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In Elf, Will Ferrell's brought his A game and with director Jon Favreau has created a holiday classic that will likely stand for years to come.
Ferrell plays Buddy, a human who hitched a ride in Santa's sack as an infant. Brough to the North Pole, he's raised as an Elf until one day, he discovers the awful truth - that he is indeed human. (Or that he isn't an elf. I'm not sure which news is more heartbreaking.) So, with this knowledge, Buddy packs his bags and heads to New York City (specifically the Empire State Building) where his biological father (James Caan) works. Naturally, his father doesn't take the news too kindly. Of course, it doesn't help Buddy that he's still got his Elf clothes - and the IQ of a 10 year old. But, once it's proven that Buddy is indeed his offspring, he brings Buddy into his home, which he now shares with his wife and son. Of course, Buddy seems odd, but he charms his way into everybody's hearts - especially Jovie (Zooey Deschanel), a department store elf he met. Come Christmas Eve, and after one too many screw-ups for Buddy, he's at his lowest. That is until Santa's sleigh crashes in Central Park, and Buddy's is the only one who can come to the rescue. Will Buddy's father ever accept him? Will he get the girl of his dreams? And most importantly, will Buddy be able to save Christmas?
Elf has a lot going for it. It's cute. It's funny. It has heart. And mostly, it has Will Ferrell who really carries this movie through the cute, the funny and the heartfelt moments that make this movie a holiday treat.
And just in time for the holidays, Elf is now available on DVD. Not just any DVD though. Elf is part of New Line Home Entertainment's Infinifilm series, loaded with some great special features that really bring the viewer "beyond the movie". With Infinifilm, users can watch the movie with pop-up menus that allow you to select scene-specific featurettes on the making of the film. Included are behind the scenes features such as looks at editing, music and costumes as well as deleted and extended scenes with optional commentary from director Favreau. There's also the option of playing the movie with a subtitled trivia track, which I always find fun. It's nice to have a little trivia ammo to use against friends.
For those not interested in the benefits Infinifilm has to offer, you can alternatively view separate featurettes dealing with each different aspect of the movie. There's "Tag Along with Will Ferrell" where you do just that - spend some time with Ferrell on the set as he goes to the hair/makeup department and shoots scenes from the movie. "Film School for Kids" is a behind-the-scenes featurette showing us all aspects of the movie from the set and makes it fun and simple for everyone. "How They Made the North Pole" looks at the design and construction of the sets as well as a brief look at the elf costumes featuring interviews with those responsible. Most fascinating here was the creation of the snow village and how they created the effect of Will Ferrell being larger than the rest of the elves using a technique called "forced perspective". "Lights, Camera, Puffin" is a featurette showcasing the animation and stop-motion effects. And finally, "That's a Wrap" takes us into post production where the filmmakers demonstrate editing techniques, add music and effects (both audio and visual) and re-record dialogue. After that, take a brief visit to the red carpet of Elf's worldwide premiere. Also included in this portion of the DVD, we get a "Film Dictionary" which gives several filmmaking terms with definitions - a great tool for any young filmmaker.
But that's not all. Disc one also give the option of watching all the deleted/extended scene, each with the option of a commentary from Jon Favreau. Again, if you don't have time to watch the film in Infinifilm, this is a great option to skip directly to the meat and potatoes.
Finally, disc one also includes two audio commentaries. The first, featuring director Jon Favreau, really proves that this guy is a lot more than an actor. For those of you who only think of this guy from "Swingers", you'd be surprised what a professional filmmaker this guy is. And like I said, this commentary really only cements it. The second commentary features Will Ferrell giving his running thoughts on the movie. He comes across too as a really funny guy, as you'd expect, but also as someone who knows his stuff. It's a lot of laughs coupled with some great insight. You can really only wonder why two separate commentaries instead of featuring these two together? Was it really that impossible to do?
There are more special features included on Disc Two. "Beyond the Movie" first includes "Kids on Christmas" which is a cute 'Kids Say the Darndest Things' type feature with thoughts from some young ones about Santa etc. "Deck the Halls" brings us a cross-country look at some people who really get in the spirit of the season by going overboard decorating their houses. (We have a guy like that in our city whose house looks really tacky, but it's a sight that everybody goes to visit during this time of the year. Go figure.) "Santa Mania" looks at some more Santa stories including the surfing Santa and a woman who creates Santa costumes, including a touching story about a man who dresses up as St. Nick for the pure joy of bringing happiness to children. Lastly, "Christmas in Tinseltown" looks at the history behind the Hollywood Santa Claus Parade.
Under "All Access Pass" on disc two are more goodies such as trailers for this and some other DVDs and a "Music from Elf" feature with commentary by Favreau as to why he chose certain songs for the film's soundtrack.
Disc two also includes "Fun 'n' Games!". Here, you'll find "Elf Karaoke" where you can sing along with some of your favorite Christmas carols and "Read Along" where you can read with a fun "Elf" story. In "Buddy's Adventure" you can pass the time playing some fun video games. Play and complete all four and there's a surprise for you in the elevator! (Unfortunately, I'm terrible at video games, so I don't know what that surprise is.)
There's still more. For those with DVD-ROM, there's a "Script-to-Screen" feature, an image gallery, a "Be An Elf" game where you can create an elf using your own pictures, a "Make Your Own Story Book" feature and some printable fun including door hangers, games, stationary, decorations and much more.
As for the film's audio and video presentation, we get widescreen on Disc One and full screen on Disc Two. Note too that the Infinifilm feature is only available on the widescreen disc. Both discs present the movie in English and Spanish 5.1 Dolby Digital Surround Sound (although the DVD packaging indicates the Spanish track is Stereo Surround Sound only).
Not only is Elf a great holiday movie, but we also get a wide variety of special features offering a little something for everyone from commentaries, to deleted scenes, to featurettes and some fun and games. To borrow a line from the movie, this DVD package is "ginormous" and really deserves a spot on your Christmas list this year.
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