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A warmly lit blue paper station stands under coloured Christmas lights, with a carrot and two coal lumps in the snow before its steps.

A snowbound paper police station glows with amber windows beside a parked patrol car, beneath a pale moon and dark fir trees.

Winter, not Christmas · 1997

Jack Frost

Name: Jack Frost
Released: 1997
Duration: 86 min
Cast: Christopher Allport, Stephen Mendel, F. William Parker, Rob LaBelle, Marsha Clark

16/100Festive FactorWhy it scores 16 ↓

UK certificate 1886 min
Comedy · Horror

Not the Michael Keaton one, and mixing the two up would make for a very strange family evening.

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Explore this film 11 sections

The CineClaus Christmas score

Festive Factor

A different kind of Christmas.

Two paper elves study a miniature blue station with snowy eaves and coloured lights, while a tiny carrot and two coal lumps sit by its steps. — A little magic in the making.

Five ingredients make the Festive Factor.
Open an ingredient to find out more.

Christmas in the storySet dressing.5/30

What we ask: Take Christmas out. Does the plot survive? Worth up to 30 of the 100 points.

A world dressed for ChristmasVisibly Christmas for the final act.5/20

What we ask: How much of the running time is visibly Christmas? Worth up to 20 of the 100 points.

The little seasonal details2 of the 10 kinds of Christmas icon we count turn up on screen.3/15

What we ask: How many kinds of Christmas icon turn up on screen: trees, lights, snow, carols and the rest? Worth up to 15 of the 100 points.

A Christmas heartHow far the ending rests on goodwill, family and belief: not at all.0/20

What we ask: Does the ending depend on what Christmas means: goodwill, family, redemption, belief? Worth up to 20 of the 100 points.

A returning traditionNiche at Christmas (under 25,000).3/15

What we ask: Is it actually watched at Christmas in the UK? Worth up to 15 of the 100 points.

21/100

Cosiness Rating Rating

Chilly in tone. Genuinely frightening. An unsettled ending.

How we score →

What do these scores mean?

Festive Factor measures how Christmassy a film is. Five ingredients add up to 100: story (30), setting (20), seasonal details (15), emotional heart (20) and returning tradition (15).

Cosiness is a separate score for warmth of tone, sense of safety, visual comfort, a reassuring ending and how easily you can settle into it.

How the Festive Factor works →

Your next film night

Where to watch

United KingdomChecked 22 Oct 2026

Apple TV

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Prime Video

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The story

About Jack Frost

A serial killer being driven to his execution through a snowbound small town is doused in an experimental chemical when the transport crashes, and his body fuses with the falling snow. He comes back as a murderous snowman and sets about the townsfolk, starting with the sheriff who caught him. The sheriff and a pair of federal agents scramble to find anything that can stop a killer made of snow.

The CineClaus verdict

Not the Michael Keaton one, and mixing the two up would make for a very strange family evening.

This is a cheap, knowingly daft horror comedy about a condemned killer who comes back as a snowman, and it is far more winter than Christmas, with the decorations turning up mostly as weapons. The effects are about as convincing as the budget allows and the plot is little more than one kill after another.

For a certain crowd that is the appeal. Put it on late, with friends who enjoy bad films on purpose.

The family desk

Can the kids watch?

Our take: check you have the right Jack Frost first, because this one has gory killings and a sexual assault scene and is strictly for adults.

Content advice & accessibility

Our age guidance: Editorial, separate from the official 18 certificate, and never looser than it.

The series

The Jack Frost films

2 films, in release order

1997
You’re here
Jack Frost
1997
You’re on this film’s page
2000
The film after
Jack Frost 2: Revenge of the Mutant Killer Snowman
2000
The first of two killer-snowman films; the sequel followed.
Not in our catalogue yet

The people behind the film

Cast and crew

The faces in front of the camera, and the people who brought the story to life.

Main cast

In billing order

Christopher Allportas Sam

Stephen Mendelas Agent Manners

F. William Parkeras Paul Davrow

Rob LaBelleas Stone

Marsha Clarkas Marla

Shannon Elizabeth smiling at the camera, long dark wavy hair, a dark headband and a beaded necklace, against a pale blue backdrop.

Shannon Elizabethas Jill Metzner

Scott MacDonaldas Jack Frost

Behind the camera

Directed by

Michael Cooney

Original score

Chris Anderson

Step into the story

Filming locations

The real places behind Jack Frost. Choose one to explore.

Find it on the mapBig Bear Lake

Map shows the selected place. Drag to explore; use + and − to zoom.

Big Bear Lake at dusk, still water mirroring an orange and purple sky, with a pine-covered shore and a mountain ridge beyond.

Location photograph
DylanMoz49 (Wikimedia Commons, opens in a new tab) · CC BY-SA 4.0 (opens in a new tab)

Filming location

Big Bear Lake

The mountain resort town in Southern California where the winter shoot took place, in a dry year with little natural snow on the ground.

Open in OpenStreetMap ↗ (opens in a new tab)Scene source ↗ (Secondary source: Wikipedia, primary not reached, opens in a new tab)

A little more Jack Frost

Film facts &
behind the scenes

For the fans who stay after the credits.

Movie magic

The snowman was a specialist build

The killer snowman was made by the effects firm Total Fabrication, with Mike Deak supervising the snowman and makeup effects, so the creature on screen was a physical creation rather than a digital one.

Read the story

Source: moriareviews.com ↗ (opens in a new tab)

Movie magic

A hologram sleeve for the video release

The VHS box carried a hologram cover, so the snowman's face looked meaner or friendlier depending on the angle you held it at. It was a shelf gimmick for a film sold on its monster.

Read the story

Source: moriareviews.com ↗ (opens in a new tab)

Music & sound

Two composers share the score

The music is credited to two people, Chris Anderson and Carl Schurtz, rather than a single composer.

Read the story

Source: moriareviews.com ↗ (opens in a new tab)

And at a glance

The Christmas in it: Snow on screen. Snow is on screen from the opening highway scene, and the killer is a snowman; the dates covered are not stated by the source read.
Releases and certificates: 18 Nov 1997: On disc (US). Released direct to video in the United States.

Sources & a note on these facts

Each production story is linked to its source, in our own words. Ending details stay behind a spoiler reveal.