“Snow Falls,” directed by Colton Tran, tells us the story of five friends who are stranded in a cabin and makes us privy to their quest to survive the extreme weather. “Snow Falls” is another unnecessary addition to the niche genre, and we say that because the writers present us with the same mundane tropes that we have seen in various films time and again. The film is unable to keep you invested in the story and is devoid of any buildup; it really fails to create an impact. What generally keeps me hooked in a horror film are the conversations between the characters and their relevance in the bigger scheme of things. But in this film the nature of conversations looked a bit pretentious, that lacked depth and though there are a few moments where it gives you hope that something unexpected might happen, in the end, it just leaves you stranded. The intent of the makers was to create a psychological horror, but somewhere down the line, they lost the plot. So, let’s see what “Snow Falls” has to offer and who, among all the friends, is able to survive the storm.
Spoilers Ahead
Plot Summary: What Is The Film About?
Eden, River, Andy, Em, and Kit reached Snow Falls to stay amidst the wilderness and celebrate the new year together. The swanky mansion, in the middle of nowhere, belonged to River’s family, and the group was thrilled when they reached and couldn’t wait to begin the celebrations. There were reports that there was a storm approaching, but the group didn’t think it would spoil their plan. River’s father, more than anything, was concerned about the cutlery and the antiques kept at home. He told River over the phone that it was his mother’s favorite cutlery and that he did not want his friends to break anything.
The friends soon realized that the network was really bad, and they couldn’t call anyone. Eden was still coping with the loss of her mother. She was not able to accept the fact that her mother was no longer there alongside her. She felt lonely even when she was surrounded with people, as there was a void inside her that she was unable to fill, no matter what she did. To make matters worse, her boyfriend left her when her mother got sick. The friends had specifically planned the trip to cheer her up, and they also knew that it would do her good if she took some time off from the hustle and bustle of life and spent some quality time with her friends. Em wasn’t able to attend Eden’s mother’s funeral, and she apologized for not being there for her when she needed it the most. Eden said that she didn’t need to feel bad, as she understood that sometimes people just don’t know how to tackle a particular situation. Em had a habit of overthinking stuff, and Andy told the group how she always thought that she was suffering from some or other disease. Andy was a small-time social media influencer, and he made it a point to post something at regular intervals for his followers.
River wanted to be more than just friends with Eden. Everybody saw that he had feelings for her, but he could never muster the courage to ask Eden out. He was not exactly the expressive type, and Eden always had someone else in her life. River knew that their mini vacation could present him with an opportunity to speak his heart out. Kit went out to fetch some snow, as he wanted to make alcoholic cones out of it. The friends heard on the news that Snow Falls was going to be hit by two back-to-back storms. They had decided that they would be going back after spending a couple of days there, but with the weather conditions worsening, they were not left with much of an option.
‘Snow Falls’ Ending Explained: What Happened At The Old Cabin? Were The Friends Able To Survive?
The subsequent storms had caused power outages, and the group was forced to sleep in the hall together, as it at least had a fireplace that kept them warm at night. River was hopeful that electricity would come back soon, as any power cut never lasted more than a day. But River was wrong in assuming that, and as time passed, everybody started getting paranoid about the situation. The option of driving back home was also not there as the roads were blocked due to snow. There was nobody in the vicinity from whom they could ask for help and as the signal was weak, they were also not able to contact anybody else. There was only a limited stock of dry wood in the mansion, and they knew that after it was gone, they wouldn’t have anything to keep themselves warm with. Eden knew that because they were exposed to so much cold, there was a chance they might suffer from hypothermia. She told the group to stay near the fire and try to keep their bodies warm. In addition to that, she also told the group that they needed to stay awake, as she feared that if hypothermia kicked in during their sleep, they wouldn’t be able to wake up. Their dry wood stock finished, and their health started deteriorating due to the extreme cold. The temperature drop had an impact on their nervous system too. They started to feel confused, and that’s when River came up with the theory of the ice, they had used the other day, being contaminated. Hypothermia started showing its symptoms, and it led to cognitive dysfunctionality, something that Eden had feared from the very beginning. They started hallucinating, but Eden kept reminding them that it was their mind that was playing tricks and nothing else.
The group had decided that they would siphon gas from their vehicles and put it in the generator to bring back the power. But their plans were spoiled when River took out all the gas from the vehicle without telling anyone and threw it away. River didn’t know what he was doing, as he wasn’t in his senses. He told Andy that they all had to die in the mansion itself because they could not spread the virus. Em cut herself with a sharp object and ended up losing a lot of blood. Eden knew that though she could provide her with some first aid, she would have to be taken to the hospital as soon as possible. Andy started breaking the antiques of the house so that he could use the wood for lighting fire. River got paranoid seeing that and entered into a fist fight with Andy. River ended up killing Andy accidentally, and when Em came, she couldn’t believe her eyes. She had never imagined that something of that sort could happen to them. Em also did not survive for long after that; she went out in the open without wearing anything warm and died inside the car.
In her last moments, Em was hallucinating, and she imagined that there was still some gas left in the car and that she had turned on the heater while sitting comfortably beside Andy. Kit realized that he would have to go out and try to find help, but that decision turned out to be fatal for him. Kit started feeling a burning sensation in his body, and he took out all his clothes and froze to death in the snow. River also lost control over his mind and stood beneath the shower. His body temperature dropped even lower, and he too, died in the bathroom. Eden was the only one who survived. Though she also started to hallucinate, she didn’t do anything bizarre. Soon, help arrived and rescued Eden.
Now, it is far-fetched speculation, but it could have been possible that, as River said, the snow might have been contaminated, but the film never gives us enough evidence to prove that theory. The symptoms were hypothermia, and we believe that the mental disorientation was merely a result of that and nothing else. “Snow Falls” doesn’t give us much to ponder upon, and in the end, it is just a directionless and futile attempt to be something that it is clearly not.
“Snow Falls” is a 2023 Drama Thriller film directed by Colton Tran.
