Movie Review – Elf (2003)

Overall 2.5 / 5.0 (meh)
No Gay Content

Full disclosure – I am not predisposed to enjoy this film because Will Ferrell’s usual manic performances put me off. And Will Ferrell is both foundation and focus of this movie. Were I a fan of the actor, my impression of the film would be much different. If you are a fan, keep my disclosure in mind as you read my comments.

Having said all that, I genuinely believe “Elf” to be overrated as a Christmas movie. Most reviewers seem to take its gushing, good-natured, earnest, surprisingly un-cynical and un-ironic approach to the holiday and go, “Ahhhh,” as if swooning over an adorable little puppy.

But not grinchy me.

I’ll start with the good stuff. Though perhaps not a laugh riot, it is successfully chuckle-worthy, and the film’s sweetness is endearing … at least until the end, when it turns nauseatingly saccharine.

Oops, sorry. I meant to talk about the good stuff.

The movie begins in the North Pole, where orphan baby Buddy (Will Ferrell) finds himself after crawling into Santa’s bag. The North Pole has a decidedly retro look, populated by kindly elves and a Burl Ives-inspired snowman. The design strongly recalls Rankin and Bass’s classic “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” (1964).

The basic premise of “Elf” adheres to the fish-out-of-water paradigm. In the North Pole, Buddy is too human to fit in. In New York, he is too elfy. It works better in the North Pole. His time in Santaland is definitely the film’s highlight, and I wished he had lingered there longer. But alas! His adoptive father, Papa Elf (Bob Newhart) reveals that Buddy is really human, and his father lives in New York. Naturally, Buddy must begin his liminal adventure to find and embrace his heritage.

Speaking of Bob Newhart, the film benefits from some great casting. Newhart is an inspired choice for the role, and he makes a brilliant turn as an elf. Zooey Deschanel (Jovie) and Peter Dinklage (as cynical children’s author Miles Finch) are wonderfully entertaining.

The script also contains some good lines. My favorite: Buddy, who knows the real Santa (played by Ed Asner), tells a department store fake, “You sit on a throne of lies!”

Unfortunately, the film also suffers from some serious weaknesses. The fish-out-of-water story is formulaic and forgettably lightweight. Once Buddy reaches New York, the storyline becomes painfully predictable and just moves in circles. And the naïveté that was so endearing in the North Pole turns irritating in New York. Ferrell’s performance, which felt fresh and unforced in the North Pole sequence, grows wearying the longer he stays in New York.

I mentioned something called a liminal journey a moment ago. Many myths and legends depict a hero(ine)’s rite of passage through three stages. In the preliminary stage, the hero must leave home and journey to unfamiliar regions, like Buddy leaving the North Pole and traveling to New York.

In the liminal stage, the hero is poised between two worlds, between the old sense of self and a new, more mature selfhood. Typically, the hero’s previously inflexible understanding of the world begins to shift with exposure to different ideas and perspectives. The film’s story begins to fail here: Buddy remains resolutely, forcedly naive, even after repeated exposure to New York’s culture.

In the final, postliminal stage, the hero has fully incorporated new understandings and developed a more mature and fully developed persona. This doesn’t happen in the movie. I would have appreciated this film much more if Buddy had developed some new wisdom or understanding that marries the best of both worlds, but the final scene makes clear that Buddy ends where he begins. As a result, “Elf” is a superficial foray into clichéd territory. Without thematic depth, it must rely solely upon its humor for its success.

Unfortunately, it’s just not funny enough. Ferrell’s acting, the script, the editing, and the direction are all competent enough, but none shine, and they don’t come together to make a stellar movie.

Overall, I recommend you check it out at least once if you like cutesy, fluffy holiday fare. Younger audiences will appreciate it more. Just don’t let your expectations get the better of you.