It’s been a long, cold, treacherous winter, folks. Between tons of snow burying half the country, and subzero temperatures freezing Lake Michigan’s waves, it got so cold down in Daytona Beach that frozen iguanas fell out of trees! It snowed in Myrtle Beach in February! I saw it with my own eyes. And according to Punxsutawney Phil, winter will be with us for a few weeks longer. That wascally groundhog saw his shadow and bedded back down in his burrow to do whatever groundhogs do. Sleep all day? Nibble roots, nuts, or other roughage? Phil could be making spring babies with a lady friend for all I know.

In winter, I tend to hunker down and leave my burrow only when I need coffee or liquor. I tend to watch more TV because suffering the outdoors risks frostbite, hypothermia, or slipping and breaking my neck on the ice. On my quest for content to entertain me while I burrow and nibble my roots and nuts, I’ve discovered a few film gems this winter. Here are a few of my favorite movies if you’re looking for something to entertain you until the daffodils of spring arrive.

In alphabetical order:

Dead of Winter (2025) Streaming on Max

This recent psychological thriller thrilled me. Set in northern Minnesota IN THE WINTER, a recently widowed woman, Barb, played by Emma Thompson, gets herself into a situation and handles it in creative, courageous ways. The narrative is tightly plotted and reaches a satisfying, if haunted, conclusion.

Rental Family (2025) Streaming on Apple

I am a huge fan of Brendan Fraser ever since I saw him in Bedazzled (2000). In Rental Family, Fraser doesn’t disappoint. He plays Phillip Vanderploeg, a D-list actor or worse, who lives in Tokyo, where his claim to fame is as the superhero, Clean Bright Man, in a toothpaste commercial. In his everyday life, he cannot escape being the “token white guy” due to Tokyo’s monoculture, though his character’s familiarity with the city after seven years of residence makes him seem to blend right in. His profession as an actor leads him to work that, as the title suggests, commodifies human relationships in a market where there is demand. One of the pleasures of the movie is director Hikari’s immersive Tokyo that makes me feel like I’ve been there.

The Ballad of a Small Player (2025) Streaming on Netflix

The Ballad of a Small Player is another movie that transports me far, far away from my cozy burrow in Wisconsin, this time to the city of Macau, globally recognized as the gambling capital of the world, a luxurious landscape of lightshows and skyscrapers, the most densely populated territory on earth. Amid the extravagant glitz and games of chance, the action follows a degenerate gambler, Brendan Reilly, played by Colin Farrell, who is running from financial crimes in London and running on fumes of luck. The poverty of the character and his bravado while losing strikes me as endearing, pathetic, and tragic. Casino employees and other gamblers cast him as a “white ghost,” a theme that resonates with the annual Ghost Festival in Macau, when ghosts and spirits return from the lower realm. Magical elements are woven around themes of desire, brutality, regret, and possibly redemption.

The Bikeriders (2023) Streaming on Apple

The character Kathy Bauer, played by Jodie Comer, is a primary source for the evolution of a motorcycle gang as captured by documentarian Danny Lyon, played by Mike Faist. Danny travels with and interviews the Vandals, a fractious fraternity of motorcyclists that comes to resemble the mafia in scope and attraction. The plot is inspired by the photo book of the same title by Danny Lyon and is a fictional version of the Outlaws Motorcycle Club. Comer’s performance as Kathy is the center of the movie for me, a woman whose power is telling her truth.

Song Sung Blue (2025) Streaming on Peacock

Song Sung Blue is another adaptation. This heartfelt movie is based on the 2008 documentary film of the same name by Greg Kohs. Set in Milwaukee, the movie revolves around Mike, played by Hugh Jackson, and Claire, played by Kate Hudson, two singer musicians who meet while performing at various events on the local music circuit that include parish festivals, county fairs, and your choice of pubs and taverns because Milwaukee is full of them. If you’re feeling stuck emotionally, this movie might have the power to move you with jolts of joy, grief, and hope.

 Vengeance (2022) Streaming on Apple and Peacock

This comedy mystery follows New Yorker Ben Manalowitz, played by B.J. Novak, to West Texas where he travels to attend the funeral of a woman he once hooked up with after being railroaded into it by her brother. Wild and isolated, West Texas is the perfect setting for a tale of drugs and deep corruption spiced up with Southern hospitality. Ben gets involved in solving the mystery of his former hookup’s mysterious death. The movie earns its ending, which is both unpredicted and apt. A bonus is getting to watch Ashton Kutcher play the character Quenton Sellers.

Two More Films

If a late winter storm confines you to your burrow, I also recommend First Cow (2019), available for rental on Amazon, and Sunset Sasquatch (2024), streaming on Paramount.