โIf you believe in this spirit thing, the miracle will happen, and then youโll want it to happen again tomorrowโฆ It can happen every day, youโve just got to want that feeling.โ
โ Bill Murray in SCROOGED
Thatโs right โ itโs time to feel the moment and that holiday spirit thing. Itโs time for Spoiler Free Reviewโs 12 days of Christmas 2022 edition! We will be posting our favorite holiday experiences with 12 reviews and illustrations of movies, TV, and music. So sit back, enjoy some spiked eggnog, and enjoy to SFRโs 12-days of Christmas 2022!ย ๐
Iโm torn on the latest musical, SPIRITED. It checks all the boxes to become a Christmas classic, yet somehow it lacks that magicalโฆ spirit.
In the โspiritโ of A CHRISTMAS CAROL, youโll be visited by three ghosts while reading this review. The ghost of Christmas Past, Present, and Future. From there, you can decide if SPIRITED is โRedeemable.โ
CHRISTMAS PAST
Letโs start by visiting the past and the decisions that went into making this movie.
- Casting โ Will Ferrell is one of the funniest actors working and visually fits his character. Yet, what doesnโt work is his singing voice. And that should be the number one requirement for his role since he has most of the songs in SPIRITED. I imagined John C. โMr. Cellophaneโ Reilly or even Hugh โGreatest Showmanโ Jackman instead. As is, this causes a โripple effectโ during some of the most emotional songs throughout the film.
- Editing โ This is a LONG movie. Sean Anders should have cut something in this two-plus Christmas buffet. And, he could have. If the film were about fifteen minutes shorter, it would easily be one of the best of the year. As is, it continues to try to โBring Back Christmasโ for far too long.
CHRISTMAS PRESENT
Next up is the present, whereupon release, the film shouldโve been releasedโฆ
- Theatrically โ SPIRITED is the type of feel-good movie that needs to be seen on the big screen with an audience. THE GREATEST SHOWMAN got panned on Rotten Tomatoes but continued to surprise at the box office because of the communal experience. Unfortunately, without the audienceโs energy, the experience isnโt as strong as it couldโve been.
- The Twist โ Holy โGood Afternoonโ the twist in this film is epic. Itโs what separates it from other CHRISTMAS CAROL adaptations. Itโs a โpresentโ worth unwrapping.
- Music โ By now, readers know Iโm obsessed with Pasek and Paulโs work (THE GREATEST SHOWMAN, DEAR EVAN HANSON, and LYLE, LYLE, CROCODILE, to name a few). In SPIRITED, they have three songs that could be performed at your office Christmas party.ย
Those are:
- โDo a Little Goodโ is safe and fun to sing with the entire family.
- โGood Afternoonโ is the perfect f*ck you holiday song, and that CHOCOLAT reference is ๐
- โThat Christmas Morninโ Feelingโ punctuates the movie to close on a high note.
CHRISTMAS FUTURE
On to the not-so-scary future, where I could easily see SPIRITED playing onโฆ
- Broadway โ After rewatching parts of SPIRITED, Iโm convinced โthe view from hereโ on the screen shouldโve been a Broadway musical. It would have audience participation, and the musical numbers couldโve soared. I predict Iโll attend a doubleheader of this movie adapted to the stage along with THE GREATEST SHOWMAN in my not-so-distant future.ย
THE RESULTS
Despite an โUnredeemableโ past, the present โBrings Back Christmasโ just enough to make it worth the audienceโs time in the future.
Itโs available on Apple TV+.
