‘Spirited’ - Spolier Review
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Apple TV is not as big of a player in the world of original series and movies as their rivals at Netflix or Amazon, but they have developed some great content with Ted Lasso leading the way, but there are certainly some other hidden gems. Spirited is Apple’s answer to original holiday programming that isn’t A Charlie Brown Christmas but does it deserve a lump of coal or another round of figgy pudding?
Spirited opens on a trope we have become aware of when it comes to holiday fare, specifically Charles Dickens’ classic tale, A Christmas Carol. A woman faces her own grave at the feet of The Ghost of Christmas Future, saying she will change. When you think everything will play out as we have seen countless times before, but **record scratch** the Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present, and Future are part of a whole production team in the spirit realm that is dedicated to getting a perpetrator (perp) every year to change their ways and cause a ripple which will make the planet better. This idea of making a small change to affect a larger cause is common throughout the movie.
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Jacob Marley leads this group in the spirit realm, played by longtime broadway actor Patrick Page, who decides, each year, who the next perp will be. The Ghost of Christmas Past, Sunita Mani of Mr. Robot fame, the Ghost of Christmas Present, who has been doing work in this realm for over 200 years, is played by Will Ferrell and Tracy Morgan is the voice of the Ghost of Christmas Future who wants to do more than “point.” Honestly, I didn’t have any issues with this casting, but Tracy Morgan’s voice did throw me off a little bit.
After some back and forth on the decision, the team settles on Clint Briggs, played by Ryan Reynolds, the head of a PR company who will do anything to create stories. For example, he introduces a battle between fake vs. real Christmas trees and his willingness to help his niece win a school president by digging up dirt on a 13-year-old rival to help her win. During the year-long fact-finding mission, we are introduced to the Bob Cratchet of the movie, Kim, as played by Octavia Spencer, that is uncomfortable with what her boss does but is too afraid of the unknown to say anything. The movie is filled with great dance routines and good songs, but Ferrell and Reynolds are not great singers. Like Pierce Brosnan in Mamma Mia! level of singing, which is a pretty low bar, the musical numbers take you out of the movie when performed. But the background singers and dancers more than make up for it.
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We are onto Christmas eve, and the ghosts are ready to do their thing. Marley sets the tone for Briggs’ night but shuts it down pretty quickly as Briggs appears to not be interested in the endeavor, further pushing the narrative that Briggs is not worth all the effort. Unfortunately, the Ghost of Christmas Past can only accomplish half her shift because she sleeps with him, leaving Present to carry the load for the night. Present has a lot of difficulties trying to get through to Briggs and is faced with the dilemma that perhaps Briggs cannot be saved. But like in A Christmas Carol, we learn through his trips that he had a sister who died but honestly did believe he was a good person and that he starts to feel remorse for some of his recent issues, namely convincing his niece to post a video of the boy she is facing in the school election that would ruin him. But in a twist, Present is actually Ebeneezer Scrooge and was also considered unredeemable. The rest of the movie follows along the beats of A Christmas Carol, and with the look into Briggs’ future, he learns that posting that video of the kid leading to his suicide, he begins to see the error of his ways.
But what separates this movie from the classic story is halfway through the film, Scrooge, decides to “retire” thanks to coaxing from Briggs and becomes mortal. He then uses this newfound mortality to fall in love with Kim. But what happens with Briggs? After realizing he needs to stop his niece from sharing the video, he manages to do so but explains to Scrooge that he is still not changed. As he says, “Maybe I will feel remorse for a few days, but then I will rationalize things and be back to myself.” This doesn’t sit with Scrooge, so he decides to end himself to become a spirit again and try to get Briggs to change for good. But just as he is about to be hit by a bus, Briggs saves him and sacrifices himself instead.
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Admittedly I thought this was the end of the movie because everyone was celebrating his change in attitude, and even Briggs admitted he would change. There was a big song and dance finale-like number, but then it turns out Briggs does actually die. As Marley explains, not having the sacrifice happen would negate everything he has accomplished. But fear not, Briggs is able to convince Marley to let him take over the role of the Ghost of Christmas Present.
In the end, the filmmakers hoped Ferrell and Reynolds’s powerful presence would make this a memorable movie. They are not entirely wrong because I was drawn to them and what they brought to the table. Unfortunately, this film is not destined to become a holiday classic and will probably be forgotten in a few years’ time. There were too many plot lines in the movie, so it felt rushed and convoluted. If you are a fan of cheesy holiday movies or the works of Reynolds or Ferrell, then you will like this film, but if you are expecting a new classic holiday movie, best look elsewhere.
Overall: 6/10
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Source(s): yahoo, towleroad
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