Thirty years ago, an orphaned baby accidently crawled into Santa’s (Edward Asner) sack and ended up at the North Pole, where he was given the name Buddy, and adopted and raised by Papa Elf (Bob Newhart). While Buddy (Will Ferrell) loves everything about Christmas and the holidays, he doesn’t really look like the other elves and doesn’t have the same skills when it comes to making toys. When Papa finally tells him the truth about his origin, Buddy is shocked to discover he’s not actually an elf. So he heads to New York City to meet his real father, children’s book publisher Walter Hobbs (James Caan), who’s a bit of a Grinch and Scrooge all rolled into one. But if anyone can make Walter have a change of heart, it’s the ever-positive Buddy. Meanwhile, the North Pole, which is powered by Christmas Cheer, is running low on energy as less and less people believe in Christmas every year. So Buddy sets out to make people believe with his infectious Christmas Cheer. Along the way, he meets and falls in love with quirky Gimbel’s department store elf Jovie (Zooey Deschanel).
Will Ferrell can be a bit polarizing, especially in an over-the-top role like this, but I absolutely adore his childish antics and wide-eyed enthusiasm as Buddy the elf. Buddy is always dialed up to an 11. He grew up in the North Pole, and is not familiar with the harsh realities of the real world. So he is always on and upbeat, trying to spread positivity and Christmas Cheer, and this is infectious, even to the most bah humbug of people. Ferrell really delivers on the physical humor as Buddy scarfs down spaghetti with maple syrup, gets into snowball fights, or attacks a mall Santa who is “sitting on a throne of lies”. Bob Newhart is perfectly cast as Papa Elf, with his hilarious dry delivery of the most ridiculous lines, and a nice calm counterpart to Ferrell’s more manic Buddy. James Caan also finds the perfect balance between evil angry businessman, and loving father who can be changed by the Christmas spirit. Ferrell has amazing comedic and dramatic chemistry with everyone Buddy shares the screen with—whether it’s his two fathers, or the sweet and quirky Jovie. The film also has a great supporting cast, including Mary Steenburgen as Walter’s wife Emily, Amy Sedaris as Walter’s assistant Deb, Peter Dinklage as Walter’s boss Miles Finch, and Faizon Love as Gimbel’s Manager.
ELF tells a fun and heartfelt family-friendly holiday story that immediately becomes a Christmas classic all its own. No matter how many times I’ve seen this movie, I always find myself smiling and laughing throughout. It’s a perfect film to kick off the holiday season with. Along with that, there’s also a nostalgic feel to the movie, from casting folks like Bob Newhart and Ed Asner, to including some stop motion animation, and even Peter Billingsley (A Christmas Story) appears as one of the North Pole elves. The film doesn’t rely on a lot of CGI, instead deploying old school camera tricks like forced perspective to make it look like a giant Buddy is working and living alongside the much smaller elves in the North Pole. The result is both comical and unbelievably convincing.
Last holiday season, Warner Bros. released this film on 4K UHD for the first time, but we were just sent the disc for review this year. It looks phenomenal, with a clean picture, a pleasant amount of film grain, bright colors, and an excellent level of detail throughout. The movie has never looked better. The effects and stop-motion animation also blend in seamlessly. The film’s audio presentation is also excellent, with clear dialogue throughout, and a beautiful sounding score/soundtrack.
The 4K release only includes both the 4K disc and a Blu-ray disc, which are packed in a standard 4K keepcase, along with a glossy cardboard slipcover and an insert with instructions on how to redeem a 4K Movies Anywhere compatible digital copy. There was no new bonus material created for the 4K release, but the 4K disc contains both commentaries that were on the previous Blu-ray release. The remaining bonus material can only be found on the Blu-ray disc, which is identical to the 2008 release. This contains hours of entertaining features, including 90 minutes of documentaries, trivia tracks, karaoke, deleted/alternate scenes, and more.
