Elf: A Modern Day Classic

Rating: 10/10 (4 March 2019)

During the holiday season, a yearly tradition done by many is to watch holiday movies. A few of these classics include Home Alone, A Christmas Story, and National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation. However, I believe one to be above all the rest. Elf, which was released in 2003, is the greatest Christmas movie of all time. There's a reason why Elf is always played over and over again during the Christmas season. It's a true modern classic. Because of its strong characters, wonderful humor, and amazing atmosphere, Elf deserves the title as the greatest Christmas film ever made.
Possibly the most compelling element to make Elf the quintessential Christmas movie is the strong characters, and the relationships they have. The main character, Buddy, played by Will Ferrell, is a whimsical, happy-go-lucky, naive Christmas elf who lives in the North Pole. After finding out that he was adopted, he comes to New York City to find his real father. This character could have easily come off as obnoxious and annoying. However, it's quite the opposite. Buddy's kind-hearted innocence is what drives the film. His pure, bubbly, Christmas spirit clashes with the real world, which leads to some amazing moments, like when he eats the chewed gum off the rails to the subways. Buddy's father, Walter Hobbs, played by James Caan, is a stuck up, dull, and stern businessman who is the perfect contrast to Buddy's personality. Their interactions are some of the best of the film, because despite being complete opposites, their chemistry works extremely well. The doctor's office scene, for example, displays how different these characters really are. The whole time, Walter is trying to get Buddy to sit still for the doctor, but Buddy's hyper-activeness prevents this.
Jovie, portrayed by Zooey Deschanel, is another character that plays off of Buddy very well. When Buddy comes into the Gimbels store and meets her, she is creeped out at first. This leads to some hilarious situations , like the "Baby It's Cold Outside" scene, and the "I'm in a store and I'm singing" part. Eventually, Jovie warms up to him, and finds his childlike wonder very charming. (Spoiler), She even marries him in the end!
All of those characters are exceptional in their own way, but Buddy is the main reason why Elf is so amazing. In an article written by The Guardian, authors Dee Cannon and Lyn Gardner state that "Great acting, like great writing, is often in the eye of the beholder, but audiences almost always know when they are in the presence of something special" (Cannon and Gardner). When Elf was released in theaters, it was an instant hit, and Buddy captured the hearts of millions. This was due to Will Ferrell's acting, and it was so special that it can't be re-captured.
Another major factor why Elf is the greatest Christmas movie of all time is the stellar humor. I can safely say that there are about one or two jokes that did not land for me. The rest hit, and they hit hard. The key examples include when Buddy screams "SANTA" at the top of his lungs when the Gimbels store manager announces that Jolly Ol' Saint Nick will be arriving at 10 A.M., or when Buddy makes his famous candy spaghetti amalgamation. Both the New York and Gimbels montage, the mail room scene, the snowball scene, work clothes Buddy, and the "Angry Elf" scene are all so funny that they are impossible to describe. The wonderful aspect about each scene is the variety of comedy that is present. There is slapstick, dialogue, visual, and even subtle adult jokes. The scene that I find the funniest is when Buddy is walking towards the Gimbels store, and gets run over by the taxi. Now, at its core, this movie is about clashing the happy-go-lucky spirit of Christmas with the mundane parts of the real world. Not only does the scene portray that feeling perfectly, but it's also only a couple of seconds long. It starts with an exterior shot of the Gimbels store slowly panning down to the streets, while the song "Sleigh Ride" is playing. As the camera pans, we see Buddy walking in the middle of the street to get to the store. Then, the music stops abruptly, as Buddy get smacked by a Taxi, and his entire body shoots up vertically. He quickly gets up and exclaims "Sorry!" The scene is perfect because it represents the dichotomy of the film in a short and sweet way. They don't delve on the joke too long, and it is cartoonishly pulled off, which makes it even funnier.
While I have been praising the moments of the movie that everyone knows, there are MANY underrated moments in the movie. Some fantastic examples include when Buddy claims that he got a full 40 minutes of sleep, when Buddy tells his dad that he loves him, and Walter just says "ok", and when Buddy lights up every single button in the Empire State Building elevator and claims that "It looks just like a Christmas Tree!"
Now, the icing on the cake that ensures Elf as the greatest Christmas movie of all time is the wonderful atmosphere presented in the film. This wonderful atmosphere can be traced back to Jon Favreau, who is the director of the film. When regarding Buddy, Jon was quoted with saying "if I made the world that he was from as though he grew up as an elf in Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, one of those Rankin/Bass Christmas specials I grew up with, then everything fell into place tonally" (Susman). Jon is one hundred percent right. By making the North Pole setting feel exactly like those old stop motion Christmas specials, it creates a innocent tone. Also, by creating a bustling and mundane New York City environment, the perfect dichotomy of fantasy and reality.
In the wide landscape of Christmas movies, there are a lot of gems. However, all of them pale in comparison to Elf. Elf deserves to be called the best Christmas movie of all time because of its compelling characters, witty humor, and amazing atmosphere. Elf is one of those films that have stood the test of time. It will continue to be enjoyed for generations to come.