###Drama

1. “Beauty and the Beast” (1991)

The winter serves as an innocent backdrop to the childhood films about the virtues of suggested bestiality. Ewww.

2. “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind” (2004)

Nothing says my girlfriend left me and erased her memories like a cold, unforgiven

blanket of snow. Not to mention it offsets Clementine’s wild hair beautifully.

3. “My Winnepeg” (2007)

The languid and listless nature of winter (Canadian winter in particular) comes through brilliantly in Guy Madden’s portrait of his chilly hometown.

4. “Edward Scissorhands” (1990)

Perhaps one of the most beautiful treatments of snow in this pre-Winona-steals-stuff-from-Macy’s classic.

5. “Lady Snowblood” (1973)

Quentin Tarantino ripped his snowy fight between The Bride and O’Ren from this Japanese kung-fu classic. You can’t beat blood splattering on a virgin blanket of snow.

###Comedy

1. “National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation” (1989)

Clark Griswold (Chevy Chase) wants to share the Christmas spirit with everyone, but a multitude of bizarre incidents and accidents keeps pushing Clark to the breaking point. From launching the family vehicle (with the family inside) off a snow bank, to fighting off a squirrel in the living room, “Christmas Vacation” takes your worst holiday experience and makes it look tame by comparison.

2. “Ice Age” (2002)

The title is part of the reason “Ice Age” made it to this list, but the movie holds so much more. A solid cast and a slightly more adult story (Sabertooth Tigers want to eat a child…) propel this movie to success. While everyone may not have liked Scrat, he was still a nice distraction.

3. “Home Alone” (1990)

We tried to stay away from Christmas-themed movies, but this one had to go on. A lot of kids have that silly dream of one day waking up with no parents and a small mansion to themselves. What those kids don’t realize is they probably aren’t as creative as Kevin McCallister (Macaulay Culkin), who fends off a pair of knuckleheaded thieves with Micro Machines and paint cans.

4. “Fargo” (1996)

It’s rare when a film walks the fine line between drama and comedy, especially when detailing brutal small-town murders based on a true story. Yet, the Coen brother’s mutually loved and reviled tribute to their home state of Minnesota (no, Fargo is not in Minnesota) is easily one of their finest snow days yet. Yeah, you betcha.

5. “Dumb and Dumber” (1994)

Ever hear of a little place called Aspen? Harry (Jeff Daniels) and Lloyd (Jim Carrey) have, and the trip they took to get there held some of the weirdest moments in 90s comedy. The most annoying sound in the world was just that, and the cop sipping the urine had some cringing, but most laughing.

###Horror

1. “The Thing” (1982)

John Carpenter’s classic set in a secluded Antarctic research base is arguably the quintessential winter horror formula. Volatile all-male cast, relentless cabin fever suspicion, sub-zero temperatures, plus a horrific alien antagonist that may be disguised as the only person you trust? Now that’s a frigid powder-keg ready to blow. Yet, despite the over-the-top gore, “The Thing” perfectly sets the mood for a slew of less successful contemporary imitators, including “30 Days of Night” and “Dreamcather.” However, the Carpenter’s 1982 remake remains the king of them all.

2. “The Shining” (1980)

A staple of the perfect winter horror or thriller is undoubtedly idle hands. Jack Nicholson’s infamous performance as the disturbed snowbound Torrence father is one of the most frightening cinematic apparitions, despite objections made by the original author Stephen King, “Here’s Johnny!” and “Redrum” entered the American lexicon as terrifyingly invocative expressions of snowed-in madness. All one has to do is ignore the lukewarm Shelley Duvall to appreciate this Stanley Kubrick classic.

3. “Ravenous” (1999)

This sleeper black comedy emulates the best winter thrillers. When Capt. John Boyd (Guy Pierce) gets a back handed promotion to a remote California outpost at the end of the Mexican-American war, he quickly realizes the only thing more dangerous in the Sierra Nevadas than boredom, is hunger. When a drifter (Robert Carlyle) wanders into Fort Spencer telling of cannibalism and its mystical properties, the hunt is on. Where the film really shines is in its unapologetically humorous take on the lurid subject matter. Now, who’s hungry?

4. “Misery” (1990)

Stephen King loves his cold weather horror. Kathy Bates’ Oscar-winning performance stands as a benchmark in terrifying restraint. The penultimate game of cat and mouse, Bates delivers a frighteningly convincing take on a manically obsessed captor. With no escape in sight from the snow covered lodge, a crippled Caan becomes even more desperate and savage. “It’s called hobbling.” Yeesh.

5. “Santa’s Slay” (2005)

The most entertaining part about this straight-to-video new classic is how utterly awful it is. Former wrestler Bill Goldberg plays a homicidal Santa Claus that’s actually a demon who lost a bet with an angel eons ago? Fran Drescher? So bad…but…can’t…change channel…