Instant Classic, just add syrup...

Rating: 8/10 (7 November 2003)

I'm not usually one for opening night crowds, but I made an exception for this one. My wife and I (In our mid-30s) brought my wife's sister (mid 20s) and our son (who is 10). My wife laughed the hardest - to tears at a few points and for about a minute and a half after one joke. I was second on the laugh-o-meter. Our son laughed the least. My sister-in-law laughs quietly, so it's hard to tell with her. Lots of laughing in the packed theater, though.
For about the last 20 minutes, the laughs stopped for me, but I didn't really mind because I needed a break as my belly hurt. And there were some underdeveloped characters and relationships and a lot of nonsense. But it is a comedy first and foremost and it delivers.
There was nothing in it we wouldn't want our son to see, save for one scene with alcohol and a drunken Elf, but it was short. So it's safe for the family, but we definitely enjoyed it more than our child. I recommend seeing it in a crowded theater during a mid-evening show. Our audience was a lot of fun and started singing along with the movie.
It will be one of those movies on TV every Christmas and I will look forward to it every year.