>  Exactly. How long it keeps, and at what temperature, depend on
>  how fussy you are about contrast and color balance. If it has
>  a good expiration date when you buy it, keep it in the freezer
>  and it'll stay good almost forever. Just remember not to open
>  the package until it reaches room temperature.

The main thing about film aging is the color balance. That is, the
largest changes over time are in color balance, it also gets
'slower', and builds up a level of fogging ("pre-exposure").
The latter are usually very small until LONG after the expiration
date- years typically.
"consumer" film is usually shipped before before the color balance
is correct, presuming the film will sit for some period of time at
room temperature in the store.
"professional" film is shipped at the correct color balance and it's
expected to be stored cold.
If you happen to buy a few cases of really "fresh" consumer film,
you should probably store it a month or so at room temperature
before storing it in freezer.  Stored in a freezer (0 F), the film
will last far longer than the expiration date.