Father and child sit together smiling while looking at a smart phone.

Want more recommendations for your family?

Sign up for our weekly newsletter for entertainment inspiration

Parents' Guide to

Frozen

By Jeffrey Anderson, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 17+

Chilling tale is gory, but less so than other horror movies.

Movie R 2010 93 minutes
Frozen Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this movie.

Community Reviews

See all
age 14+

Based on 9 parent reviews

Braxton C.
Braxton C. Adult
February 6, 2023
age 13+

Don’t recommend

This was a very annoying movie to watch there was almost no realistic features at all and the characters ignorance topped it all 1/10 do not recommend
Gorilla G Swagger
Gorilla G Swagger Adult
May 7, 2021
age 14+

Another great film from Adam Green

This was one of my first horror films and how Adam Green became one of my favourite filmmakers. This movie is a lot more serious and less comedic than his Hatchet series or other works, but I love that he went that direction for this film. Most survival movies suck (Like cough "Open Water" cough) but this is one I enjoy
See all 9 parent reviews

What's the Story?

College student Dan (Kevin Zegers), his best friend Joe (Shawn Ashmore), and his girlfriend Parker (Emma Bell) go for a weekend ski trip. Since Parker is a beginner, they spend most of the day on the bunny hills. As night -- and a storm -- approach, they decide for one last big run. Unfortunately, due to a series of misunderstandings, and the fact that they bribed their way onto the lift rather than buying tickets, they are left stranded halfway up the mountain as the resort closes down for the week. The lift is terribly high, and it's terribly cold. The cable is razor-sharp, and there are wolves in the woods. How will the trio get out of this chilling situation?

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (9 ):
Kids say (30 ):

Director Adam Green broke into the horror genre with the comic slasher film Hatchet, which was made with just the right attitude, and it's a good deal of fun. His follow-up Frozen is more serious and not as much fun. The suspense is definitely there, and it can be excruciating. But it's almost an empty exercise, as there's not much meat to the film itself.

For one thing, the characters never seem very smart, and they remain almost constantly two jumps behind the audience. (Some of the situations they get themselves into can be irritating.) Additionally, the idea of a stuck lift chair isn't very visually dynamic. So Green relies on a lot of sitting-and-talking sequences to break up the suspense, and while these are sometimes pleasant, they're not exactly Shakespeare. In other words, the movie has a good flow, and it understands how to generate thrills, but the characters, situation, and dialogue are stretched a bit thin.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about the ways in which this problem could have been averted. Could better communication have helped? Better listening?

  • How did the movie's violence affect you? Was it scary? Which was the most horrifying part? Did you notice if some of the violent events took place onscreen, or offscreen?

  • The three characters in the film have an awkward relationship. The two boys are best friends, and the girlfriend of one boy is trying not to come between them. Have you ever experienced this kind of romantic tension in real life?

Movie Details

Did we miss something on diversity?

Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by suggesting a diversity update.

See all recommended movie lists

Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are created by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners.

See how we rate