Elf: How a Comedy became the LAST Christmas Classic

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Күн бұрын

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Could Elf (2003) truly be the last Christmas Classic? And why does it seem so difficult for Hollywood to capture the magic of the holiday season?
In this video essay breaking down the brilliance of Jon Favreau's Elf, we'll examine how heart, humor, and brains come together to make Elf not only one of the best Christmas movies in decades, but also one of the pound for pound best films ever made.
Written & Edited ---------------------- Dylan Gregory @TheWritersBlockOfficial
#videoessay #thewritersblock #elf #christmasmovies #hollywoodproblem #filmanalysis #willferrel #buddytheelf #elfmovie #cinema #christmas #writingadvice
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Пікірлер: 85

@TheWritersBlockOfficial 5 ай бұрын

Which Holiday Movie is the Best??? GET NORDVPN: nordvpn.com/writersblock

@PandaNinjaguy 5 ай бұрын

Die Hard

@Asteroids50 5 ай бұрын

The Holiday

@TheWritersBlockOfficial 5 ай бұрын

Yippee kai yay

@burntchickennugget8142 5 ай бұрын

Ayo how you comment yesterday on a 12 hour old video ??!

@TheWritersBlockOfficial 5 ай бұрын

@burntchickennugget8142 sponsored videos need to approve the unlisted version before it goes public

@liamfoley6963 5 ай бұрын

I truly believe Klaus deserves to be called a Christmas classic.

@CrashDunning 5 ай бұрын

YES

@dinoduckling2662 5 ай бұрын

Agreed! It's a fantastic movie, honestly better then some other Christmas classics.

@r2jeri691 5 ай бұрын

Was about to say the same thing

@holdeenyo8914 5 ай бұрын

I was going to say the same thing.

@asteroidrules 5 ай бұрын

In a sense Elf takes part of the premise from How The Grimch Stole Christmas: it's a story about contrasting cynicism and hope, except flipped around, the Grinch's cynicism is contrasted to Whoville's hope, while Buddy's hope is contrasted to the cynicism of New York City and basically everyone he meets in it. Buddy serves as the catalyst to every other character's arcs, and that hits the Christmas spirit on the head, his limitless childlike wonder benefits everyone who encounters it.

@TheWritersBlockOfficial 5 ай бұрын

That's a really cool observation!

@d1nodray 5 ай бұрын

grimch lol

@Asteroids50 5 ай бұрын

Fun fact: Walter gives the bra to his wife Emily as a Christmas present at the end of the movie. You can see it in the background when Buddy gets his giant bottle of maple syrup. The gift for that “special someone” is a joke, but also Walter kept it. He didn’t throw away Buddy’s present to him, even if it was silly

@EliasMorals 5 ай бұрын

also, i think something that helps Walter change is that Michael is told to shut up and leave by the Bigwig at the company. As much as he prioritizes work, hearing SOMEONE ELSE being rude to his child makes him realize "I do love my family."

@EliasMorals 5 ай бұрын

which is in total contrast to the fact that he essentially did the same to buddy, on a much larger scale too

@orange_turtle3412 5 ай бұрын

Something that continues to surprise me about elf is how it continues to feel recent and modern every single year I watch it. The movie is over 20 years old, but somehow when im watching it it always manages to feel like a fresh new story like it had come out only a few years ago.

@TheWritersBlockOfficial 5 ай бұрын

I think sincerity is timeless. The themes characters and humor always appply

@orange_turtle3412 5 ай бұрын

@@TheWritersBlockOfficial It might also help that it was made in the 2000s, with distinctly more advanced film technology than other “Christmas classics”, most of which are from the 1980s and 90s. Theres a very evident difference between how a 2000s movie feels vs a pre-2000s one.

@Asteroids50 5 ай бұрын

The only part that feels like the 2000s is Gimbels since that went out of business, but otherwise completely timeless

@profitbear7337 5 ай бұрын

Thank you for this. Our family loves to watch Elf every year. It hits like nothing else, and it really is hilarious but also extremely sincere. No matter how rough life can get, it's a pleasure to be swept away into Buddy's wonderful, happy world for two hours

@Immopimmo 5 ай бұрын

Elf has become as much of Christmas Classic in our household as Home Alone, National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation and A Muppets Christmas Carol.

