While there are a lot of family favorite holiday movies out there that can get you into the holiday spirit, the movie Elf is one that many people know and love. It is a movie good for all ages from young children to adults, and everyone can enjoy its Christmas humor. 

The movie Elf follows the journey of a baby who sneaks into Santa’s sack at the orphanage on Christmas Eve and follows his journey with him growing up in an elves’ world. The story takes Buddy in the journey of meeting long lost family members and somehow saving Christmas for everyone. 

The movie starts with a little baby, Buddy, in the orphanage on Christmas Eve. He wakes up when he hears Santa come down the chimney to deliver the presents. When Santa has his back turned to the little baby, he sneaks out of his crib and into Santa’s sack. Once Santa arrives back at the North Pole, he and the elves soon realize that there is a little baby moving around in Santa’s sack. 

Buddy, the human, is taken in by someone whom the elves called Papa Elf. The story line talks about what it was like for a human, who was growing double the size of an elf, to live in an elf’s world. Buddy really thinks that he is an elf, but he soon realizes that something doesn’t seem right. Elves have a special talent to make toys quickly, and this is a skill that Buddy doesn’t have because he was human. He overhears two of the elves talking about him, and he hears them say that he is a human and not an elf. When he finds this out, he’s sad because he thought he was one of them.

Santa and Papa Elf decide that it may be a good idea for Buddy to go out and experience the real world in a big city like New York. All of the elves and Santa gather to send Buddy off to New York to find his father, Walter Hobbs. Buddy travels through many different lands, including a candy cane forest and many other fun places. When he gets to New York, he feels a little out of place because he is the only one that he could see wearing a green and gold elf costume. 

Buddy ventures around the city until he finds the place where his father, Walter Hobbs works and he goes to visit him. The story keeps going with Buddy trying to get to know his father, who is unsure of who this random person is. 

Walter Hobbs’s wife Susan Wells tells him that she thinks they should bring Buddy into their home and Walter, with much hesitation, agrees. Buddy gets to know Walter, Susan, and their son Michael Hobbs, while continuing to experience New York and all its greatness. Meanwhile, back at the North Pole, Santa is having some problems with his sled. There isn’t enough Christmas cheer to make the sled fly. Even though the story goes that the reindeer makes the sled fly, it also uses Christmas spirit to fly on Christmas Eve. 

Buddy, while in New York, spreads Christmas cheer to the people and stores he visits and spends time with. And on Christmas Eve he helps to make Santa’s sleigh fly by his new friends and family gathering a group of people who started singing in Central Park and spreading Christmas cheer. So if you are looking for a fun and cheerful movie to watch this holiday season, consider watching Elf. You may be surprised. Maybe some of the Christmas spirit will rub off on you too.