By the time I sat down to watch "Spirited" from Apple TV+, I had watched eight versions of "A Christmas Carol" in less than a month. After eight versions, you start to ask yourself questions like, "Did Scrooge really change after all of that?" and "Why did they even pick this guy for the whole magic ghost thing anyway?" and "Do other people get the magic ghost thing or just this one guy?" I can only imagine that this film's writers, Sean Anders (who also directed) and John Morris went on a similar journey when coming up with the script for this.
"Spirited" gives us a whole business of after-life ghosts intent on changing hearts and minds once a year. The vibe isn't that dissimilar from the after-life in NBC's sitcom "The Good Place," except everyone is constantly singing. The Ghost of Christmas Present (Will Ferrell) decides that this year they should dream bigger and go for someone who's been deemed "unredeemable" — Ryan Reynolds's Clint Briggs. Clint is a media consultant who's unafraid to shape controversies and stir outrage over nothing at all. Octavia Spencer plays his coworker who gets wrapped up in his worst schemes.
I loved this movie. The songs are great, Ferrell and Reynolds have good chemistry together, and the twist it puts on the story of "A Christmas Carol" is overall interesting. "That Christmas Morning Feelin,'" the movie's first song, has happily made its way to my Christmas playlist.
Watch "Spirited" on Apple TV+.