Iced Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		2.0
Video		3.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		4.5
Overall		4.0

Iced Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Brian Orndorf March 16, 2025

1989’s “Iced” brings slasher cinema to a ski resort, giving director Jeff Kwinty a playground of snow and cabin action to help deliver a lively feature. And yet, there’s very little spirit found in the picture, which intends to be a mystery and a horror film, but spends most of its run time dealing with uninteresting characters and their personal problems. It’s not a terribly satisfying adventure into genre moviemaking, finding Kwinty generally reluctant to participate in an alert endeavor that’s heavy with violence. Exploitation interests are there, but the execution of the offering isn’t, keeping “Iced” quite glacial as it waits for over an hour to really summon more active screen experiences. It’s a long wait for extraordinarily little payoff.

Jeff (Dan Smith) is a young man with behavioral issues, hoping to charm Trina (Debra De Liso) during a trip to a ski resort for a weekend of fun. Standing in the way of winter pleasures is Cory (Doug Stevenson), who’s looking to sleep with Trina, and he receives a chance to claim his prize after Jeff loses a ski race to the bully. Jeff disappears into the night in a fit of rage, and his friends carry on. Four years later, Trina and Jeff are married, invited to experience the luxury of the Snow Peak Resort, joined by pal Jeanette (Lisa Loring), who’s wondering about Eddie (Michael Picardi), her troublesome boyfriend. John (John C. Cooke) and Diane (Elizabeth Gorcey) are also participating in the snowbound fun, joined by party hound Carl (Ron Kologie), who’s happy to take a break from his job as a pharmaceutical rep. And there’s Alex (Joseph Alan Johnson, who also scripts), a real estate agent looking to sell some timeshares at Snow Peak. As the festivities commence, all is not well with the group, who are dealing with reminders of the past, finding their cruel treatment of Jeff returning to haunt them as a mysterious figure in a ski outfit targets the gang for revenge.

The saga of Jeff is detailed in the opening sequence of “Iced,” studying a man who makes bold claims about his skiing prowess, only to be challenged by Cory, who beats him during a nighttime race. It’s pure humiliation for Jeff, who not only loses his skiing credibility, but also watches as Trina jumps into bed with his rival, leaving him out in the cold with nothing but anguish to keep him warm. As origin stories go, “Iced” makes a compelling case for Jeff’s rampage, and he eventually disappears from view, setting up a mystery concerning his final hours.

“Iced” picks up four years later, returning to the friend group as they reunite for a promotional “weekend in heaven” at Snow Peak, bringing their personal problems along with them. Kwinty and Johnson endeavor to make a slightly more dramatic horror event, delving into all kinds of relationship issues as the gang explores their surroundings. Carl’s a drug addict, Jeanette is a love addict, and John and Diane are struggling to communicate. Trina and Cory have their own problems as well. And “Iced” remains on these conflicts for an hour, only breaking up conversation to follow Eddie’s fate as his car gets stuck in a cleanly plowed road, which is the last bit of bloodiness before the climax. It’s long wait for something to happen, and Kwinty isn’t exactly selling the stuffing out of human difficulties, allowing the movie to come to a full rest before it tries to work up the energy to be a horror film again.

Iced Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

"Iced" was apparently originally filmed on 16mm, but the AVC encoded image (1.33:1 aspect ratio) presentation is listed as "newly transferred and restored from the best surviving tape master." What's here isn't a stunning look at the limited cinematic power of the movie, offering only a hazy sense of frame information. Detail isn't available, but a very mild sense of character appearance and costuming is provided. Color deals with age and tech limitations, supplying a basic sense of primaries on ski outfits and decorative additions. Source is decent condition.

Iced Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The 2.0 DTS-HD MA mix offers a basic understanding of dialogue exchanges, keeping voices clear and performance choices understood. Scoring offers a sharp synth sound, delivering satisfactory musical support during suspense sequences. Sound effects are blunt but appreciable.

Iced Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Commentary #1 features director Jeff Kwinty and special features producer Ewan Cant.

• Commentary #2 features film historian Amanda Reyes and podcasters Hysteria Continues.

• Intro (:26) is a short welcome to the Blu-ray experience from director Jeff Kwinty.

• "Jeff Was Here" (22:27, HD) is an interview with director Jeff Kwinty, who was inspired by the films of Roger Corman, beginning his moviemaking journey as a teenager. After making a parody of "Alien" with his friends, Kwinty found his way to Hollywood, starting to form connections and develop his career. A relationship with writer/actor Joseph Alan Johnson gave birth to "Iced," handling a shoot with very little time and money, shot around freezing locations at night. Production achievements are celebrated, including casting and design elements. Trouble eventually came for "Iced" when bills stopped being paid, sending Kwinty on a journey into the wild ways of Hollywood business and organized crime, finally reclaiming control of the picture. The interviewee closes with additional tales of industry heartache.

• "The Best Part of It" (19:37, HD) is an interview with actor Ron Kologie, who tracks the development of his acting career, developing his skills at school before moving to Los Angeles. The interviewee details his early gigs, eventually landing a job on "Iced," which was a speedy shoot in Utah. Anecdotes from production are shared, dealing with co-stars, local bars, and the snow. Kologie also discusses monetary troubles and union disappointments, eventually losing track of the feature.

• "On Camera Film School" (13:07, HD) is an interview with second assistant director Rodney Montague, who developed an interest in acting, following his dream to college, eventually finding work in 1987's "Berserker." Making friends with writer/actor Joseph Alan Johnson, Montague was soon hired on "Iced," moving behind the camera to help the production. The interviewee shares his experience handling some stunt work, and recalls the frugality of the production. Instead of pursuing acting, Montague found his way into the world of visual effects, enjoying his chance to bringing wilder imagery to life.

• Image Galley (1:35) collets film stills and BTS snaps.

• A Trailer has not been included on this release.

Iced Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

"Iced" doesn't involve much skiing, which is a little bizarre, spending most of its time inside cabins. Kwinty has awareness of exploitation, putting up some softcore sex to help spice up the endeavor, but he's not driven to utilize it, waiting for the final 15 minutes of the offering to launch attacks from an unknown assailant, who drives a ski pole through the throat of one victim, while others deal with bear traps in the snow and a hot tub electrocution. Jeff's menace isn't really felt, and the mystery Johnson works to develop is weak, failing to bring the movie to a boil. Instead of a driving horror experience, "Iced" offers periodic violence, more concerned about heartaches and headaches than a rousing slasher experience set at a winter wonderland.