Review: “Frozen” is Hell on a Ski-Lift
From writer/director Adam Green comes the horror thriller Frozen, a low budget take on the basic premise of three skiers stranded on a ski-lift 45 feet in the air in the midst of a snow storm. Although the concept seems interesting at first, it becomes quickly apparent that it is stretched to the breaking point and simply isn’t enough for this movie to sustain the viewer’s attention over the course of 93 minutes.
Friends Dan (Kevin Zegers) and Joe (Shawn Ashmore) are thrilled to hit the slopes of the fictional Mount Holliston on this fateful Sunday. Unfortunately, Dan’s girlfriend Parker (Emma Bell) isn’t a very good snowboarder, preventing them from making as many run as they would have wanted. The trio decides to make one last run as the station is closing down for the week, coaxing the ski lift operator into the final chair. Through a series of unfortunate misunderstandings, the three are left stranded halfway up the mountain when the lift is shut down for the week. With a snow storm quickly closing in, Dan, Joe, and Parker soon realize the gravity of their predicament as wolves look on menacingly from below.
Adam Green may have potential as a filmmaker but he really locked himself into a corner with such a small concept. The lack of creativity in how the characters deal with their situation is frustrating and so is their lack of common sense. Frozen explores the consequences of doing such idiotic things as jumping 45-ft down onto densely packed snow, leaving your bare hand on a freezing metal bar overnight or trying to race down the slope with a pack of wolves on your tail (does not end well).
Given the minimalistic concept and stationary location, Frozen may look like a B-movie but it actually aspires to be taken seriously. Unfortunately, the script and actors are not up to the task and are brought down by mediocre dialogue that sees the characters bicker aimlessly. It is hard to care for the fate of Dan, Joe and Parker when they become so annoying so quickly. Except for a handful of suspenseful or horrific moments that amp up the tension, the movie seems to drag on with vast period of emptiness that Green is unable to fill.
A lukewarm and straightforward horror flick, Frozen may satisfy horror movie fans but others will find that there isn’t much to do when you are left stranded on a ski-lift on a Sunday night.
C
(5/10)
Lesson of the day: Every ski resort has its own wolf pack hungry for human flesh
Notes: Rated R for some disturbing images and language, 93 minutes.
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20 Comments
I had the exact opposite reaction to this film. I totally expected it to really suck and wound up loving it. I liked the characters and the concept and only found the wolves to be annoying. Without the wolves though it really would have been lacking something so I chose to accept it! HAHA!
Are wolves really that aggressive? Meh, thought the film sucked. Girl was super annoying too.
Let’s just say wolves very rarely ever attack humans, let alone patrol a ski resort looking for breakfast ahah
I think this one is a brutal B-horror movie based on crazy concept which in fact is quite entertaining and gripping.
It should be a B-movie but it wasn’t nearly as campy or fun enough to be one I thought.
The female in the film really almost killed the movie for me entirely. I think as the film got on, even though she got more melodramatic, I warmed up to her. I think they mishandled Shawn Ashmore’s character, especially towards the end. There are some well thought out moments in the screenplay, but also a lot of ‘explaining away’ for things. “Oh, I don’t carry my cell phone when I go skiing. Why? Because it would defeat the purpose of the plot.”
I laughed watching the trailer, which is probably not what the filmmakers are hoping for. I actually presume this looks worse than a C, it’s hard to like a movie when you don’t care for the characters. But it might be extra spooky if I had seen it before a ski trip
The thing that keeps blowing me away that people don’t freak out about is that Frozen stars Iceman! haha… creacks me up.
Personally, I’d probably bump that C to a B but completely understand what you’re saying.
The poster for this movie actually pissed me off a bit as it is a spoiler but I don’t want to ruin it so I’ll shut-up. If you wanna hear my thoughts on it, just check out ep 10 of MILFcast!
Actually the poster is misleading, 2nd dude didn’t do that and 1st dude actually freaking LEAPED like a retard instead letting himself fall. No wonder he got eaten by the wolves!
haha…spoiler alert!
To be honest them pointing out Shawn Ashmore as Iceman just goes to show their narrow vision. We all know deep down he’s really Jake from Animorphs for life!
The trailer made me hesitate to rush to see this one. I think I will be missing this one! Thanks Cap!
btw,
Kaiderman! nice gravatar!
Crap, says me.
I saw this movie. It totally waste of time. Its not at all horror too
I saw the trailer for this and thought how are they going to string out a feature length movie about three people trapped on an ski lift. I’ve already seen one about people trapped on an elevator and it was rubbish – it padded out the story with hundreds of flashbacks, forget the name of it now.
By the sounds of things this film doesn’t quite work. I might give it a go but I doubt I’ll pay to see it.
When I saw the trailer I thought this movie must be a joke, but I rented it anyway and actually liked it. It’s not great, but it held my attention and entertained me. But I can easily see where people wouldn’t like it.
I think a lot of horror-enthusiasts have bumped up the score for this when it shouldn’t be that high.
Hmm, I actually really enjoyed this film, even with all its faults. As Rachel says above, It’s not great, but it did hold my attention and for its running time I was involved in the story – regardless of deficiencies in performances or the limited budget.
Great review though, and I’ll be linking to it when I post my own thoughts on this film.
I don’t think this guy does either “b-movie” or “serious” very well. I was disappointed with both this and Hatchet. I’m curious why he’s seen as “the next big thing” in horror.
I loved it. Taking a very common situation and making it as terrifying as possible is a very interesting concept, and I think it works in Frozen.
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