Disney’s ‘Frozen,’ in time: Adult screening, sing-along caters to popular film’s growing audience

Maybe it was the quirky animated characters — or the number of people posting homemade versions of the song “Let it Go” on Facebook — but Disney’s “Frozen” seems to have maintained its buzz a year after its release. And that’s not just among the shorter set.

Kristen Yoder and her husband, Eric, of Bellefonte, recently saw the movie for the first time, watching it in segments appropriate for their 14-month-old daughter Sydney’s attention span.

Eventually, they found themselves sneaking to see what happens to Elsa and Anna while Sydney slept.

“Then there we were — my husband and I sitting on the couch on a Saturday night at 9:30 because we wanted to know how it ended,” Kristen said. “It reminded me of old-school Disney. Lately, we’ve had ‘Cars’ and ‘Planes’ kind of movies, but this was more along the lines of what I know to be Disney. I think it definitely had the classic Disney setup of the good guys and the bad guys and the love story for the girls. This was more like the Disney that I grew up with.”

The Yoders caved and watched the movie a few weeks ago, after friends with daughters convinced them they were missing out. Even their nephews urged them to give it a try.

“The boys are into it as much as the girls,” Kristen said. “Our friends’ daughters are addicted to ‘Frozen’ and are always talking about Elsa and Olaf, always singing ‘Let it Go’ and asking me to sing it with them. They couldn’t believe I didn’t know the words.”

She and her husband know a few now and find themselves singing to Sydney around the house. They ad lib when necessary.

The Yoders aren’t the only ones with the urge to belt out the catchy songs, according to Carla Fisher, director of marketing and creative design for the Community Arts Center in Williamsport.

The center will host its first-ever sing-along when it shows the “Frozen Sing-a-Long” movie Dec. 13. Fisher said adults have been calling about the event for months. The movie, which will feature the words on screen — for those who need a little help — is part of the center’s annual Christmas Spectacular Event.

“We started getting calls in June, when our season brochure went out — even though we said there are no advanced purchases,” she said. “This movie seems to have almost a cult following. People are still talking about it.”

The music seems to be part of the popularity, Fisher said, pointing out that it propelled singer-songwriter Idina Menzel to stardom, even though she had been singing on Broadway for years.

“I think maybe social media helped,” Fisher said. “I remember seeing all the videos of kids doing the renditions of ‘Let it Go.’ The song definitely took off.”

A winning soundtrack is can make a movie’s appeal linger, said Lisa Shaffer, a 28-year-old Rebersburg resident who watched the movie in January with two friends. She said she found herself crying 10 minutes into the experience. Shaffer, also is a library assistant at Centre County Library in Bellefonte, and she organizes the library’s monthly film discussion group, geared toward adults.

The group will watch “Frozen” at 1 p.m. Dec. 5. This screening comes after a documentary on steroids and performance-enhancing drugs last month.

“I thought, ‘It’s December, and it’s dreary and cold,’ ” Shaffer said. “We’ll watch something fun and animated. Aside from the music, it just has great characters and a wide range of characters. You know their names.”

Though the film is lighthearted, Shaffer said it should raise some interesting discussion.

“It has been a year since it’s been out, and it’s still timely,” she said. “The film is still present in everyone’s mind. ‘Frozen’ is everywhere. I thought, ‘Let’s look at it from a filmmaking perspective and what it has to offer to the history of film and animation.’ I thought we could make some great discussion about women’s roles in animated film. It shows a little more realistic portrayal of how girls are, similar to the movie ‘Brave’ with a strong, independent girl.”

The the warming theme of family and sibling bonds is worth exploring, too, Shaffer said.

“I know a lot of people who have watched it,” she said. “Most of my friends — only one whom has a child — really like it. I don’t know anyone who hasn’t.”

This story was originally published December 5, 2014 at 7:36 AM with the headline "Disney’s ‘Frozen,’ in time: Adult screening, sing-along caters to popular film’s growing audience."