Post by Rob W. Case on Dec 24, 2023 17:14:01 GMT -6
It is exceptionally rare when an original film is released, and it amasses such a following that it becomes not only a “modern classic”, but it continues to work its magic decades later. It’s even rarer when that film is a Christmas one, since there are so many Christmas classics, decades old, that continues to be sought after by fans and newcomers, growing its audience, and in turn competing with the greatest Christmas classics of all time. This is another rare exception. When Elf was made, it was produced on a $33-million-dollar budget, and when it was released in November of 2003, it earned a whopping $225.1 million dollars during its theatrical run. Since then, it has become a classic that has grown its audience exponentially. Elf, according to Forbes, is the number one Christmas movie of 2023, 20 years after its initial release.
The Story:
The story begins much like one of those Rankin-Bass Claymation Christmas stories where we are brought to the North Pole, and through the forests of candy canes and gumdrops, we are brought to Santa’s workshop, where elves are busy making toys and trying to have ready by Christmas Eve. We are then told the backstory of Buddy (Will Ferrell), of how when he was a baby, Santa (Ed Asner) visited an orphanage to deliver toys, and at the sight of a teddy bear, baby Buddy ended up in the sack of toys, and was brought to the North Pole. When Santa discovered what happened, he put Buddy in the care of whom Buddy would refer to as Papa Elf (Bob Newhart).
Buddy’s enormous size, compared to all the elves made him strangely odd in their midst, though they treat Buddy like one of their own. One day, Buddy overhears his superior Ming Ming (Peter Billingsley) talk to another elf about Buddy being human, and the blow of the reality hits him. Papa Elf sees Buddy upset, and chooses to tell him everything. When he learns that his father, Walter Hobbs (James Caan) works as a publisher of children’s books at the Empire State Building in New York City, Buddy sets out on a journey to find him. When Buddy reaches the city, he, in his elf clothes, discovers for the first time, things, machines, objects, the culture, and more, that most people do and use on a daily basis. From there, you have a string of hilarious situations.
When Buddy finally meets his dad in his regular elf clothes, he looks like a costumed freak, and Walter doesn’t believe what he is seeing and hearing. When Buddy explains to Walter how he is his son, Walter thinks he’s nuts and calls security. After the security guards mockingly tell Buddy to go back to Gimbel’s department store, Buddy actually visits Gimbel’s Department store, and is mistakenly thought to be an employee wandering around. When Buddy is approached by Gimbel’s manager (Faizon Love) to “get back to work” on the floor where their Department store Santa and North Pole setup display is, Buddy gets overly excited to hear that Santa will be visiting the store. Buddy’s crazed enthusiasm raises the eyebrows of the manager. In his quest at Gimbel’s Department Store, Buddy meets a woman by the name of Jovie (Zooey Deschanel), a shy worker who can really sing, and whom Buddy takes a liking to.
After being persistent in his pursuit to convince his dad that Buddy is his son, Walter has a sample of Buddy’s blood taken so that a DNA test can be run. When it comes back that Walter is Buddy’s father, Buddy is invited to Walter’s house, where he meets Walter’s wife Emily (Mary Steenburgen) and his son Michael (Daniel Tay). This sets a string of hilarious situations revolving around Buddy’s eating habits, how he acts, how he reacts, and how he uses his ingenuity as an elf to decorate his dad’s apartment.
Meanwhile at work, Walter is under the gun to produce a children’s book for the first quarter, and has to pitch it to his boss by Christmas Eve. He tries everything to make this happen, including calling in man with fresh ideas who happens to be a “person of short stature”. Buddy mistakes him for an elf from the North Pole, and the man goes after Buddy. After the debacle, Walter throws Buddy out, and it is where the things that appear most difficult, yield opportunity to highlight Buddy’s purpose and all that’s needed to bring the spirit of Christmas back to all around him, including the city of New York.
My Take:
When this movie first came out, I did not have an interest in seeing it because I did not like Will Ferrell. I hated Saturday Night Live in the late 90’s and when I tried to watch it, I thought that the cast and jokes were more stupid than stupid funny. Over the years however, I started seeing him in movies that I ended up giving him a chance in and liking (like Stepbrothers and The Lego Movie), and from there I started to somewhat keep a bit of an open mind about him. Last year a group of friends, one whose taste I trust when it comes to movies (since we have so many likes in common) recommended this movie to me, and said it was hilarious and I had to see it. One of my friends said that I would love it. And so, I gave it a try, and she was right. I found myself laughing hard and out loud all throughout the movie. In other words, I loved it.
The film was directed by Jon Favreau, who was in TV shows I love like The King of Queens and Seinfeld, and has made a name for himself as a producer and a director. He was in the movie Iron Man 3, and was in some of the Avengers movies and Spider-man films starring Tom Holland. He also has a cameo appearance in this film as the doctor who takes Buddy’s blood sample, as he is undergoing a DNA test. In other words, Favreau is a talented guy who knows his audience, and this movie is such a testament to that fact, that its appeal continues to grow annually.
Another factor I loved in this movie was the supreme effectiveness of what they call in comedy the “straight man” effect. James Caan is a very famous actor whose career was built playing serious, dramatic, tough-guy type roles. Caan was in The Godfather, The Godfather Part II, and Misery just to name a few. When you pair him with the silly, childlike actions of Will Farrell, the situations and scenarios end up becoming extremely funny and spontaneous. James Caan pretty much plays the same type of role that he played in his serious roles, while Will Ferrell plays a man who came from the North Pole to visit his “daddy”. But apart from that, the spontaneous, unpredictable scenes, jokes, situations, and circumstances that arise, makes this movie fresh and lively, adding so much to its charm and appeal. In other words, when you watch Elf, you know you will be watching something that makes you laugh, and that is a special and unique.
