Spirited

I was a little skeptical of it being a musical, but I'm going to say after watching "Spirited" (and I thought that required watching it with spirits, so in full disclosure, I obliged), Will Ferrell is the king of Christmas movies. I dare say I wouldn't need the alcohol to enjoy it, the best thing about the movie is that it knows what it is and actively makes fun of it. Will Ferrell and Ryan Reynolds are both very charismatic and have the ability to carry a movie on its own, and together their magic is additive. And while I expected this to simply be a retelling of "A Christmas Carol", it's actually much more, more of an extension of the story. Is it perfect or without flaws? Of course not, it could have been half an hour shorter, easily, as most movies these days. But it's an enjoyable watch.

There isn't much deep things to say about this movie. It's a new spin on The Christmas Carol, it's a comedy musical and it's incredibly enjoyable.

In my opinion it starts a bit boring but then it really picked up when the story actually started to happen. It brings something original to the iconic Christmas Carol, it's funny and the songs are catchy and fun.

If you're looking to watch something Christmasy and you like musicals this is a must watch. Absolute delight for a family, even though I'm single and I watched it alone in my couch while eating crisps lol.

My only negative opinion is that the humour can be a bit cringy sometimes but that's okay, it made me laugh too! 8/10, I'd definitely recommend. Well maybe not if you don't like musicals and people bursting into songs or Christmas.

You hope for a Christmas movie to warm your heart like a cup of hot chocolate with marshmellows by the fireplace on a cold December night, but Spirited was more like entering the mall and hearing a Mariah Carey Christmas song for the 20th time of the season, so that's not so bad.

Will Ferrell & Ryan Reynolds' chemistry is what elevates it above average despite the lively & colorful musical numbers this felt slightly overdone & overcooked. At the end of the day, it made me laugh and made me feel happy. A fun modern twist on the classic story.

Another big positive is the music, for fans of musicals there is a lot to unpack here and surprisingly both Ferrell & Reynolds can hold their own singing and dancing. So I'm not going to be a Grinch here and say I didn't like it, because I did. It's just... a bit much at times.

6.5/10.

Spirited is literally everything I wanted from a Christmas musical and so much more, it is so, so good, I truly adored this Apple TV+ original and anyone who is a fan of musicals should check it out, you'll be treating yourself to an amazing time.

Wow, Ryan Reynolds, I truly cannot get enough of that man, I will watch anything and everything he is in, he puts on a truly brilliant performance in this and his chemistry with Will Ferrell is absolutely unmatched, this film truly takes the viewer on a beautiful journey about redeeming yourself that made me cry inside.

The musical numbers were absolutely spectacular, they were both marvelously choreographed and truly brilliantly hilarious, even though this movie was 2+ hours it somehow managed to just keep me wanting more the entire time.

Spirited gets an A.

This movie was fantastic! A fresh look at a classic tale led by two hilarious actors. The humor was irreverent and meta, which I loved. It looked and felt fresh.

The dancing and singing was top notch, too (not just the leads, but the whole cast/chorus). It somehow took all the best parts of musicals and yet managed to tease itself about being a pastiche of musicals without being mean. This had to have been written by theater nerds like myself. (Can we talk about the Howard Hill flavor in the Christmas tree number? *swoon*)

And I have to shout out the cast/chorus again. With such big names heading this, they probably don't get the applause they deserve. They were amazing!

The leads were pretty good - honestly way better than I expected (except for Octavia Spencer because I already knew she'd be incredible). I don't think I've heard Ryan Reynolds sing before, so I wasn't sure how it'd go. And Will Ferrell is a comedic genius - when he's in the right film. He can sometimes play the exact same character over and over. Luckily, this film was the right one because it allowed him to show heart, gravitas, silliness, and depth.

The costuming was intensely good. The costumes told a story as much as the writing did. And now I totally want that Santa bomber jacket.

I just finished watching it for the first time and now I'm going to go watch it 30 more times.