@TheWritersBlockOfficial 5 ай бұрын

Then yours is a good household

@mixymaxox 5 ай бұрын

Fun fact: One Christmas Day we were watching Elf. We got to the part where the narwhal waves at Buddy as he is leaving. Apparently my mom didn’t know narwhals were real animals up until that day 💀

@TheWritersBlockOfficial 5 ай бұрын

I got made fun of in 5h grade because i "believed" in Narwharls... :(

@lizardplays294 5 ай бұрын

arthur christmas I think is the closest we've had to a "christmas classic" since ELF

@TheWritersBlockOfficial 5 ай бұрын

Ooh thats a good point

@PandaNinjaguy 5 ай бұрын

Also that was a beautiful ad transition, I listened to just the advertisement 12 times ngl

@confuzedduk1008 5 ай бұрын

I gotta say, Elf definitely isn't my favorite Christmas movie, but is still a classic and it's way better than most stuff being thrown at us by big brands.

@DimeDCSGO 5 ай бұрын

Color grading on your close up shots looks great man. Great video as a whole

@TheWritersBlockOfficial 5 ай бұрын

Oh thank you! Ive been working on trying to improve that so thank you for saying that. The fidelity is so so cause im using a canon t5i but im really trying to work on color grading in post and lighting during production

@JMFilms123 4 ай бұрын

i think one modern film that is truly forgotten about when it comes to Christmas classics is Arthur Christmas, which to me is in the same vein as wearing its sincerity straight on its sleeve. it is a movie that revels in the joy and perseverance of the christmas spirit.

@TheWritersBlockOfficial 4 ай бұрын

Great point!

@LynzArts 5 ай бұрын

what about Klaus? I think its great

@TheWritersBlockOfficial 5 ай бұрын

Ooh havent seen it but ill have to check it out

@josephtremblay4 5 ай бұрын

@@TheWritersBlockOfficialI don’t comment very much but you are truly missing out if you do not watch Klaus. It is far and away not only one of the top ten Christmas movies I’ve ever seen, it’s one of the best ever movies I’ve ever seen.

@finchbewitched 5 ай бұрын

Not quite a movie, but Prep and Landing has been a yearly holiday staple for my family.

@TheWritersBlockOfficial 5 ай бұрын

Ooooh thats a great one

@gunbattleguppy 5 ай бұрын

you are keeping my passion for stories alive, love your stuff man!

@TheWritersBlockOfficial 5 ай бұрын

Oh wow thank you so much man. I want to make it clear how meaningful that is to me. Like its this type of response that really keeps me going even when a video flops or im super anxious. Im so glad the stuff on this channel is connecting with you in a meaningful way. Seriously thank you

@LuccaDoesStuff 5 ай бұрын

I just watched a re-release of Elf in the cinema earlier today, so this was definitely a nice surprise.

@doddy9492 5 ай бұрын

someone had to say it. thank you, for reporting on this masterpiece of a film( and one of my favorite movies). :)

@zimmertidethegreat1852 5 ай бұрын

Nostalgia.

@deborahblackvideoediting8697 Ай бұрын

Enjoyable video. I loved Elf. I saw it during a time when someone I deeply loved was extremely ill and I was so worried about her. The film will always hold a special place in my heart. It's rare to see a flat arc done well. Another example that comes to mind is 'Crocodile Dundee'. A foreign environment can really work well when the hero needs to hold steadfast to his/her beliefs.

@Minecraft_Steve_ 5 ай бұрын

Finally, someone gets it!

@copycatlyn 5 ай бұрын

here super early cause this is the best christmas movie ever! love this video!

@TheWritersBlockOfficial 5 ай бұрын

Thank you! And yeah elf is just about perfect

@JustaGuy_Gaming 5 ай бұрын

While I agree in general, most new Holiday movies are just lacking, a more recent one I can think of that was really good was Disney's Prep and Landing. Sure it's a bit of a short movie, even if you include the Sequel Naughty and Nice. But it was original, upbeat and generally good all around.

@willoverdoseonmusic 5 ай бұрын

The Holdovers would like a word

@TheWritersBlockOfficial 5 ай бұрын

Have to see it still, but if that's the case I'm very excited!

@mrgiggles5555 4 ай бұрын

I know you specified "Hollywood" hasn't produced any Christmas classics in recent memory. But I'm gonna throw out Tokyo Godfathers as a Christmas classic. Never thought I'd see an anime that captures the Christmas spirit and the value of family (both biological and chosen families) better than any western produced film has recently. It also captures what the director described as meaningful coincidences that come off feeling like Christmas miracles. It has an internal logic in regards to the coincidences that it follows to a t. I would highly recommend it and any of the works Satoshi Kon (the director) has produced. I recently discovered it and will add it to my yearly Christmas watch list.

@antonellafontana1300 5 ай бұрын

Can you talk about how Godzilla minus one humiliated Hollywood next please?

