There’s nothing that says holidays like snow falling, twinkly lights and 24/7 Christmas movies on all streamers and in the theaters. And like choosing that perfect holiday sweater for Aunt Marge, it’s hard to know exactly which one to watch.
“Spirited,” directed by Sean Anders, is yet another remake of the 19th century classic, “A Christmas Carol.” Hollywood just can’t get enough of Dickens' masterpiece about an elderly miser, ol’ Ebenezer Scrooge, who hates Christmas. There have been too many remakes to count. Bill Murray and The Muppets are two of my personal favorites.
Well, here comes “Spirited” bringing up the reindeer rear with an inverted plot twist, and two movie stars, Will Ferrell and Ryan Reynolds. They are certainly worth their mega star status, and they are supremely talented, but did you know they can sing? Well, buckle your Santa belts, you are in for a non-stop unadulterated musical, and at the end of it that question remains to be answered.
I made the mistake of watching it with my children, who are eight and ten, and besides going to bed with questions about suicide and dying, both asked, “Mom, when are they going to stop singing?” Although one song did stick out and we’ve played it a lot since, “Good Afternoon”, which is catchy, and hilarious.
The plot is twisted and hard to follow at times as it attempts to invert the classic with making the ghosts into the heroes.
The Ghost of Christmas Present (Ferrell) starts to question his haunting job and whether it’s making any difference in the world. He, alongside his co-workers Jacob Marley (Patrick Page), the Ghost of Christmas Past (Sunita Mani) and the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come (Loren Woods, and voiced by Tracy Morgan) set out on a quest to figure it out.
That’s when Present discovers Clint Briggs (Ryan Reynolds), a cynical, greedy jerk who markets his products by spinning lies and fabricating conflicts on social media for a living.
Briggs is the modern-day Scrooge who has that perfect combination of game show host and dictator. And wouldn’t you know it, Scrooge turns the tables on Present and helps him through his existential crisis all the while singing their way through solving the world's problems, namely social media.
In the end, “Spirited” is entertaining and ultimately leaves you feeling good about the world. That there’s hope given all the problems we face.
If you have a spare two hours and seven minutes, which is the running time of “Spirited,” then I’d say it’s worth it, but don’t take the littles. It’s rated PG-13 for language and adult themes, which there are plenty.
“Spirited” is in theatres and streaming on Apple TV+.
Popcorn’s on me.
