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Back Shelf Beauties
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Elf This is the second year in a row that I have seen a Christmas movie before Halloween, and it's starting to freak me out! There's something untoward about celebrating sleigh bells, Santa Claus and candy canes while most people are thinking about ghosts, ghouls, tricks and treats. You have to admit that I must look silly walking down the street singing jingle bells to myself while everyone is doing the monster mash. Elf is a movie that could kindle your Christmas spirit, but, in early November, you should see it more for the jokes than the yuletide cheer. Will Ferrell stars as Buddy - a human who, as a baby, accidentally stowed away in Santa's bag and was transported to the North Pole. Raised among the elves for thirty years, but clearly not fitting in, Buddy wants to meet his real Dad, Walter (James Caan), who lives in NY. With that piece of information, he's off on a wild adventure, but what he doesn't know is that Dad is a Scrooge. Can he survive in the city? Will he be able to start a special relationship with his long lost father? Elf reminds me of Steve Martin's classic comedy, The Jerk, but isn't quite in the same league. You'll have a good time, and laugh at many of the jokes, but it's not the greatest comedy ever. Elf is just a run of the mill comedy with moments of hilarity, and some clichéd scenes that will make you roll your eyes. Ferrell is very good as the man-child with naiveté dripping from his soulful, innocent eyes. He is required to act like an imbecile, and pulls it off, since that seems to be Ferrell's specialty. Let's face it, when you're 6 foot tall grown man wearing an elf costume and yellow tights, you're going to get some cheap laughs, but, without a full commitment to idiocy, the movie would fall flat. Because Ferrell gives it everything he has without much concern for his image, we can all take some delight in Buddy's antics and misunderstandings of human life. The supporting cast is fine, especially Caan and Bob Newhart as Papa Elf, but the characters aren't served as well by the script as Ferrell. Each one does as well as he can with average material, but I wish Newhart could have been given more of a chance to shine. He is one of the funniest men ever, but only gets to participate in a few sight gags. Even Zooey Deschanel, the new woman I adore from the third row, does alright with a lightweight character, but deserves better. While the movie is funny, even making several homages to great movies and pop culture, I have to take director Jon Favreau to task. In a world where we can create entire universes in a computer, why does his North Pole look cheap and fake? I have sympathy for not having a big budget, but someone had to go to New Line and beg for money to make this look better. They still have their Austin Powers and Lord of the Rings money, so why not open up the coffers to help this movie?
Elf is OK, and that's enough for me.
It lacks the biting wit that Favreau fans are used to, but that's because
he is going for a wider, family audience. You'll laugh, you'll feel good
as you leave and you can enjoy it with someone close to you.
Copyright 2003 - WaffleMovies.com
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