Spirited (2022)

Spirited (2022) This is a Movie Health Community evaluation. It is intended to inform people of potential health hazards in movies and does not reflect the quality of the film itself. The information presented here has not been reviewed by any medical professionals. Spirited has two scenes with lightning-related strobe effects, the very first scene being one of them. One dance number involving handheld lights has intense patterns to those lights. There are a few scenes of high-speed flying at extreme heights. A few scenes are filmed with very steady handheld cameras. Flashing Lights: 8/10. Motion Sickness: 5/10. TRIGGER WARNING: A story is shown of a child who dies by suicide as a result of bullying. Another scene shows an attempt at a death by suicide.

Image ID: A promotional poster for Spirited

Spirited

directed by Sean Anders, 2022

Title: Instant Family 

Rating: PG-13

Director: Sean Anders

Cast: Mark Wahlberg, Rose Byrne, Allyn Rachel, Isabela Merced, Julie Hagerty, Tig Notaro, Octavia Spencer, Gustavo Escobar, Margo Martindale, Julianna Gamiz

Release year: 2018

Genres: comedy, family

Blurb: When Pete and Ellie decide to start a family, they stumble into the world of foster care adoption. They hope to take in one small child, but when they meet three siblings - including a rebellious 15-year-old girl - they find themselves speeding from zero to three kids overnight.

W A T C H E D

I know it's June, but I bought it in December. So that counts, right?

I couldn't bring myself to watch it since my dad died. Because we were more similar to Will Ferrell & John Lithgow's character's relationship.

We were kissy and huggy. We were like best buds, and like brothers. He was such a manly dude, but not a fake facade of hyper masculinity.

That little girl, Scarlett Estevez, who's famously from the Lucifer TV series, she's so funny! Her saying "I shot a man and Turkey guess which one is dead!" I was floored.

It's a shame that Mel Gibson is so talented and fun to watch, but he's bad person in his personal life. He should learn from his character in this movie and do better and change his life.

Try to separate the art from the artist, because this movie really is wholesome. Good moral tale of Dads and Kids and love.

Spirited (2022) Review

Ah here we are once again. It’s that time of year when Christmas starts in November. What a pile of wallop. 

Plot: A musical version of the classic Christmas story by Charles Dickens. A miserly man who treats everyone around him with terrible selfishness finds himself on a fantastical adventure into the three phases of time: past, present, and future, in order to discover how he ended up so miserable and alone.

Everyone knows the original Charles Dickens’ classic story of ‘A Christmas Carol’. Even if you aren’t a reader I’m sure you were forced to browse through its pages at school, or at the very least watched The Muppets version. So in cometh the streaming semi-giant Apple TV to pair one of the biggest Hollywood comedians Will Ferrell with one of the biggest Hollywood stars period Ryan Reynolds in a modernised take of Dickensian literature. Big twist this time around though - the story is told from the perspective of the ghosts. In fact, in the world of Spirited the three ghosts haunting has become an annual event, and is in run like a business in an industrial version of the afterlife...well, I’m not sure if its the afterlife. The movie never really specifies on what ethereal plate this company performs on, but let’s be honest, one doesn’t really need to care for the minor details when at the end of the day all we want is a fun festive Christmas film (in November) with some jokes, catchy tunes and little heart. Does Spirited succeed in these regards?

Though it is no new Christmas classic, Spirited is a harmless holiday treat. There’s fun to be had with the narrative switching of the traditional roles, with Reynolds’ Scrooge-esque character turning tables and shepherding the ghost of Present into having to look back on his own past, present and future. Yet the story is still predictable, however is boosted by the fun comedic pairing of Ferrell and Reynolds, as well as a game supporting cast including Octavia Spencer and but a dash of the Dench. Benj Pasek and Justin Paul are behind the film’s many musical numbers, and though all the songs are perfectly enjoyable in context of the film and the choreography of the background dancers is pleasing to the eye, none of the songs are immediate hits in comparison to Pasek and Paul’s prior works on La La Land and The Greatest Showman. Don’t get me wrong, there are some catchy tunes such as “Good Afternoon” and “That Christmas Morning Feeling”, but even they don’t scream top chart hits. And the reason for this is that I think that all the songs here have too many lyrics. As in they lack cohesive choruses, and its usually within the chorus where a song can show off its true catchy elements. But again, in confines of the movie’s narrative the music played well. 

