by their seasonal surroundings, whether it presents a literal barrier or metaphorically looms over their state of mind. 

The Seasonal Antagonist  

Of the countless number of cold-weather films, many are naturally based around the holiday season and explore family bonds overcoming any barriers (physical or emotional). These films allow viewers to reflect on what they have alongside the characters. 

Steve Martin and John Candy in Planes, Trains and Automobiles (1987) 

In many of these films winter plays the foreboding role of the antagonist, standing as an obstacle between the main character and their family. This can be seen in John Hughes’s holiday classics, Home Alone and Planes, Trains and Automobiles. In both, the weather stands between the main character reuniting with their family while placing them in uncertain circumstances.  

In Planes, Trains and Automobiles, Neal Page, is trying to reach his family in Chicago for the holidays when the winter weather leaves him and his soon to be quirky travel companion Del Griffith, stranded in the middle of the country. Determined to reach his family the two travelers will persevere through a variety of scenarios created by the weather, which drives much of the tension and boiling points. 

Through the sheer discomfort and inconvenience of the cold, these two winter clad travelers will grit their teeth. At the most tense moments of their travels the two characters will be given moments to reflect. In the end, through their mutual struggle, the characters come to understand one another.  

Macaulay Culkin and Joe Pesci in Home Alone (1990) 

Similarly, in Home Alone, winter separates a family. The main character, Kevin, is left stranded at home… alone. Having to spend the holidays in solitude and face childhood fears Kevin will be presented the opportunity to reassess what his family actually means to him. 

In both films, the separation from their families and the challenges that are indirectly presented by the winter months gives the characters time to reflect. It allows them to contemplate what is really important when it comes to family and companionship.  

The Winter Mentality  

While winter presents a more direct role in John Hughes films, it can also symbolize more psychological elements of a character’s life. In holiday classic It’s a Wonderful Life, viewers follow the protagonist George Bailey through his life growing up. In addition to major historical events such as the Great Depression and WWII, the seasons will symbolize many major moments in George’s life. 

James Stewart and Donna Reed in It’s a Wonderful Life (1946) 

Spring and summer months come to represent much of George’s younger and happier moments, when he has his whole life ahead. In contrast, winter takes half of his hearing as a child, a consequence for saving his brother from drowning in a frozen lake. Winter looms over his darkest moment when he feels all is lost and is on the verge of diving to the icy abyss of the river below. It also lurks in the background when he is presented with an alternate world where he never exists via his guardian angel, Clarence. Upon the harsh realization of life without him, he will come to appreciate his own value to his friends and family.  

Similarly, in Ang Lee’s underrated film The Ice Storm, viewers witness the deterioration of two wealthy families over the course of an unusually snowy Thanksgiving break. It is only when the titular storm and the families are stuck inside that they work through their issues and come out stronger. 

Winter is also essential to the DNA of classic dark comedy Fargo. The cold, bleak setting of the film brings the viewer closer to physically feeling the isolation and hardships that the characters endure. 

Steve Buscemi and Peter Stormare in Fargo (1996) 

Steve Buscemi’s gunshot to the face (that he survives) is more unsettling to observe when we see him hunched in his car trying to quell the geyser of blood emitting from his cheek with napkins. All the while he drives through a frozen landscape indifferent to his suffering. Jerry Lungaards appears to hit his tipping point after losing a real estate deal to his resentful father in law while trying to scrape ice off the windshield of his car. 

The cold adds an extra layer of discomfort to nearly every scene throughout the film. Meanwhile as different characters move their way through homicides, kidnap ransoms, and money disagreements, winter drives home the cold monotony of it all. 

The Silent Solitude 

As winter looms and we enter month 9 of COVID-19 pandemic shutdowns, the isolating feeling of the cold often explored in film is all too relatable. Nowhere is this more apparent than in Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining. 

Jack Nicholson in The Shining (1980) 

Jack Torrance and his family’s isolation is emphasized by the snow-covered mountains enshrouding their hotel. The stark silence brought on by the lonely snowfall drives forward the madness unfolding and leaves the viewer feeling trapped alongside the Torrances. In contrast to the familial elements of Jon Hughes holiday classics, the loneliness faced in colder months brings about the destruction of a family rather than a unification. The film appropriately concludes in sheer stillness in the winter night in a snow cladded maze with a unique uncertain silent terror.  

In another Kubrick winter classic, Eyes Wide Shut, the holiday season serves as a glossy cover up the darker underbelly of wealthy New York. An artificial NYC constructed on location in London due to Kubrick’s own fear of flying represents a hollowness many find the holidays season to have. 

Nicole Kidman and Tom Cruise in Eyes Wide Shut (1999) 

Tom Cruise’s isolation and alienation from his wife and child stem from his knowledge of strange “party” he attended the night before. The winter atmosphere in addition to the repeated graphic sexuality with absence of emotion pushes a deeper psychological isolation or mental winter.  

The same way seasons impact our psychology in the real world, they also impact our minds when viewing film. They are instrumental in drawing a range of emotions or feelings from holidays and childhood memories to deep isolation and even dread. 

In 2020, it is not only weather but the COVID-19 pandemic that is keeping families separated, isolated and wearing on our psyche. Through the uncertainty, films like these can allow us to reflect and provide some kind of solace. Just like the characters in these films, we can contemplate what is truly of value and take away our own personal lessons as we do our best to persevere and maintain close relations with our friends and family during these trying times.  

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Max Harris-D’Amato is the Editorial Assistant Intern at FACETS. He received a B.A. in multimedia journalism from Columbia College Chicago. In addition to both short and long form writing, he has also directed a documentary, Surfing the Rust Belt, which he personally pitched, shot video, edited and conducted the interviews for. In addition to his work with FACETS, he currently works for United Way supporting immigrants settling into school throughout the North Shore of the Boston Area.