New movie reviews, DVD reviews, interviews, and all things film.

• Home
• Reviews A-C
• Reviews D-F
• Reviews G-J
• Reviews K-M
• Reviews N-Q
• Reviews R-T
• Reviews U-Z

• The Animation Show 4 ***
• Gonzo: The Life and Work of Dr. Hunter S. Thompson ***1/2
• Hancock **1/2
• Kit Kittredge: An American Girl **1/2
• Quid Pro Quo ***
• The Wackness **1/2
• The Castro Theatre's 70mm Festival 2008
• More

• Drillbit Taylor
• Identification of a Woman (Import)
• Shotgun Stories
• A Throw of Dice
• Vantage Point
• More

• Brad Anderson
• Scarlett Johansson: Anywhere I Lay My Head [CD Review]
• Don Cheadle at CineVegas
• Abel Ferrara at CineVegas
• Tina Sinatra
• My Top 100 Films [Updated]
• My Top 60 Directors [Updated]
• Charlton Heston (1924-2008)
• Scott B. Smith
• Estelle Parsons
• Roger Donaldson
• Roy Scheider (1932-2008) • Mike Binder
• James McAvoy
• Tony Gilroy
• David Cronenberg & Viggo Mortensen
• William Friedkin
• Peter Fonda & James Mangold
• Kasi Lemmons on Talk to Me
• Steve Buscemi on Interview
• Lynn Hershman-Leeson
• Edgar Wright, Simon Pegg & Nick Frost on Hot Fuzz
• Scott Frank, Joseph Gordon-Levitt & Matthew Goode
• The Top 50 Movies of the Past Ten Years (1997-2006)
• Bong Joon-ho, director of The Host
• Mark Polish, Michael Polish & Billy Bob Thornton
• My latest blog entries at cinematical.com
• The 'Mexican New Wave'
• Interview with Singaporian Filmmaker Djinn
• Joe Carnahan & Jeremy Piven Interview
• Terry Zwigoff on the new Bad Santa Director's Cut
• Alfonso Cuarón Interview
• Guillermo Del Toro Interview
• Chris Noonan Interview
• Robert Altman (1925-2006)
• Scarlett Johansson: A Study in Scarlett
• Christmas Movies
• Combustible Celluloid's Big Guide to Halloween & Horror Movies
• Joe Eszterhas
• Jet Li
• Zach Braff
• Kirby Dick
• James Ellroy
• Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson
• Adrien Brody
• Steve Irwin (1962-2006)
• Elisha Cuthbert/Jamie Babbit
• Matt Dillon
• David R. Ellis
• Maria Bello
• Brian O'Halloran and Jeff Anderson
• Mickey Spillane (1918-2006)
• Al Gore
• Cult Movies
• Actress Interview Gallery
• The Top 100
• More Features and Interviews

• Not Quite a Memoir: Of Films, Books, the World, by Judy Stone
• James Agee: The Library of America Collection, by James Agee
• Just Making Movies, by Ronald L. Davis
• Guide to Essential Movies, by Joe Leydon
• Cecil B. DeMille's Hollywood, by Robert S. Birchard
• Profoundly Disturbing, by Joe Bob Briggs
• A Third Face, by Samuel Fuller
• Dark Lover, by Emily Leider
• Agee on Film, by James Agee
• Lulu in Hollywood, by Louise Brooks
• Negative Space, by Manny Farber
• 5001 Nights at the Movies, by Pauline Kael
• More Books

The online film magazine Combustible Celluloid offers new movie reviews, DVD reviews, film reviews, actor interviews, actress interviews, director interviews, film books and all things cinema related for the thoughtful and passionate. Online for ten years! Over 3000 reviews!

E-mail me.

© 1997-2008 Combustible Celluloid

Elf (2003)

Rating: 3 Stars (out of 4)

Toy Ride

By Jeffrey M. Anderson

Buy Elf on DVD.

Will Ferrell is a rarity; he's one of today's most non-ironic comedians. In character, he basically plays a little girl with an open heart, but with absolutely no conception of any alternate meanings or implications. He's perfect here as Buddy, a human adopted by Santa Claus's elves and raised among them until he's too big to fit in their world. So he journeys to Manhattan to seek out his real father (James Caan), a self-absorbed children's book publisher. Ferrell somehow charms everyone around him with his silly, sometimes stupid, yet always honest outbursts, such as answering his father's business phone: "Buddy the Elf! What's your favorite color?" Director Jon Favreau keeps the film sincere and adult for most of the running time, loading it up with nods to past Christmas films and TV shows. He also earns strong performances from the supporting cast, notably Zooey Deschanel, who sings a beautiful version of "Baby It's Cold Outside" (originally in the 1949 film Neptune's Daughter) and Ed Asner as a grumpy Santa. The Station Agent's Peter Dinklage also has a terrific cameo. Overall, Elf succeeds as a rare, good holiday film for all ages.

DVD Details: New Line correctly waited a year before releasing this fun holiday movie on DVD. Who would have wanted to see it in the middle of summer? They also took the time to make it into a two-disc special edition worth keeping with the other Christmas classics. The film is presented in the "Infinifilm" format, which allows viewers to branch off into bonus features while watching the film. This feature is available on both the widescreen and pan-and-scan versions. Other extras include plenty of kid-friendly activities and games (DVD-Rom features not available on Mac), plus commentary tracks by Ferrell and Favreau, deleted/alternate scenes, featurettes and more.

Starring: Will Ferrell, James Caan, Zooey Deschanel, Mary Steenburgen, Edward Asner, Bob Newhart, Jon Favreau, Peter Dinklage
Written by: David Berenbaum
Directed by: Jon Favreau
MPAA Rating: PG for some mild rude humor and language
Running Time: 95 minutes
Date: November 7, 2003