Elf Is Pressiely (Elf (DVD))

Member Name: marandina

Product:	Elf (DVD)
Date:	02/12/03 (65 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Very funny, Children will love it

Disadvantages: PG cert, Lame fx at times

Someone once said that there are two certainties in life - death and taxes. When they worked this one out, they forgot to factor in the third certainty at Christmas time, the annual Yuletide children's movie. And so it was that I entered the auditorium, flanked by my children intent on sampling this year's latest celluloid offering.
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Principle cast:
Buddy ~ Will Ferrell
James Caan ~ Walter
Bob Newhart ~ Papa Elf
Edward Asner ~ Santa
Mary Steenburgen ~ Emily
Zooey Deschanuel ~ Jovie
Peter Dinklage ~ Mile Finch

Director: Jon Favreau
Writing credits: David Berenbaum
Running Time : 95 mins
Cert: PG
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Elf is this year's big studio offering from the New Line Cinema stable. The story opens with Papa Elf (the legendary Bob Newhart, no less) telling a sage-like tale from his rocking chair. Seasonal angst is par for the course and usually comes served with metaphorical roast turkey and trimmings. In this instance, a baby wanders into Santa's sack whilst the bearded icon is swigging his millionth drop of sherry as well as nibbling yet another mince pie.

On returning to Santa HQ, the unexpected and first return of the year is found in the form of baby Buddy. Faced with this dilemma, Santa allows the baby to stay in the North Pole facing the inevitable if only gainful employment in later years as a toy-making elf.

Buddy grows up with the increasing realisation that he isn't like the other boys, I mean Elfs (Elves? Sorry, Tolkien argument), whilst becoming the victim of a polite but cruel smear campaign by the other elves. On discovering, courtesy of on overheard conversation that he may not be an elf at all, he decides to make his way to New York to discover who his real f
ather is (the fact that he has grown to around 6'5" rather gave the game away).

Elf is the latest in a long line of festive offerings that draws on all the usual ingredients that you would expect in a movie like this. Recent outings such as Santa Clause: The Movie along with the requisite sequel sit amongst the behemoths of a rather specialist genre (Miracle on 34th Street, It's a Wonderful Life) making this an increasingly difficult area to explore without being overly trite. Of course, the timing and the message make this kind of film generally welcome but the challenge is always there to avoid being too schmaltzy and allowing the audience the respect of not being preached to.

For a while I thought Elf had fallen into this trap. The main character as defined by Will Ferrell is initially grating. What with a constant grin and an insensible manner, Ferrell looks inane as the oversized elf in a Danny Kaye green outfit with silly hat. Both the protospeak and addiction to all things sugar make the main man look more like this year's village idiot with obescity inevitable given his current diet.

However, the tide does turn. As the setting changes from the pretence of the far North to a more cynical New York, the gags get funnier and the stunts start to rock. Having got a job working in Santa's grotto in a toy store, Buddy the Elf encounters the store Santa about to do his thing with the kids. Initially excited by the thought of being re-united with his compadre (Santa), Buddy realises that this is an impostor leading to a very funny fight and the oversized fantasy figure (Elf, that is) losing his job. From here on in, the movie takes off. James Caan is so quietly understated as Buddy's father, it is difficult to believe that they are remotely kin but the chemistry does work in a limited way that provides the catalyst for the movie. I'm not sure Caan intended to play his role so low key but ably aided by the lovely
Mary Steenburgen (Back to the Future) playing Emily his wife and Daniel Taye as Michael, Buddy's half-brother, the reluctant father (and wouldn't you be faced with a 6 foot elf for a son?) drives the raison d'être of a clear parallel to the almost obligatory Scrooge.

The original screenplay was offered to Jim Carey but the final casting saw Will Ferrell take the lead. This does look as though it could be the 36 year old's big break, such is the level of interest both here and in the States following a very successful run over the last few weeks. Known best for his impressions on the cult TV show Saturday Night Live, Ferrell has played a string of bit parts in movies such as Zoolander and the Austin Powers productions but Elf appears to have broken the mould possibly taking the Californian into fields anew.

For me, the movie's highlight is the scene involving the superstar writer, Miles Finch. Whilst trying to bail out the ailing book publishing company owned by Buddy's father, it becomes apparent that the mysterious millionaire writer is a midget. In a scene where James Caan is hanging on every word with his sycophantic aides egging the mini-scribe on, Ferrell crashes the scene. With his own skewed version of what's real and what isn't, the scene that follows is truly hilarious transcending the children's movie status into something much funnier with a real edge. At times the movie does try to be too clever, what with the amateur footage of Buddy walking around Central Park shown on the newscast spoofing the famous Patterson-Gimlin bigfoot film but the ensuing tomfoolery always seems to pluck the production from a very serious averageness to a bright and breezy show that keeps the viewer entertained.

Jon Favreau is best known for his recent works, Daredevil and Deep Impact. Hailing from the Queen's area in New York, he does combine a mix of effects, stunts and unsubtle but very funny comedy into wh
at never gets much more than the usual good will to all men message that rings out through this movie medium. Some of the stop motion effects towards the beginning of the film looked a bit shabby but then I don't suppose the kids would have noticed too much while Favreau seems to gain momentum the longer the story goes eventually taking the audience on a charming journey potted with both visual and auditory gags that do get laughs.

Adding a great deal to the production is the musical score including a string of Christmas hits that make the film go with a bang including a finale founded on a big production of Santa Clause is Coming to Town. I guess the closing frames are a little predictable but then this venture was never designed to test the audience's intellect. It's aimed squarely at a feel good factor fuelled by Santa's Christmas spirit albeit with an oblique level of invention. My 11 year old daughter's shoulders moved discreetly up and down with each belly laugh (she's quite reserved) whilst my 8 year old son guffawed into his popcorn; both loved it so I left the auditorium with a smile on my face and a hand in my pocket as we veered off into a restaurant for dinner (after all, England had won the Rugby World Cup earlier that day!). All in all, definitely recommended as a great family movie noting the PG certificate.

Thanks for reading

Marandina

Associated website:
http://www.elfmovie.com/

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