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| 11/11/2003 |
| Elf: Short on Skills |
A Movie Review
by Wes Bennett
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Besides the problem of what I was going to do with my life, there was one question that haunted me day and night: why was Will Ferrell not getting to star in his own films? Ferrell had exploded comedically on the last season of SNL with his devastatingly funny portrayals of James Lipton, Alex Trebeck and Harry Carrey. Was there a lack of good scripts? Was he being too picky about his work? Was there some powerful force in the world who held a grudge against him?
He was brilliant in the smaller film roles he took. His role as Mustafa in “Austin Powers”, the eccentric designer in “Zoolander” and the naive sheriff in “Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back” were hilarious. Ferrell and Vince Vaughn virtually carried “Old School” with their spirited performances.
Finally with “Elf,” Ferrell got the chance to be a star. However, for me, the main problem is that “Elf” is a kid’s film. Not a
movie like “School of Rock” that is appropriate for kids, but it’s targeted specifically for underdeveloped minds. Even worse, most of the laughs are Ferrell acting goofy, yelling or performing physically. As far as the script generating legitimate laughs, it’s pretty weak and generally lazy.
I had high hopes for director Jon Favreau, who wrote “Swingers” and wrote and directed “Made” with great results. This was to be his first mainstream effort. But now, after I’ve seen the film, I wonder if he was the best person to direct a mainstream, family film.
Ferrell's character was an orphan baby who crawled into Santa's toy bag one Christmas Eve for the return trip to the North Pole. There, he was raised by an elf played by Bob Newhart. Not fitting in with the Elfs, Ferrell decides to journey to New York and find his dad.
Maybe the problem is that Ferrell, an outrageous comedian, was somewhat hindered in his ability to be funny by the family friendly PG rating. Perhaps it's that the screenplay is pitched at a third grade level because it seems that the best age for viewers of “Elf” is about seven or eight.
There were some laughs in the middle, because Ferrell is such a funny guy. But I have no doubt that he could stand in an empty room for an hour and a half and get some laughs.
It always nice to see the charming Zooey Deschanel (“All The Real Girls”) as a lovely blonde earning a few bucks working on the elf squad. James Caan (“The GodFather”) gets to play a version of Scrooge as the overly serious Father.
But things really start to fall apart during the climax when a minor character tries to power Santa's lame sleigh by leading a cynical group of New Yorkers in a sing along. It’s so awful you'll be tempted to hurl wet gummi-bears at the screen. Indeed the final 20 minutes are on autopilot and there is nothing original and funny about them. The movie will make a lot of money and probably be appreciated by kids, but it’s not satisfying for older audiences.
The more I think about it, it’s not a real excuse to say that the film is targeted for kids. “Holes” and “Finding Nemo” are fine examples that movies targeted for children don’t have to be stupid. |
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| "We use words like honor, code, loyalty. We use these words as the backbone of a life spent defending something. You use them as a punchline. I have neither the time nor the inclination to explain myself to a man who rises and sleeps under the blanket of the very freedom I provide, then question the manner in which I provide it." |
- Jack Nicholson
A Few Good Men
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Distributed Beers
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| 5 |
Sierra Nevada Bigfoot |
| 4 |
Guinness Draught |
| 3 |
Newcastle Brown Ale |
| 2 |
Bass Pale Ale |
| 1 |
Samuel Adams Boston Lager |
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