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Tear Jerker / Elf

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  • As heartwarming as it is that Buddy and Michael share a brotherly moment, it gets sober when Michael reveals that Walter only cares about money and doesn’t pay attention to him either. Michel can’t say he’s surprised after Buddy tells him their dad is on the naughty list.
  • Walter telling Buddy to get out of his life, after he accidentally costs him a big book-publishing deal. Buddy looks so depressed and disheartened that it's soul-crushing, helped in no small part by John Debney's heartbreaking score.
    Walter: You get the hell out of here.
    Buddy: W-where do you want me to go?
    Walter: I don't care where you go. (yelling) I don't care that you're an elf, I don't care that you're nuts... I don't care that you're my son! GET OUT OF MY LIFE! NOW!
    • Seeing Walter's potential deal with Miles Finch unwittingly crushed by Buddy's naïveté is overall tragic as well. Tellingly, this is the only time he raises his voice in anger after spending most of the movie in a constant state of Tranquil Fury. You can tell that what little control he had over his temper at this point is just gone. Taking his anger out on Buddy was certainly wrong, but the stress and frustration Walter must have been feeling at that moment is quite understandable. Then not long later we see Walter alone in his office on the verge of tears, the gravity of what he said to Buddy fully dawning on him.
  • The shot after of Buddy wandering New York in despair, looking cold and sad, especially when a lone passer-by bumps into him with little concern.
  • In an homage to It's a Wonderful Life, Buddy eventually wanders onto the 59th Street Bridge, looks out at the water, and closes his eyes, with the not-too-subtle implication that he's seriously considering jumping to his death.
  • Michael himself is heartbroken by Buddy's departure and coldly confronts Walter for causing it, prompting a remorseful Walter to finally realize his mistake of letting his greed overwhelm his need for his family.
    Walter: We'll figure this out.
    Michael: Figure out what? Buddy cares about everybody. All you care about is yourself...
  • That one poor nun who doesn't get the books, even though the children love the books.
  • The thought of Buddy having nothing else to do but sit in the corner doing nothing when he goes to work with Walter, presumably every single day or until Walter can find a way to get rid of him.
  • When Buddy asks why Jovie was at work so early showering in the employee's locker room, she averts her gaze and mumbles "They shut my water off" in response, telling us everything we need to know about her situation in only five words.

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