10 Greatest Ice Skating Movies of All Time, Ranked

There have been countless American heroines in the world of Olympic figure skating. In such a beautiful sport, it's hard to imagine there being anything but positive figures. But in 1994, we met the most notorious figure skating villain by the name of Tonya Harding. Rather than a fact-based dark recreation of the biggest scandal in Olympic history, director Craig Gillespie satirized the moment in a brilliantly distinctive fashion with I, Tonya. The story begins in 1991 when Tonya Harding (Margot Robbie) became the first American woman to complete a triple axel in competition. Jumping ahead to 1994, after putting herself on the map and earning a place on the Olympic team, her world comes crashing down around her when her ex-husband, Jeff Gillooly (Sebastian Stan), conspires to injure fellow Olympic hopeful, Nancy Kerrigan (Caitlin Caver). The poorly conceived plot forces Tonya to face the consequences, leading her to withdraw from the national championship and forever impairing her life and legacy.

Through fourth-wall-breaking, "fact-based" interviews, I, Tonya is more than just a dark comedy that tapped into dark times — it's a rich psychological study of the fight for fame and glory, and the lengths one will go to for monetary gain. Though it was Allison Janney who earned gold at the Academy Awards, Robbie established herself as a podium-topper in Hollywood. While it may seem counterintuitive to give the gold to a film about a dark stain on the sport, there is simply no denying the brilliance of I, Tonya as a film.

The early aughts in comedy were dominated by Will Ferrell. Willingly going full force for hilarity, the former Saturday Night Live star was famous for bringing larger-than-life characters to the big screen for belly-laugh comedies. A year following his comedy on the racetrack, Ferrell joined forces with Napoleon Dynamite star Jon Heder for a figure skating comedy called Blades of Glory. Directed by Will Speck and Josh Gordon, the sports comedy follows two rival figure skaters, the crude Chazz Michael Michaels (Ferrell) and the refined Jimmy MacElroy (Heder), who are banned for life from men's singles after a fight. They exploit a loophole in the rules to team up as the first-ever male-male pairs skating team, attempting to overcome their intense mutual dislike to win gold. The epitome of an odd-couple underdog story, Blades of Glory lampooned the sport while capitalizing on our adoration of the athletes who compete in it.

Though it may fall in the middle of the pack of Ferrell films, Blades of Glory is exceptional for what it is. The plot is chintzy, but the duo goes all out to earn high marks. With a brilliant ensemble beside them, including Jenna Fischer, William Fitchner, and Will Arnett and Amy Poehler as the rival duo Stranz and Fairchild Van Waldenberg, Blades of Glory has no shortage of laughs, even though they're beyond predictable. The film may have been a comedy, but it contained a biting commentary that questions why same-sex pairs are still absent from Olympic sports. Perhaps Blades of Glory was ahead of its time!

If you haven't seen Ice Castles, you've most certainly heard of it. Perhaps the most romantic sports drama of all time, the film by Donald Wyre follows Lexie Winston (Lynn-Holly Johnson), a talented 16-year-old figure skater from Iowa whose rapid ascent to stardom is shattered when a training accident leaves her blind. With the support of her boyfriend, Nick Peterson (Robby Benson), she overcomes despair to skate again, competing in a national championship while navigating her new reality. As a triumphant story of overcoming adversity through determination and love, Ice Castles is a beautiful film that uses the sport as an entry point.

Perhaps you can hear the film thanks to Melissa Manchester’s Oscar-nominated song, “Through the Eyes of Love.” The song is a true representation of the film. Ice Castle portrays the pressure of Olympic training as a truly uphill battle. But we don't come to Ice Castles for the sport; it's all about the romance. Ice Castles lays the sentimentality on thick, so it's advised to keep a box of tissues handy while you watch.

Perhaps the gold medal-winning figure skating rom-com belongs to 1992’s The Cutting Edge. Directed by Paul Michael Glaser, the story follows Kate Moseley (Moira Kelly), a spoiled, temperamental Olympic-level figure skater, and Doug Dorsey (D.B. Sweeney), a gritty, injured hockey player forced to pair up for Olympic figure skating. They head to the 1992 Winter Games in Albertsville, France, where romance and conflict unite for a climactic battle against the Soviet pair, Smilkov and Brushkin (Christine Hough and Doug Ladret). The most notorious non-Cold War battle between the two nations, The Cutting Edge’s ability to blend a sports drama with a witty, character-driven romance has made it a cinema staple.

For those who love love, there is a sizzling and electric chemistry between Sweeney and Kelly, and they fit into the rom-com tropes that sparked a fever in the '90s. And yet, they were inherently flawed and prideful. From banter about the toe pick to the smooth evolution into lovers, The Cutting Edge wouldn't be as successful without them. Though those seeking authenticity on the ice will be disappointed, the truth is, The Cutting Edge is romance first, sports second.

The Walt Disney Company celebrates making dreams a reality, and this film certainly fits the theme! In 2005’s Ice Princess, Casey Carlyle (Michelle Trachtenberg), a brainy high school student, abandons an academic future at Harvard to pursue her newfound dream of figure skating. Using her knowledge of physics to improve her techniques, she trains under a former champion (Kim Cattrall) to compete against elite skaters. Though it underperformed at the box office, it earned a great following and legacy.

Filled with classic Disney tropes and an optimistically positive outlook, Ice Princess was a formulaic, cliche-ridden film that only pulled through thanks to Trachtenberg's leading lady prowess alongside the seasoned Catrall and Joan Cusack. Looking back, Ice Princess was also responsible for giving us a young Hayden Panettiere, too. The legacy of the film surpassed its initial run. Following Trachtenberg’s untimely death, many figure skaters cited the film as inspiring their own careers.

