Dead of Winter (2025)
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2025-09 to 2026-08
A grieving widow's journey to scatter her husband's ashes leads her into a deadly confrontation in a snowbound wilderness.
The story
After her husband Karl's death, widow Barb travels to remote Lake Hilda in northern Minnesota to scatter his ashes. During a blizzard, she takes an unplanned detour to a nearby cabin and encounters a suspicious man named Camo Jacket. Upon reaching the lake, she discovers a young woman named Leah being held by the man. Barb returns to the cabin to investigate, only to find the woman chained in the basement and overhear a tense conversation between the man and his wife, Purple Lady. The situation escalates as Barb realizes the woman is being held against her will, forcing her to navigate a dangerous environment to protect the girl.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
While trying to rescue Leah, Barb sets a trap on the frozen lake, causing Camo Jacket to fall through the ice. She then sabotages the cabin's interior to hinder the antagonists. It is revealed that Purple Lady, a terminally ill woman, intends to harvest Leah's liver to save her own life. After a series of desperate maneuvers and a tense standoff involving a medical tent on the ice, a fire breaks out. In the chaos, Barb and Leah manage to escape the burning tent. Barb eventually drags both Purple Lady and the injured Camo Jacket into the icy water, where the antagonists perish. The film ends with Leah safe on the shore, looking at a photo of Barb and her husband.
- Original title
- The Fisherwoman
- First release year
- 2025
- Runtime (minutes)
- 98
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Brian Kirk
- Writers
- Nicholas Jacobson-Larson · writer; Dalton Leeb · writer
- Cast and characters
- Emma Thompson · Barb; Judy Greer · Purple Lady; Marc Menchaca · Camo Jacket; Laurel Marsden · Leah; Brían F. O'Byrne · Tall Hunter; Dalton Leeb · Younger Hunter; Lloyd Hutchinson · Lawyer; Gaia Wise · Young Barb
- Genres
- action; thriller
- Themes
- survival; sacrifice
- Tone and mood
- tense; suspenseful
- Setting
- Lake Hilda in northern Minnesota during a snowstorm.
- Premise and plot tags
- survival; medical thriller
- Reception
- The film received generally favorable reviews from critics.
- Reported review scores
- Metacritic · score: 69 · scale: 100 · review count: 14
- Production trivia
- The film was originally titled The Fisherwoman.; Principal photography took place in Finland and Germany.; The Finnish president personally thanked Emma Thompson for her comments about the Finnish crew.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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