Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #180 in DVD
• Released on: 2005-11-07
• Rating: Parental Guidance
• Number of discs: 2
• Format: PAL
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 95 minutes

Amazon.co.uk Review
Elf is genuinely good. Not just Saturday Night Live-movie good, when the movie has some funny bits but is basically an insult to humanity; Elf is a smartly written, skillfully directed, and deftly acted story of a human being adopted by Christmas elves who returns to the human world to find his father. And because the writing, directing, and acting are all genuinely good, Elf is also genuinely funny. Will Ferrell, as Buddy the adopted elf, is hysterically sincere. James Caan, as his rediscovered father, executes his surly dumbfoundedness with perfect aplomb. Zooey Deschanel, as a department store worker with whom Buddy falls in love, is adorably sardonic. Director Jon Favreau (Swingers) shepherds the movie through all the obligatory Christmas cliches and focuses on material that's sometimes subtle and consistently surprising. Frankly, Elf feels miraculous. Also featuring Mary Steenburgen, Bob Newhart, Peter Dinklage, and Ed Asner as Santa Claus. --Bret Fetzer

Synopsis
Will Ferrell makes yet another memorable splash on the big screen in Jon Favreau's sweet and hilarious Christmas fable. Ferrell is Buddy, an innocent figure who was raised as an elf in the North Pole by his adoptive father, Papa Elf (Bob Newhart). When Buddy discovers that he's actually a human being, he heads to New York City to reunite with his biological father. The trouble is that his dad, Walter (James Caan), is a publishing executive who doesn't have time for anything other than work. Buddy moves in with Walter and his family, and proceeds to teach them a lesson or two about what being a family really means. Meanwhile, he also falls head over heels in love with the incredibly cute department store clerk, Jovie (Zooey Deschanel). By the time Christmas Eve rolls around, the general lack of spirit in the air threatens to ground Santa for the big night. He must rely on Buddy's expertise and overall enthusiasm to ensure that Christmas will be saved once again. Favreau's film is family entertainment at its finest, featuring a performance by Ferrell that is at once innocent, tender, and laugh-out-loud funny. A stellar supporting cast--including Caan, Deschanel, Newhart, and Faizon Love--adds to the film's already overabundant charm.

Customer Reviews

One of the finest Christmas films EVER!!
At last! ELF gets an appropriate (if slightly overdue) festive release!

Ferrell starts as Buddy, the 'elf' of the title, a baby mistakenly taken to the north pole and raised along with the rest of Santa's elven helpers. As he grows up he can't understand why he towers 4 feet over all the other elves, or why he doesn't have pointed ears? Eventually, he learns of his origins and sets off to the big city to find his real father.
Once there, he becomes comically confused by the modern day interpretation of Christmas and starts to despair when the true spirit of Christmas seems to be lost. Think of this film as a cross between Dudley Moore's 'Santa Claus The Movie' and Steve Martins 'The Jerk' and you will get the idea.

Most of the fun in this film comes from Ferrells charming and at the same time manic performance, and he clearly carries the whole film, although the supporting cast are also strong.

A wonderful family film, this is one the most delighful Christmas films ever made!

True brilliance!!
I adored this film. It has a real christmassy atmosphere, and Will Ferrell is simply hilarious. I didn't stop laughing from start to finish, it was just so funny! Definitely one I will show my children in the future, and a christmas movie that is surely going to be a classic!

Make sure you watch this one, I guarantee it will be worth it! 5/5

Elf
This is a good Christmas film and is worth watching for a few good laughs. Will Ferrell is his usual funny self and comes out with some great lines that will crack you up at his delivery. This is exactly what it sets out to be, a light hearted Christmas movie and it more than delivers in that respect. It is a little cheesy in places, but there are worse Christmas movies out there for that and overall this will provide a couple hours of light, fun afternoon viewing. What more can you ask for? Not excellent (hence the 4 stars), but good fun never-the-less.