Sometimes, the best action happens before the big games. Such is the case in the 2001 comedy On Edge. Told through the eyes of Zamboni Phil (Jason Alexander), three cold-hearted rivals train and plot as they fight their way to Olympic glory. But first, they have to win the Regional Competition, where only one can come out victorious. Will it be the beautiful ice princess with the overbearing mother, Veda Tilman (Barret Swatek)? Or maybe plus-size skater with the plus-size libido Wendy Wodinski (Marissa Jaret Winokur)? Or could it be J.C. Cain (A.J. Langer), the orphaned trailer park girl who'd gladly trade you a pack of smokes for a sequined thong? A comedy that satirizes the competitive behind-the-scenes drama of the sport, On Edge gives you all the melodrama that comes with rivalries.

Silly from start to finish, On Edge is an endearing film that puts the sport into the spotlight. With on-point performances that are scarily accurate, On Edge is a film that's essentially been lost to time, save for every four years when figure skating is back in the headlines. Looking back on it today, On Edge is a fun watch that shows a young Winokour around the time of her rise to fame in Hairspray.

What's wild is that Go Figure came out the same year as a film that will later appear on this list. The difference was that the other film got a theatrical release, while this one joined the brilliant Disney Channel Original Movie family. And as many of us in the DCOM generation are aware, those movies slap. The beloved film follows Katelin Kingsford (Jordan Hinson), a 14-year-old figure skater who dreams of Olympic glory. But there's a catch: To train with top Russian coach Natasha Goberman (Cristine Rose), she must accept a scholarship at a private school and join its hockey team. There, she learns teamwork as she balances both sports. Bringing the value of friendship, fitting in, and defeating bullies to the forefront, Go Figure truly is a tale of found family.

One fun Easter egg is that Olympic champion Kristi Yamaguchi appears as herself. Like many similar DCOMs at the time, the film had a target demographic, and boy, did they strike gold. The film even had its own dedicated soundtrack that featured some popular artists of the time, including Bowling For Soup and Everlife. Oh, and the best Easter egg on that soundtrack came in the form of a song called “She Said” by a young actress and one-time DCOM star Brie Larson. Yes, that Brie Larson. Go Figure is certainly a film of its time, but for fans of multiple ice sports, it offers the best of both worlds.

Our first entry in the hockey and figure skating crossover event is Ice Angel, a made-for-television film for the now-defunct Fox Family. The fantasy film follows a cocky male Olympic hockey player, Matt Clark (Aaron Smolinski), who dies in an accident, only to be reincarnated into the body of a female figure skater, Sara Bryan (Nicholle Tom), at the hands of angel Allen (Brendan Beiser). He must navigate his new life, learn figure skating from a rival, and compete in the Olympics to achieve his dream of winning gold. A light-hearted comedy about death and second chances, Ice Angel plays off reincarnation through the guise of a body-swap feature under the pretense of walking in someone else’s shoes.

Filled with clichés, Ice Angel is a family fantasy film, so expect the cheese. With quippy banter, silly situations, but a moral at the end of the story, Ice Angel does exactly what it sets out to do. If you enjoy sports films where icons of the ice make a cameo, Ice Angel delivers not one but two gold medalists, Tara Lipinski and Nancy Kerrigan! And no, they don't play themselves, so take that as a warning.

The second of four films, The Cutting Edge: Going for the Gold tells the story of Jackie Dorsey (Christy Carlson Romano), the daughter of the original film's protagonists, who must find a new partner after an injury. She teams up with Alex Harrison (Ross Thomas), a cocky, talented inline skater, and together, they overcome their clashing personalities to train for Olympic gold. Swapping out ice hockey for inline skating, The Cutting Edge: Going for the Gold plays into the love-hate stereotype for a fun film with a more youthful edge.

Now, diehard fans of the original film may feel this sequel is a tad off, and that's because of the continuity issues. The first film was set between 1988 and 1992, while The Cutting Edge: Going for the Gold is set leading up to the 2006 Winter Olympics in Torino, making Jackie 14 years old, which doesn't quite fit the story. Instead, one of the stars, Stepfanie Kramer, revealed in the original's DVD extras that the sequel is set "more than 20 years after the events of the original," effectively creating retroactive continuity. Nevertheless, no matter when it's set, a real-life legend appears in the film (a trend we’ll see much of on this list), as Oksana Baiul, a 1994 gold medalist, appears in the film as a commentator. It's not as good as the original, but the spirit is still maintained.

Coming straight out of Canada is a figure skating movie inspired by a real story, Kiss and Cry. The biopic follows 18-year-old Canadian singer and figure skater Carley Allison (Sarah Fisher), who is diagnosed with a rare form of throat cancer. The film depicts her fight against the disease, her determination to continue singing, her relationship with boyfriend, John Servinis (Luke Bilyk), and her effort to remain positive against all odds. An examination of fighting terminal illness through courage and resilience, Kiss and Cry goes beyond the ice to tell a bittersweet tale.

As a lesser-known story, Kiss and Cry is a reminder that not only mainstream stories deserve to be told. Carley's story packs an emotional gutpunch. You're essentially hit with a wallop from the start, waiting for either the inevitable or a miracle. What makes Kiss and Cry a unique film is its personal feel, and here's why: One of the most fascinating elements of the film was that Fisher was the real-life best friend of Carley Allison. As she shared at the time, "It was therapeutic to get to tell her story because I lived quite a bit of it with her. It didn't feel like I was playing a character at all." Named after the booth where skaters sit as they await their scores, you'd best have tissues handy when watching Kiss and Cry, as you'll certainly be doing a lot of the latter.