What’s Included:
Film: (1:36:44)
- 2160p / Widescreen 1.85:1
- HDR10
- Audio: English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio, French 5.1 Dolby Digital, Spanish 5.1 Dolby Digital
- Subtitles: English SDH, French, Spanish
- 1080p / Widescreen 1.85:1
- Audio: English 5.1 Dolby Digital, English 5.1 Dolby TrueHD, German 5.1 Dolby Digital, Spanish 5.1 Dolby Digital
- Subtitles: English SDH, German SDH, Spanish
- 4K Digital Copy (Movies Anywhere compatible)
- Commentary by Director Jon Favreau (1:36:43)
Director Jon Favreau shares lots of fun and interesting stories about the production, talking about how some of the effects were done without CG effects, the cast, and more. - Commentary by Will Ferrell (1:36:43)
Star Will Ferrell provides an entertaining commentary, talking about the story and characters, and sharing fun behind-the-scenes stories about the production. - Documentaries (1:28:24)
Extensive look at the making of the film, plus some additional holiday themed featurettes. Includes behind-the-scenes footage, and interviews with Will Ferrell (“Buddy”), director Jon Favreau, writer David Berenbaum, producer Todd Komarnicki, Jon Berg & Shauna Robertson, unit production manager Penny Gibbs, first assistant director Jim Brebner, second assistant director Andrew Robinson, second second assistant director James Bitonti, third assistant director Misha Bukowski, production assistants Scott Spencer & Tashanna Ducharme, key makeup artist Victoria Down, key hairstylist Sherry Gygli, first assistant hairstylists Donna Bis & Ian Ballard, director of photography Greg Gardiner, camera operator William Waring, second camera assistant George Majoros, dolly grip Gil Forrester, key grip Dillard Brinson, sound mixer David Husby, boom operator Kelly Zombor, “Buddy” stunt double Mike Carpenter, script supervisor Jessica Clothier, video assist John Sanderson, production designer Rusty Smith, art director Kelvin Humenny, lead carpenter Samuel Pritchard, lead labourer Chad Calder, costume designer Laura Jean Shannon, on0set carpenter Mikal Wiliams, on-set painter David Pirrie, visual effects producer Joe Conmy, visual effects assistant Katie Quinn, property master Bryan Korenberg, editor Dan Lebental, visual effects supervisor Joe Bauer, visual effects editor Paul Wagner, Digital Dimension VFX supervisor Ben Girard, supervising sound editor John Leveque, foley artists Jeffrey Wilhoit & James Moriana, supervising foley editor Lisa Varetakis, New Line music executive Bob Bowen, composer John Debney, head orchestrator Brad Dechter, film score mixer Shawn Murphy, re-recording mixer Jon Taylor, and more. Play All, or select from:- Tag Along with Will Ferrell (7:02)
Tag along with star Will Ferrell (“Buddy”) as he goes through make-up and wardrobe, and films some scenes. - Film School for Kids (20:38)
The cast and filmmakers talk about the various stages and departments involved in creating the movie—from developing the script, casting the movie, creating the storyboards, filming, and more. - How They Made the North Pole (11:31)
A look at designing and creating the North Pole set. - Lights, Camera, Puffin! (6:37)
Animators Charles and Stephen Chiodo talk about creating the stop motion animation. - That’s a Wrap… (12:13)
A look at the post-production process of editing, adding visual and sound effects, scoring, and promoting the movie at the premiere. - Kids on Christmas (6:32)
Kids answer questions about Santa. - Deck the Halls (10:26)
Interviews with people who go to extremes when decorating their homes for the holidays. - Santa Mania (6:30)
Interviews with Surfing Santa Vince Ray, Santa costume maker Theresa “Adele” Saidy and customer William Daw, Santa Claus photographer Jerry Cole, and more. - Christmas in Tinseltown (6:51)
Honorary Mayor of Hollywood Johnny Grant and more talk about how Christmas is celebrated in Hollywood.
- Tag Along with Will Ferrell (7:02)
- Fact Track (1:36:43)
When enabled, facts about Santa and his elves and trivia about the film pop up while watching the movie. Offered in English, German and Spanish. - Focus Points (1:36:43)
When enabled, an icon appears on screen during the movie that can be clicked to view short behind-the-scenes featurettes and interviews. - Elf Karaoke (4:37)
Sing along with your favorite Christmas songs, with or without the vocals. Play All, or select from “We Wish You A Merry Christmas” (1:27), “Deck the Halls” (1:37), and “Jingle Bells” (1:32). - Theatrical Trailer (2:30)
- Deleted/Alternate Scenes (11:30)
Collection of 8 deleted/extended scenes with optional director’s commentary. Play All, or select from:- Hockey (1:27)
- Buddy Talks with Papa (1:45)
- Walter and the Nun (1:49)
- Papa Tells Buddy the Truth (1:20)
- Buddy and Leon (1:08)
- Walter and Emily (:45)
- Extended Tuck-in (2:01)
- Extended Miles Finch Fight (1:12)
4K Ultra HD:
Blu-ray:
Digital (code may not be valid after 12/31/2024):
Extras:
The audio commentaries are available on the 4K disc, all of the other bonus material can only be found on the Blu-ray disc, which is identical to the 2008 release.
Final Thoughts:
ELF is a holiday classic and should be a part of everyone’s collection. It is a fun, feel-good film that has a bit of a nostalgic feel, and is perfect to get anyone into the holiday spirit. Warner Bros’ 4K release looks and sounds great, but doesn’t offer any new bonus material in addition to that included on the previous Blu-ray release. If this is not part of your collection, the 4K release is certainly the version to buy, and is a must own for any fan of the movie.
Elf (4K Ultra HD + Blu-Ray + Digital) [4K UHD]
59% Off $33.99 $13.99 (as of April 27, 2024 13:22 GMT -04:00 – More infoProduct prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.)
Elf (plus bonus features)
(as of April 27, 2024 13:22 GMT -04:00 – More infoProduct prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.)
Elf
$14.99 (as of April 27, 2024 13:22 GMT -04:00 – More infoProduct prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.)
