Favreau Happy 'Elf' Is 'Big' Deal To Moviegoers

Judging from its wildly successful opening weekend, there's no question that moviegoers believe in the Will Ferrell comedy "Elf" -- and that's a welcome early Christmas present for the film's writer and director, Jon Favreau.

"I always believed in it, but I think that expectations for the film were varied, based on who you asked," Favreau told me this week in an @ The Movies interview. "Some people expected to see maybe more of an irreverent, maybe darker PG-type comedy, more in the line of an 'Old School.' Some people were expecting more of just a straight-up family movie.

"But my vision was sort of to have it be something that fulfilled both those things but also was sort of clever culturally in reference to other Christmas movies."

Ferrell stars as Buddy, who as an orphaned toddler accidentally stowed himself away in Santa's (Ed Asner) sack of presents while at the orphanage. Discovered at the North Pole, Buddy is adopted by one of Santa's head elves (Bob Newhart) -- but in time becomes an outcast because of his unwieldy size and definitive lack of toy-making talent.

Urged to find his real father (James Caan) in New York City, Buddy discovers a town loaded with a load of people who have lost their belief in Christmas, and it's up to him to turn it around. But there's one big problem -- after being raised in an idyllic environment, he doesn't have a clue of what the real world is all about.

To say this is a watershed movie for Farrell is an understatement. Sure, we all knew he could be funny from television's "Saturday Night Live" and films like "Old School," but in "Elf," he adds to the humor a magical childlike innocence and vulnerability comparable to Tom Hanks' brilliant performance in "Big."

"That's interesting you say that because we looked at 'Big' together," Favreau told me. "My whole thing was, 'Let's look at the movies that worked that were of similar concepts and let's look at the ones that didn't. And 'Big' and 'Being There' were two of the movies that we figured were similar enough but also didn't get caught up in being a one-joke movie.

What Favreau loves about "Big," is that it focuses on the humanity of Hanks' character, a 12-year-old boy trapped in a grown man's body -- and he hoped to do the same for "Elf."

"It's a very broad concept and it could have easily been tedious." Favreau observed. "I like to think it isn't, and I think the big reason is that the character changes over the course of the movie. And there's a story that speaks to bigger issues. Even though it's not hitting you over the head, it's still there at its core. I think that's really important when you're making a movie.

Making Movies His Way

Favreau, of course, is no stranger to the movie world, having acted in such hits as the comedies "Swingers" and "Very Bad Things," the inspirational football movie "Rudy" and most recently, the comic book action-adventure "Daredevil," where he played Ben Affleck's law partner. He also turns up in a cameo in "Elf."

But aside from "Elf," Favreau, 36, has also had his hand in some behind-the-camera work. He re-teamed with "Swingers" co-star Vince Vaughn to star in "Made," a disorganized crime comedy that he also wrote and directed.

Being in the director's chair for "Made" gave Favreau the opportunity to cast classic actor Peter Falk in one of the film's pivotal roles; and he's made it a point for "Elf" to employ some of Falk's contemporaries, including Asner and Newhart.

The bottom line is, Favreau not only respects these actors for their previous contributions -- he knows they still have the goods.

"These people have been there, twice," Favreau said. "They have a whole world of experience to give you, not to mention just the childlike excitement you get on the set from being around these people you grew up watching. It's such an opportunity that you have when you're in my position to employ these actors -- yet it's an opportunity that so many people just don't pay attention to."

Not only does Favreau love casting classic actors in his movies, he loves to have them over to dinner -- as in "Dinner for Five," a show he created for the Independent Film Channel where he and four guests chew the fat about the business over a meal. Whether it's on the show or on the set, Favreau simply can't get enough of his experienced cast members.

"They're just the most interesting people," Favreau explained. "Most of them feel, from what I gather, that these are roles (like "Elf") haven't been available to them. And it's no wonder why. When I go to discuss these actors in casting meetings, they're not on anybody's radar. It doesn't mean anything to them."

Favreau said the biggest problem is that a lot of older actors aren't seen as "bankable" for feature films.

"It's all about a recent track record," Favreau said. "They would rather have somebody who's on a TV series that is more in the public eye now than somebody's who's popping off the "West Wing" in your thing, as opposed to someone like an Ed Asner or a Bob Newhart.

"It's difficult to explain what the impact's going to be but if you look at the reviews, people are charmed just to see these people and to see them add such credibility to the movie, not to mention the nostalgic flavor that I worked so hard on by putting the right music and the right special effects and set design in," he continued. "You completely get that same feeling just by seeing Bob Newhart sitting in a chair when the movie opens."

I'd Even Say It Glows

Perhaps what's most nostalgic about the special effects of "Elf," is the "Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer"-type of atmosphere Favreau creates.

Favreau likened the necessity of having the tradition stop-motion effects for "Elf" to era of record albums.

"Sometimes you know if you hear that sound, that crackling of an old record it gives it part of its personality -- it definitely has an effect," he explained.

But in the digital age, recreating low-budget stop-motion animation is something that doesn't happen so easily.

"There were a lot of people pointing me in the direction of doing compute-generated effects from the beginning, and it would have been a lot easier -- especially for the little characters," Favreau conceded. "But, even if you try to make it look as much like stop motion as you can, there's something different about CG."

Luckily, Favreau found the one animation house that still uses stop-motion technology. But the idea, he said, wasn't entirely accepted until it was screened for audiences.

"I don't think anybody understood what it was going to be like until they saw it," Favreau recalled. "I mean, those are the sequences they had wanted me to cut out of the movie from the first time I showed it. But do you know when it all changed? Not when the kids saw it -- but when the adults saw it at the screenings and they loved all the little details like that."

To Favreau, movies are all about the details.

"And, I got an opportunity to really put a lot of them in," he said. "There are a lot of layers to this that hopefully will hold up to multiple viewings."

In my opinion, there's no question that "Elf" will be viewed over and over for years to come. It's one of those rare movies that could be considered an instant classic, not only because of its insightful humor and zest, but because it manages to inform in some way, too.

"This movie is coming at a time where it's been a rough couple of years, especially for New York," said Favreau, who was born in Queens. "I think first of all, if you can take people's minds off of the problems of the world right now, for an hour and a half, at this moment in history, that of itself is a very noble endeavor. I firmly believe that."

And, Favreau realizes, being that his film is set during the holidays, it has the ability to drive home the point even more.

"I think the messages of hope, community and coming together are important ones," Favreau said. "Christmas movies are usually about loneliness being overcome by innocence overcoming cynicism and people coming together. Whether it's a Capra movie like 'It's a Wonderful Life,' or even the 'Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer' TV special, it's always about people coming together and people feeling alone in a lonely world and by the end feeling like they belong to a community and we're all in the same boat. And I think that that's a nice message, too."

While Favreau doesn't look as "Elf" as a "message movie," he's proud of the fact that he's been able to make some people think.

"I don't think that a message should ever be so overt that it takes precedence over entertainment," Favreau said. "The job is to entertain. Beyond that, if you keep them laughing and keep them liking it, then you earn the right to sort of lay in a little bit more."