Elf (2003) – Rewatch

I imagine it’s hard to create a Christmas classic. Somehow Jon Favreau managed to capture the right magic with the story of Buddy the elf, played by Will Ferrell, an orphan who was accidentally brought as an infant to the North Pole by Santa and thus raised by an elf father. After Buddy learns he is actually a human, he journeys to the big city to meet his father who horror of horrors resides firmly on the Naughty List. Ferrell carries most of the load as he perfectly encapsulates the fish out of water innocence of a pure soul first encountering the ‘real world’ for the first time. I could probably do fine without the love interest or the younger brother, but it’s still quite endearing.