A tonic for your Elf?

Rating: 5/10 (16 December 2009)

As a baby, Buddy {Will Ferrell} crept out of his crib in the orphanage right into Santa's goody bag. Thus he grows up at the North Pole working with the elves in Santa's work shop. Now firmly grown up physically, Buddy is shocked to learn that he is a human being, not an elf. So upon hearing that his father lives in New York, he sets off to find him. But can he survive New York? More to the point, can New York survive Buddy?
Like him or loathe him, Will Ferrell has a nice line in physical comedy. So with that, Elf is the perfect vehicle to showcase his exuberance. But with that also comes the problem with the film. For it feels {actually it is} like director John Favreau and writer David Berenbaum have plopped Ferrell into a fish out of water scenario and stitched together a number of sketches for him to run thru. The outcome of which may induce some amiable comedy along the way, but renders the finale a weak attempt at holiday message emotion. The supporting cast also suffer in the wake of Ferrell's domination. Something that annoys when you consider we have the likes of James Caan and Mary Steenburgen trying to breathe on the sidelines.
There's enough here to make it a safe holiday viewing for the kids and those adults who have a penchant for Ferrell's comedy. But really it's a patchwork quilt of a picture, with the makers playing it all too by the numbers just to sell tickets. 5/10