Classic Review: Elf (2003)

Will Ferrell has been doing the same thing all over again for most of his career. The man child is not a very complex type to portray, and it’s kind of impressing that Ferrell still manages to ingest some freshness to the formula. Elf is probably one of the best entries of his career. The problem with this type of character is that it can very easily become irritating and tiring if the movie that surrounds it doesn’t balance things out. It’s trickier than one might expect, even for someone like Ferrell.

Elf follows, Buddy (Ferrell), a man who was raised by the Santa’s elves in the North Pole. When he was just a baby, he hid inside Santa’s bag only to be discovered when it was too late. When he is old enough, Papa Elf (Bob Newhart) finally tells him the truth, and Buddy goes to New York to reconnect with his real father, Walter (Caan), who never heard of the boy and now has a new family with Emily (Mary Steenburgen) and a young son, Michael (Daniel Tay). At first Buddy and Walter don’t get along, but Walter begins softening his heart to his older son, while Buffy falls in love with Jovie (Zooey Deschanel).

Elf is exactly what one would expect from a Will Ferrell movie. The jokes are not that elaborate, his performance goes into histrionics in a lot of moments and it doesn’t ask a lot from us objectively. But director Favreau managed to create an endearing film anyway, one that melts away every barrier we might have with its leading actor’s style. The film has a lot of heart and warmth, and that changes our experience. Buddy’s journey is quite a simple one: he’s looking to figure out who he truly, to find his tribe and his family. His naivety is quite endearing, and Ferrell manages to turn Buddy into a beloved character. That doesn’t mean the laughs are gone, on the contrary: his inaptitude to fit in and understand the simplest concepts of living in society creates hilarious moments, like when he goes into the women’s locker room to sing a duet with Jovie. It’s insane and it totally makes sense for the character. It’s hard not to laugh out loud in a lot of moments.

Another amazing aspect of the story is Buddy’s bond with his younger brother, and gradually, Buddy’s emotional journey totally wins us over. That helps to let go the biggest problem of the film, the third act. It tries juggling a lot of things at one and it’s just not as inspiring and what came before. In the end, the greatness of Elf can be attributed to one person: Jon Favreau. Favreau made all the right choices for the film, and he doesn’t shy away from the innocence and the craziness the script asks him to manage. On the contrary, he manages to bounce from one to the other, creating a perfect balance, turning Elf into a compelling family film and a great Christmas movie.

Elf might not be a classic like It’s a Wonderful Life and Miracle on 34^th Street are, but it is still a great choice for the holidays.

still courtesy of Warner Home Video

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