Elf: Difference between revisions

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A 2003 Christmas film directed by [[Jon Favreau]] and starring [[Will Ferrell]]. Ferrell stars as Buddy, a human who is raised by [[Santa Claus]] ([[Ed Asner]]) and the elves at the North Pole after accidentally crawling into Santa's sack. Realizing that he is not competent as an elf and discovering his true lineage, he decides to head to [[Big Applesauce|New York City]], where he meets his deadbeat corporate father, Walter ([[James Caan]]). His father initially doesn't believe he is his son, but is introduced to his family, who is won over by his innocent charm. Buddy's adventures in the city include an encounter with a fake Santa at Gimbel's and falling in love for the first time with an employee dressed as an elf ([[Zooey Deschanel]]). His own father begins to warm up to him but yells at him after Buddy screws up a deal with a famous children's book author. Buddy runs away, feeling he never belonged in New York.

Manages to be a funny, charming and (mostly) family-safe Christmas movie.

 

* [[Adult Child]]: Buddy.

* [[Attention Deficit Ooh Shiny]]

* [[Big Yes]]: Miles Finch lets one fly while discussing ideas for his next book.

* [[Brick Joke]]: One of the jack-in-the-boxes that Buddy had been in charge of testing makes a surprise reappearance late in the film.

* [[Casting Gag]]: [[Edward Asner]] as [[Santa Claus]], a role he's voiced in numerous other productions.

* [[The Cast Showoff]]: Zooey Deschanel, the "She" of musical duo She & Him, gets to show off her chops.

* [[Expy]]: See "Snowlems" below.

* [[Fish Out of Water]]: The man-child-ish Buddy in his elf outfit.

* [[The Grinch]]: Walter is sort of a mild one.

* [[I Should Write a Book About This]]: Buddy writes a children's book about his adventure as the first book released through Walter's new publishing company.

* [[Keet]]: Buddy, to an extent.

* [[Interspecies Adoption]]: A human raised by Christmas elves? Stranger things have happened.

* [[Mall Santa]]: Department store Santa, actually. Buddy is not fooled:

* [[Man Child]]: Buddy.

* [[Medium Blending]]: When Buddy leaves the North Pole, he meets pastiches of stop-motion Christmas characters.

* [[The Narrator]]: Papa Elf (Bob Newhart), Buddy's mentor, narrates the story at either end.

* [[Oblivious Adoption]]

* [[Parent Service]]: Zooey Deschanel in the shower. A lot of dads ([[Even the Girls Want Her|and maybe a few moms]]) likely had a new favorite movie after this scene.

* [[Playing Against Type]]: One of Will Ferrell's few roles that isn't a lecherous, [[Jerkass]] [[Unsympathetic Comedy Protagonist]]. Also, one of Zooey Deschanel's few roles where she isn't a [[Manic Pixie Dream Girl]]. Or brunette.

* [[Skip of Innocence]]: Buddy does this at one point.

* [[Snowball Fight]]: Buddy befriends Michael after proving incredibly competent at one.

* [[Storybook Opening]]

* [[Sweet Tooth]]: Buddy

** It appears that the North Pole is an almost literal [[Sugar Bowl]].

* [[Unusual Euphemism]]: At one point Buddy berates himself as a "cotton-headed ninnymuggins". Later on, he exclaims "Son of a nutcracker!" after being hit with a snowball.

[[Category:Elf]]

[[Category:Film]]