A newly engaged couple’s ski weekend goes horribly awry when an unexpected guest arrives and the house’s dark supernatural forces begin to rise on the anniversary of a tragic event. A film by Brandon Murphy, starring Rachel Michiko Whitney, Cooper van Grootel, Tom Williamson, David Lambert, Paige Elkington, Ali Fumiko Whitney, and Barbara Crampton.

Heath Jacobson (Cooper van Grootel) takes his girlfriend Laura Pell (Rachel Michiko Whitney) to a weekend getaway at his parents’ ski cabin on the mountain. Upon arriving at the destination, Laura realizes that Heath’s family is very wealthy as their cabin is vastly more like a mansion than a regular cabin, and it is located on the overlook with the view of the entire Snow Valley.

While wandering around the mansion, Laura finds herself drawn to a peculiar photo of a group of miners. Heath explains that the photo is part of his father’s collection of mining relics from the time when Snow Valley was a mining town. He tells her that the entire area is built on old tunnels that were abandoned around the turn of the century, and the area got developed into a ski town.

Later that evening, Heath surprises Laura with his grandmother’s engagement ring, hidden inside a pizza delivery box. Laura accepts Heath’s proposal, and they become engaged on their first date’s anniversary. Unaware of the unseen eyes watching them from the shadows, Laura is awakened in the middle of the night when she thinks she hears a little voice saying “Are you here to save me?” She looks around but she doesn’t see anyone.

The next day, Laura encounters a woman named Ellen at the front door. Ellen claims to be looking for Heath and says she’s working for the Jacobsons. Ellen explains that she lives here but left her keys in her room, before disappearing into the elevator. Laura becomes frustrated and upset that Heath never mentioned Ellen. In Heath’s defense, he tells Laura that he didn’t know Ellen would be at home since she told him she had plans to visit her sister.

Later, their best friends, Brannon David Lambert) and his girlfriend Anna (Paige Elkington), join them. They are interrupted by an uninvited guest, Ed (Tom Williamson), whose family has a close relationship with the Jacobsons. Ed arrives with a gun, frightening everyone. He is forced to surrender it, and Heath secures the weapon in the safe. Unbeknownst to anyone, the safe mysteriously unlocks itself after everyone leaves the room.

At dinner, Ed reveals a horrific historical event. In the past, people used an old mine shaft beneath the mansion as a makeshift asylum for the mentally ill. Then, there was an explosion that tragically burned all of them to death. Some believe their tortured souls are trapped down there to this day.

Written and directed by American filmmaker Brandon Murphy, Snow Valley is plagued by an excruciatingly slow pace. The first 50 minutes of the film’s 72-minute runtime drag with cringey dialogue and unmemorable moments, offering almost no action. While the plot of spirits trapped beneath the mansion seems interesting, it has never become the main narrative. The ghosts who appear in the film look like miners, not the asylum patients, and they function more like background characters with no impact on the narrative whatsoever. If it’s not a ghost story, what’s the point of having ghosts?

None of the characters in the film feel like central protagonists. The film’s tonal inconsistency is confusing, failing to commit to either humor or realism. Heath and Laura, who are supposedly a lovely couple, exhibit almost zero on-screen chemistry. In contrast, Brannon and Anna, despite constant bickering, feel more genuine and true to their characters. Barbara Crampton plays her part well as a creepy housekeeper with a mysterious past. However, her character remains one-dimensional and has absolutely nothing to do with the ghost plot.

I do like the performance of character Ed portrayed by Tom Williamson, who initially seems over-the-top with his acting, then dials down to a character with essentially a good heart who saves the day. But he alone can’t save the movie.

Snow Valley was released digitally in the United States and Canada on 26 March 2024.