What happens when you blend fantasy with reality? You get a dream-like landscape where the two realms are so closely related that you can’t split the differences. This is what happens in Lucile Hadžihalilović’s latest work, The Ice Tower (2025). Alternatively titled, La Tour De Glace, the French subtitled film sparks reminiscence to Guillermo del Toro’s imaginatively powerful, Pan’s Labyrinth (2006). A film which also blurred lines between the protagonist’s fantasy world and the real world that surrounds them. As an audience, we’re tainted with their views, and this creates a maze-like spiral of a dreamscape thrown into a harsh down-to-earth tone.
The Ice Tower
Set in 1970s France, The Ice Tower follows fifteen-year-old Jeanne (Clara Pacini) who yearns for a better today. Carving out her own future, she takes a trip far, far away from the cold orphanage that she has clearly never called ‘home.’ Travelling into the city, we witness the dangers of being a young woman. Especially when no one helps her, and there’s looming danger around every corner in the night-time.
However, she eventually finds a temporary place to settle until the lights are turned on and snow falls around her. They’re mid-shoot filming The Snow Queen in a film studio. Leading the show is Hollywood actress, Cristina (Marion Cotillard) who plays the Snow Queen herself, but the actress seemingly has everyone under her icy spell. Jeanne is fascinated and enchanted by Cristina’s strong performance and ability to control the film set.
But Cristina is just as cold as the character she plays as she takes runaway orphan, Jeanne (Clara Pacini) under her wing. Jeanne is just trying to find her place in the world but is encapsulated by the enchanting nature of Cristina. But with Cristina always getting her own way, their developing bond soon turns toxic. Jeanne’s coming-of-age fantasy tale marks the harsh reality of young womanhood.
Imaginative Coming-of-age Story
But as Jeanne becomes increasingly controlled under Cristina’s wing, her journey to be free is becoming further constricted. Particularly when Cristina uses Jeanne’s past and the loss of her mother as a way to further control her. Throughout the story, Jeanne clutches a broken necklace and holds the beads close to her heart. Later on, we soon learn the significance of the object which follows her through each stage of her journey through self-discovery. It’s an object that has such a special meaning that it leaves you with images of empathy.
The Ice Tower is a twisty narrative that is at times hallucinating and a little hard to follow. During the screening, the story seemed magical and all-consuming. But post-watch, feelings for the film have been slightly conflicting on whether it was too overtly dreamy. Sometimes the dream sequences inside Jeanne’s mind are mixed with the real scenes and it’s difficult to tell them apart. Many of the scenes are fairly repetitive which at times means we lose focus of Jeanne’s goal.
Roaming Free From the Snow Queen’s Icy Chains
Undeniably there’s some brilliant acting here. Of course, Oscar-winning actress, Marion Cotillard brings her all to the role. But this comes as no surprise as we’re so used to seeing her bring excellence to the screen. She plays a controlling Hollywood leading star who changes the filming schedule based on her own needs. The cast and crew of the film tip-toe around her – scared of her power and control. She’s a typical villain.
Cristina’s coercion brings even more danger as Jeanne becomes backed into a corner full of conceit and manipulation. She’s finally been given a chance in her world. Jeanne feels seen and heard and she enjoys this feeling. But she knows it won’t last forever. Once filming has wrapped up for The Snow Queen, Jeanne is left in a place of uncertainty yet again. It’s a cyclical narrative for her as she questions if she’ll ever leave her past behind and break free from her orphan chains?
Clara Pacini showcases quietly resonant brilliant acting to bring Jeanne’s story to life. Especially considering it’s her debut role. Emotional storytelling is what Clara Pacini excels at bringing to The Ice Tower. It’s a small cast but they still manage to dominate the screen. Even though the story is fantastical, there’s still some very real elements to the story. If we take Clara’s journey through self-discovery, we learn that through Cristina she finds a parental figure. It’s almost giving her a second chance at having a mother and experiencing a family connection. But just like ice, it soon breaks apart as Jeanne learns that Cristina is not at all who she really seems. For when you break the Snow Queen, you get the full force of her icy nature.
The Ice Tower – A Magically Spellbinding Tale
Yet what brings such a delight to Lucile Hadžihalilović’s fantasy-drama is through the magically spellbinding set design by Julia Irribarriaand and the beautifully imaginative cinematography by Jonathan Ricquebourg. Tilted camera angles and swirly crystals give the illusion that we are in an imaginative fairytale just like Jeanne. Positioned in her character’s perspective, we too become manipulated and captured under the spell and deceitful Hollywood methods of Cristina.
A snowy, chilly feeling plays throughout, and the ending is left ambiguous. Much like the narrative itself, we’re left reeling on whether Jeanne truly breaks free from the icy chains of the Snow Queen? But back at the orphanage, Jeanne promises her friend that she’ll be back with a crystal from the Snow Queen. A promise which is a running plotline throughout as we desperately hope Jeanne will come back and escape the cold wrath of Cristina.
So many different themes play throughout the story from a Hitchcock-style voyeurism and a powerful use of authority to highlighting money and class division and a coming-of-age tale. Jeanne’s dramatic character arc sees her change from a child with a vivid imagination to a young adult who is trying to find her place in the real world. She has a dream, and it plays out. But not so much as she had hoped.
Beautiful Imagery Full of Child-like Wonder
Behind The Ice Tower is quite a simple story with pretty imagery which evokes a child-like wonder. There’s an attempt to bring the audience back to their own childhoods somewhat to imagine ourselves in Jeanne’s position. For we watch an orphan who travels far away to meet a character she has built up in her own imagination. But for the dreams to actually come true when she meets a Hollywood actress playing the Snow Queen on a film set. Essentially, in terms of metafiction – The Ice Tower plays as a film within a film.
There’s some really powerful imagery that leaves images in your mind long after the viewing. A striking scene with a crow brings memories of Hitchcock’s cinematic style. Just think back to the violent nature of The Birds (1963). There’s hints of horror with an eerie darkness, shadows, and images of blood. But ultimately The Ice Tower perhaps blurs the line between reality and fantasy a little too much, leaving us slightly puzzled on what to believe and what to leave behind in Jeanne’s creative fantasy world.
Rating: 3/5 stars
The Ice Tower (2025) is released in UK cinemas 21 November 2025.
You can read more reviews like this such as, Freakier Friday (2025) here.