@TheWritersBlockOfficial 5 ай бұрын

Sadly i still havent seen it. But i will make it a priority to watch

@Patrick-wl6pw 5 ай бұрын

Love film

@captainterra4581 5 ай бұрын

id love to hear your take on spirited, since you used it so much in this video

@TheWritersBlockOfficial 5 ай бұрын

I enjoy it quite a lot (mainly because the dance numbers are very reminiscent of the old MGM musicals I was practically raised on through VHS) but I also think it's a bit messy. Like it's not quite a classic for me but it came very close. I think it's JUST A LITTLE scared to go full sincere at times and I don't know if that's the Ryan Reynolds vibe or some of the self aware "We have to comment about the fact that people are singing/dancing" thing. Like right now it's pretty good movie that with a few tweaks would be an all time favorite holiday movie. Plus I really love the soundtrack. I'll probably go into more specifics in a future video I'm working on. I'm currently developing video outlines for 3 different subjects -- War Films, Cyberpunk: Edgerunners, and Movies where the songwriters didn't read the script (*cough* Frozen *cough*). That third one might be a good place to discuss how Spirted gets a lot right, but just a few things wrong.

@captainterra4581 5 ай бұрын

@@TheWritersBlockOfficial ah yeah i see man, i will certainly be keeping an eye iut for those videos.

@Legendaryaire 5 ай бұрын

I agree with your message, but I still think The Grinch and Klaus are classics.

@MCLegoboy 5 ай бұрын

I'd actually like some examples of what Christmas movies have even been made in the past 20 years that don't make the cut to become classics because I'll be honest, I don't remember what Christmas movies have come out because I never saw them in the first place, and then the ones I have don't count. There's Krampus, Violent Night, and that one where Mel Gibson also plays Santa and beats up guys trying to kill him, but they all fall into the subversive category. I don't even know what Christmas is anymore it seems. rip

@TheWritersBlockOfficial 5 ай бұрын

Well christmas is... how do i put this... well... when a capitalism and december lover each other very much...

@MCLegoboy 5 ай бұрын

@@TheWritersBlockOfficial Now that's a movie!

@talithasuter6365 5 ай бұрын

Arthur Christmas was released in 2011. I don't think it's old enough to be considered a Christmas "Classic" but it definitely has the merits of one.

@robertlauncher 5 ай бұрын

You have to love the holiday first. Can’t be a cynical anti-American tool like most of Hollywood today

@dinoduckling2662 5 ай бұрын

Then let me name you a good Christmas movie released in the last decade. Klaus, it's fantastic though I do agree.

@TheWritersBlockOfficial 5 ай бұрын

I've been getting a lot of recommendations towards this movie and will be sure to check it out

@confuzedduk1008 5 ай бұрын

One thing, where do the parents think the presents came from?

@NerdSpartanPerson 5 ай бұрын

While I agree not many movies since Elf have become Christmas classics, I'd argue Polar Express is up there

@TheWritersBlockOfficial 5 ай бұрын

Its definitely in consideration. I think animation in it makes it simultaneously iconic but also incredibly of its time. So definitely a great Christmas movie. Not sure whether or not its a "classic"

@NerdSpartanPerson 5 ай бұрын

@@TheWritersBlockOfficial The animation is definitely a bit uncanny, but I think if we can give the title of Christmas classic to movies like Home Alone and Die Hard which are both still visually of their time, I think Polar Express fits fine

@Legendaryaire 5 ай бұрын

I know the kids love Polar Express, but I just can't...

@eatatjoes6751 4 ай бұрын

Aw, fuck. You got me to watch ELF.

@TheWritersBlockOfficial 4 ай бұрын

The best way to spread christmas cheer... Is making a video essay that convinces people to watch elf in January

@caden4858 5 ай бұрын

is he acoustic

@mrliteral9347 5 ай бұрын

@0:11 Flair...Jon Favreau ain't J.J. Abrams...

@Dommy_Playzzz 5 ай бұрын

"Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you." - ephesians 4:32

@AddictiveSin Ай бұрын

Christmas is dead. 1 No one can afford that. 2 Cults are having trouble drawing in new members. 3 Its a stressful ball of bs in the most depressing time of year. Why make more movies about a dead holiday?

@ecisme10 5 ай бұрын

I understand that people like Elf because it's funny. It is funny. But it's not a great Christmas movie. I don't care about or know much about the step brother. We needed more of Newhart as the Elf father. James Caan (RIP) is a great actor but was SO flat in this role. He did not work. I think that may be the biggest reason for it not landing as a real Christmas Classic.