Spirited
Apple TV+ | Release Date: November 11, 2022 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
55
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 25 Critic Reviews
Positive:
14
Mixed:
7
Negative:
4
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
90
We Got This CoveredMartin CarrNov 14, 2022
Big on spectacle and bigger on life lessons, Spirited manages to surprise, inspire and entertain in equal measure. Read full review
83
The PlaylistNick AllenNov 11, 2022
Spirited is one of those movies with numerous creative choices that feel inspired, not just by the holiday spirit in the lyrics but the desire to pull off a good show. When Spirited has so many of its ornate pieces in sync, it can be a joyous cinematic treat like very few others of past or present. Read full review
83
IndieWireJude DryNov 9, 2022
It’s refreshing to see two stars who could have easily phoned it in for the rest of their careers push themselves to try new things. Even more thrilling, they really can sing! Read full review
75
Chicago Sun-TimesRichard RoeperNov 10, 2022
With Ferrell and Reynolds striking just the right combination of hipster comedy with genuine sincerity, and the musical numbers working as parody but also toe-tapping entertainment, Spirited is … that’s right … a big cup of holiday cheer for the whole family. Read full review
75
TheWrapAlonso DuraldeNov 9, 2022
The teaming of Will Ferrell (making his return to Christmas movies nearly two decades after “Elf”) and Ryan Reynolds delivers the banter you’d expect and the singing and dancing you might not, and their energetic interplay goes a long way to making Spirited a movie that might become a holiday go-to in certain households. Read full review
70
Los Angeles TimesGary GoldsteinNov 10, 2022
Spirited, the umpteenth screen incarnation of Charles Dickens’ evergreen “A Christmas Carol,” is such an amusing, buoyant and good-natured entertainment that it’s not hard to forgive this flashy musical-comedy-fantasy’s missteps. Grinchy viewers, however, may sing a different tune. Read full review
70
VarietyPeter DebrugeNov 9, 2022
For audiences cliché-savvy enough to appreciate the movie’s self-skewering sense of humor, this all plays out pretty much exactly as they’d expect, but that doesn’t mean Spirited can’t still surprise. Read full review
68
Paste MagazineAmy AmatangeloNov 9, 2022
Spirited, with its message of redemption, changing our behavior and doing a little good, arrives at the perfect time. Who better to tell us to start being nice than a singing and dancing Ryan Reynolds and Will Ferrell? Read full review
67
The A.V. ClubBrent SimonNov 10, 2022
While not without some issues, the movie lands as a modern-day fable whose colorfully packaged and exuberantly pitched life lessons carry an undeniable timeliness. Read full review
67
ColliderRoss BonaimeNov 9, 2022
The key to what makes this newest retelling work is the combination of Ferrell and Reynolds, both of whom are able to play to their comedic strengths, while also having the opportunity to do some solid dramatic work as well. This duo is delightful, and as they work together on Christmas Eve, it’s wonderful to watch how this relationship shifts. Read full review
63
Movie NationRoger MooreNov 14, 2022
There’s just enough novelty and fun to recommend Spirited — something I’ve never done for the sour “Scrooged” — with Reynolds and Ferrell hoofing and singing like this is what they’ve wanted to do all their professional lives. Read full review
63
RogerEbert.comBrian TallericoNov 11, 2022
There’s a “let’s put on a show” energy in the performances of Reynolds, Ferrell, and Spencer that’s easy to like. Read full review
63
The Associated PressLindsey BahrNov 10, 2022
Though Spirited comes up short as a musical, it is still pretty enjoyable. Perhaps that’s because it is just so stuffed with everything else: If one part doesn’t totally work, there’s plenty else in the four-quadrant buffet to sample. Read full review
63
USA TodayBrian TruittNov 9, 2022
All the contemporary wrapping, a dizzying array of tones (from screwball humor to cornball earnestness) and endless songs by “The Greatest Showman” duo Benj Pasek and Justin Paul winds up being like tinsel distracting from what works best: Will Ferrell as a determined phantom and Ryan Reynolds as his snarky Scrooge. Read full review
60
The TelegraphTim RobeyNov 18, 2022
Spirited never gets you to a place of soaraway joy, exactly, but it’s busy, silly and not a bad time. Read full review
60
Screen DailyTim GriersonNov 9, 2022
More often than not, the stirring tunes and the genuineness of the proceedings help paper over Spirited’s rough spots. A couple of twists are well-handled, and Ferrell’s performance as a dutiful ghost who suddenly questions his (after)life choices reveals a vulnerability which is disarming. Read full review
60
The Hollywood ReporterDavid RooneyNov 9, 2022
Spirited owes its buoyancy primarily to the lively rapport of Ferrell and Reynolds, ultimately playing out the movie’s most convincing love story. Read full review
50
IGNSamantha NelsonNov 18, 2022
Even Ryan Reynolds and Will Ferrell aren’t charming enough to redeem AppleTV+’s humbug musical adaptation of A Christmas Carol. Read full review
45
CNNBrian LowryNov 17, 2022
For those wondering who would build a giant holiday musical-comedy around Will Ferrell and Ryan Reynolds, the “produced by Will Ferrell” credit provides a helpful clue. “Spirited” tries turning “A Christmas Carol” on its head, and while it’s big and boisterous, the movie (hitting theaters before Apple TV+) isn’t consistently irreverent enough to feel like much more than a streaming stocking stuffer. Read full review
40
The GuardianBenjamin LeeNov 9, 2022
The decision to make the film a musical is a genuine head-scratcher, one that’s never justified or even mildly explained given that the two leads are not natural singers and so throughout the lunges into song feel awkward at best. Read full review
40
SlashfilmJosh SpiegelNov 9, 2022
A movie like Elf, as its opening credits suggest, seemingly sprung to life out of a children's book. Spirited evokes the sense that it sprung to life out of a series of focus-group sessions among corporate executives. Read full review
30
Wall Street JournalKyle SmithNov 11, 2022
Fans of Mr. Ferrell and Mr. Reynolds have likely never seen them in anything this earnest and tacky before, and are liable to feel somewhere between betrayed and stunned. Read full review
30
The New York TimesMaya PhillipsNov 10, 2022
The combination of this fine-tuned spectacle with the ineffectual vocals of the main duo — and distractingly uncanny visuals and special effects — transforms Spirited into a disjointed movie musical with all the superficial trappings of a Broadway flop. Read full review
25
San Francisco ChronicleMick LaSalleNov 11, 2022
Spirited was never going to be any good, but it would have been slightly better — and a change of pace — if Reynolds and Ferrell had switched roles. Read full review
25
Slant MagazineClayton DillardNov 9, 2022
To say that the film grows tedious quickly would suggest that it wasn’t already trite from frame one. Read full review
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