Halfway through the film I turned to my fiancée and made a prediction as to where I thought the film was going. I tried to act as a Shyamalan-expert and predict the twist, however unfortunately the movie did not go in that way and instead ended on a fairly generic finale. Nothing wrong with that, it’s a family friendly film after all (minus a certain moment when the ghost of the future gives us a glimpse at one possible future outcome that is surprisingly dark), however I personally thought my twist idea was better. Though naturally I cannot disclose my idea here as to avoid spoilers, though you are always welcome at my house for a chat with some tea and biscuits. In any case, Spirited is a splendid if not forgettable winter warmer that you and your family can easily enjoy with a hot choccy and the Christmas tree lights on....in November.

Overall score: 6/10

SPIRITED:

Christmas Good feels lost

Wants to fix cruel marketer

Learns to seek own wants

#93: Spirited (2022, dir. by Sean Anders)

"Spirited" (2022) Directed by Sean Anders (Comedy/Family/Musical/Christmas)

'Spirited' (2022) film

-watched 12/13/2023- 1 [3/4] stars- on Apple tv

Not much on musicals especially not this one, because the music was terrible, in my opinion.

Tis the Season to get “Spirited”

Get into the holiday spirit with "Spirited"!

We often wonder is people can change or are they set in their ways? Can a bad person become good? What is it all for? Why are we here? Why did the author fall down a hole of existential questions that are making me question my life? Well reader, let me tell you why I am reflecting on life’s questions. Anyone that knows me and knows me well can tell you that I am a Grinch, but before his heart…

View On WordPress

Spirited (2022)

Spirited (12): A fun reworking of "A Christmas Carol" with two likeable stars.

#onemannsmovies review of "Spirited" (2022). Festive fun in a Ferrell/Reynolds musical romp that improves as it goes on. Octavia sings! 3.5/5.

A One Mann’s Movies review of “Spirited” (2022). For a few month’s now, I’ve been chuckling at the preview Tiktok videos for the festive musical “Spirited”, featuring Ryan Reynolds and Will Ferrell. (Examples are here, here and here), The movie was out briefly in cinemas (for the inevitable Oscar song attempt) but is also now available on Apple TV+. Was it any good? Bob the Movie Man…

View On WordPress

Love Ryan Reynolds? You'll Be "Spirited" Away With This Holiday Movie.

Love Ryan Reynolds? You’ll Be “Spirited” Away With This Holiday Movie.

Apple TV Plus’ Spirited lives up to its name as a musical, and it’s a holiday movie which delivers a finale that I didn’t expect! The central idea behind this work is to believe anyone can change for the better. And as a film adds to Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol mythos, I loved the world that’s presented which expands upon why people of a certain nature gets haunted. Even though I think…

View On WordPress

We knew that Ryan Reynolds and Will Ferrell are great at making us laugh, and that they can both pull off playing the goofball, the straight man, and everything in between. What we didn’t yet know was that these dudes can hold their own in a musical! Who knew! They made a musical so good that Dallas got over his hang-up about not acknowledging Christmas time until December! That’s no easy feat.

"Spirited"

An unremarkable holiday movie that stays afloat due to eccentric original songs and a charismatic cast.

As far as unremarkable Christmas films go, “Spirited” manages to rise slightly above the rest. This crowded spectacle of a movie features catchy original tunes from Benj Pasek and Justin Paul (the songwriting duo responsible for “The Greatest Showman” and “La La Land”), an enjoyable cast of actors (Ryan Reynolds, Will Ferrell, and Octavia Spencer), gaudily ornate production design, and a massive…

View On WordPress