Elf is rated PG and runs 1 hour and 37 minutes
To view a trailer for the film, please click on the “Play” button below.
Elf is available on the physical formats of VHS, DVD, Blu-Ray, and 4K-UHD, and is also available on multiple streaming sites, all of which can be accessed HERE.
The Story:
The story begins much like one of those Rankin-Bass Claymation Christmas stories where we are brought to the North Pole, and through the forests of candy canes and gumdrops, we are brought to Santa’s workshop, where elves are busy making toys and trying to have ready by Christmas Eve. We are then told the backstory of Buddy (Will Ferrell), of how when he was a baby, Santa (Ed Asner) visited an orphanage to deliver toys, and at the sight of a teddy bear, baby Buddy ended up in the sack of toys, and was brought to the North Pole. When Santa discovered what happened, he put Buddy in the care of whom Buddy would refer to as Papa Elf (Bob Newhart).
Buddy’s enormous size, compared to all the elves made him strangely odd in their midst, though they treat Buddy like one of their own. One day, Buddy overhears his superior Ming Ming (Peter Billingsley) talk to another elf about Buddy being human, and the blow of the reality hits him. Papa Elf sees Buddy upset, and chooses to tell him everything. When he learns that his father, Walter Hobbs (James Caan) works as a publisher of children’s books at the Empire State Building in New York City, Buddy sets out on a journey to find him. When Buddy reaches the city, he, in his elf clothes, discovers for the first time, things, machines, objects, the culture, and more, that most people do and use on a daily basis. From there, you have a string of hilarious situations.
When Buddy finally meets his dad in his regular elf clothes, he looks like a costumed freak, and Walter doesn’t believe what he is seeing and hearing. When Buddy explains to Walter how he is his son, Walter thinks he’s nuts and calls security. After the security guards mockingly tell Buddy to go back to Gimbel’s department store, Buddy actually visits Gimbel’s Department store, and is mistakenly thought to be an employee wandering around. When Buddy is approached by Gimbel’s manager (Faizon Love) to “get back to work” on the floor where their Department store Santa and North Pole setup display is, Buddy gets overly excited to hear that Santa will be visiting the store. Buddy’s crazed enthusiasm raises the eyebrows of the manager. In his quest at Gimbel’s Department Store, Buddy meets a woman by the name of Jovie (Zooey Deschanel), a shy worker who can really sing, and whom Buddy takes a liking to.
After being persistent in his pursuit to convince his dad that Buddy is his son, Walter has a sample of Buddy’s blood taken so that a DNA test can be run. When it comes back that Walter is Buddy’s father, Buddy is invited to Walter’s house, where he meets Walter’s wife Emily (Mary Steenburgen) and his son Michael (Daniel Tay). This sets a string of hilarious situations revolving around Buddy’s eating habits, how he acts, how he reacts, and how he uses his ingenuity as an elf to decorate his dad’s apartment.
Meanwhile at work, Walter is under the gun to produce a children’s book for the first quarter, and has to pitch it to his boss by Christmas Eve. He tries everything to make this happen, including calling in man with fresh ideas who happens to be a “person of short stature”. Buddy mistakes him for an elf from the North Pole, and the man goes after Buddy. After the debacle, Walter throws Buddy out, and it is where the things that appear most difficult, yield opportunity to highlight Buddy’s purpose and all that’s needed to bring the spirit of Christmas back to all around him, including the city of New York.
My Take:
When this movie first came out, I did not have an interest in seeing it because I did not like Will Ferrell. I hated Saturday Night Live in the late 90’s and when I tried to watch it, I thought that the cast and jokes were more stupid than stupid funny. Over the years however, I started seeing him in movies that I ended up giving him a chance in and liking (like Stepbrothers and The Lego Movie), and from there I started to somewhat keep a bit of an open mind about him. Last year a group of friends, one whose taste I trust when it comes to movies (since we have so many likes in common) recommended this movie to me, and said it was hilarious and I had to see it. One of my friends said that I would love it. And so, I gave it a try, and she was right. I found myself laughing hard and out loud all throughout the movie. In other words, I loved it.
The film was directed by Jon Favreau, who was in TV shows I love like The King of Queens and Seinfeld, and has made a name for himself as a producer and a director. He was in the movie Iron Man 3, and was in some of the Avengers movies and Spider-man films starring Tom Holland. He also has a cameo appearance in this film as the doctor who takes Buddy’s blood sample, as he is undergoing a DNA test. In other words, Favreau is a talented guy who knows his audience, and this movie is such a testament to that fact, that its appeal continues to grow annually.
Another factor I loved in this movie was the supreme effectiveness of what they call in comedy the “straight man” effect. James Caan is a very famous actor whose career was built playing serious, dramatic, tough-guy type roles. Caan was in The Godfather, The Godfather Part II, and Misery just to name a few. When you pair him with the silly, childlike actions of Will Farrell, the situations and scenarios end up becoming extremely funny and spontaneous. James Caan pretty much plays the same type of role that he played in his serious roles, while Will Ferrell plays a man who came from the North Pole to visit his “daddy”. But apart from that, the spontaneous, unpredictable scenes, jokes, situations, and circumstances that arise, makes this movie fresh and lively, adding so much to its charm and appeal. In other words, when you watch Elf, you know you will be watching something that makes you laugh, and that is a special and unique.
Elf is rated PG and runs 1 hour and 37 minutes
To view a trailer for the film, please click on the “Play” button below.
Elf is available on the physical formats of VHS, DVD, Blu-Ray, and 4K-UHD, and is also available on multiple streaming sites, all of which can be accessed HERE.