Apocalypse Snow

Even if you don’t recall the original Apocalypse Snow (1983), if you’re a lifelong skier, chances are you’ve seen footage of it. The first in a trilogy of 1980s films by French filmmaker Didier Lafond is nothing short of epic: one part comic-book fantasy, one part Les Arcs resort promo reel, and one part snowboarding vs. monoskiing duel. Even with a small glimpse of the costumes, the crazy chase sequences, and the Zorb (a giant see-through ball inside which some unlucky soul rolls down the slopes), you may well ask yourself: What kind of drugs do they have in Europe that the rest of the world doesn’t? 

The original Apocalypse Snow is a cult classic—Power Rangers meets alpine James Bond—and it showcases nearly every type of glisse known to man. Regis Rolland, Europe’s snowboard pioneer, is the protagonist star, and to see him charging the steep couloirs and open bowls of Les Arcs is impressive. Equally impressive, though far more cheesy, is the army of bad guys on monoskis who chase him everywhere.

“This was at a time when ski resorts in France had so much power,” Lafond says, “and the guy running Les Arcs was a guy named Alain Gaimard. He realized that this new way to ski, to snowboard, was going to be famous, and he wanted to really promote it. They would shut down the cable car [to the public] and run it just for us, to make the film. It was incredible.”