Rating: Summary: Remake of a Classic Review: It's difficult to transform a classic, twenty-some minute animated film into a full-length movie, but director Ron Howard does a pretty good job with "The Grinch". The potent asset of this movie is the casting; Jim Carrey does an awesome job in his portrayal of "The Grinch". I don't know of any other actor who could play this part with such animation and credibility. Cindy Lou Who, played by Taylor Momsen, is also a definite casting plus. And Anthony Hopkins is a perfect choice for narrator. The excellent makeup and set designs also deserves kudos. There are a few downsides to this movie, however: 1) The length - it could have made the same impact if it were 85 mins. rather than 105. 2) At times it is obnoxiously loud. (I found myself lowering the volume often). 3) The story line digresses quite a bit from the original animated version (perhaps embelished to accomodate a 105 minute film?) which tends to divert the attention of real "Grinch" fans. Overall, the movie is entertaining and appropriate for the entire family. Would I see it again? Yes. Would I buy it? No. I give it 3 stars.
Rating: Summary: A Superb Holiday Film - For All Ages! Jim Carrey Is Great! Review: You really can't say enough about Dr Suess' How The Grinch Stole Christmas. It is, in my opinion, the greatest Holiday film ever. It would'nt have been as good without Jim Carrey. I think he did the best job as "The Grinch". He is believable, hilarious, and exactly what the real movie Grinch should have looked like. The visual effects are extremely great, as well as the Who's. (Molly Shannon is very good). Based on the book & the cartoon, the magic of the film is unbelievable, as you will laugh until you cry and you will not belive your eyes as the brilliant brings How The Grinch Stole Christmas to life. This film will be a classic from now on, and Jim Carrey will always be remembered as the "vile" Mr. Grinch!DVD SPECIAL FEATURES INCLUDED: • Region 1 encoding (US and Canada only) • Color, Closed-captioned, DTS Surround Sound, Dolby • Production notes • Spotlight on location • Deleted scenes • Outtakes • Whoville section (includes Who School, Jim Carrey make up application, set decorations visual effects) • Faith Hill music video • Sing-Along songs • Read-Along songs • DVD ROM: "Add a Grinch to your own photograph, screen savers games, recipes • Full-screen format (1:33:1)(...)
Rating: Summary: SUV vs. STATION WAGON Review: Welcome to the year 2000. Alot of things have changed since 1966. Just as you wouldn't compare an encyclopedia to the internet, there's no sense comparing the Grinch cartoon to Grinch the movie. Fortunately the original feature is still with us and still enjoyed by children every holiday season. Now, however, they have a version for their generation as well. Kids today live in the world of high tech flash and kid TV stations that blare dumb jokes and comercials 24 hours a day. They play extreme sports, have their own fashions and vacation in Disneyworld. Movies need to be in touch with their audience and this one is. Some people complain that it's "too loud" and garish - they cringe at the nasty jokes ( which are funny enough to be forgiven and - compared to the really vapid trash in so many movies today - are nothing ) and bemoan the dark edge of some of the scenes. Alas, not everything can be all things to all people - - -unless they are kids. Ask an eight year old to give you his oppinion and he'll probably tell you that it was funny and cool and sometimes scary. It doesn't get much better than that. The Grinch also gives us something else - a benchmark performance. I always suspected Jim Carey had uncommon talent but his scripts up till this one were dreadful. His portrayal of the Grinch belongs in the company of Karloff's Frankenstein, Lugosi's Dracula, Betty Davis in All About Eve as a quintessential pairing of actor and role. Ron Howard's direction must have been good because I didn't notice it. I got the feeling you were watching people having fun while working. It flows well and the characters instead of the camera propell the film. A nice touch, perhaps the directors, is the last long pull out from the banquet hall in Whoville to an arial view to a cosmic view that reveals itself to be in actuality an extreme close up of a single slowflake drifting with it's million brothers on route to a fleeting existance before melting. I think that puts the themes of greed, revenge, rage and our time together nicely in perspective. The Flintstones are a beloved classic too but the movie version had no merit. Are you really going to be upset that now there are two succesful versions of Dr. Seuss' wonderful book?
Rating: Summary: Jim Carrey, and thats about it. Review: Never before has an actor carried a movie like Jim Carrey has in "The Grinch." This movie takes a thirty minute story ("How the Grinch Stole Christmas") and drags it out for about two hours. Thats right. Its an hour and half before the Grinch even THINKS about stealing Christmas. Oh yes, I nearly died laughing when the Grinch saw his old caretakers and muttered, "You're still alive?" or when he read off his list of things to do ("Find a cure for world hunger...tell no one!"). But he's not in every shot of the film and he's not the only character. If this film had been shorter, stuck with the original storyline, hadn't smushed the moral in our face, or had had less of Little Cindy Lou Who (I couldn't help but think in one scene, "Oh my god she's going to sing isn't she?") it could have been better. Otherwise, it really just fails as a movie. I'll take the original animated short with Boris Karloff any Christmas.
Rating: Summary: So THAT'S how he stole it... Review: That was Jim Carrey in that costume? I don't think anyone could have pulled it off better, but for me, Taylor Momsen, who played Cindy Loo Who, was the most enjoyable to watch. What a gifted little actress. Christine Baranski and Molly Shannon, both musically-inclined favorites of mine, also danced across the screen. So this isn't exactly the same storyline as the one penned by the good doctor himself. But it is very close, with some details added in to give adults a few more chuckles. And if you like it for nothing else, you will love the fantasy world created by some outstanding set and costume design; terrific old and new music; and vivid special effects. Worth a viewing or two for all of you Who's.
Rating: Summary: Suprised. Review: I can't believe I liked this movie. I hate Jim Carrey. He was nothing like he is in his other movies. This movie is great. I love how they added more to the story than the original cartoon version. A must own.
Rating: Summary: An underrated holiday treat Review: I saw the Grinch yesterday and was expecting it to be terrible but it's actually not bad at all. I love the look of it and Jim Carrey is fantastic as is the make-up. Jim is so good that he even has great chemestry with the .....dog. I loved their scenes together, they're both funny and heart-warming. Ron Howard had a lot of guts making this film and deserves a lot more credit than he got. This is a very different film to say the least and both critics and moviegoers frankly just don't know what to think of films like this. If it was better I'd compare it to the Wizard of Oz but it's hardly that good at all. The bad is that the Whos are a bunch of jerks, it's no wonder that the Grinch hates them. Plus the film runs off course a lot, it takes too long for the Grinch to actually go out and try to ruin Christmas. The Grinch is no great movie but it is a lot more entaining and fun than it got credit for. Take a chance and watch it, you might just like it. Advice: Don't expect the cartoon special you loved as a kid and chance has it you might enjoy it more.
Rating: Summary: Did these people even read the BOOK???? Review: What a terrible movie! How could you possibly ruin such a classic Dr. Seuss book? Dr. Seuss is one of my favorite authors (no kidding, the books are for much younger readers than me...but I own every Dr. Seuss book, anyway.) It drives me crazy that Dr. Seuss' wife let them PRODUCE this rot! If I were her I reject them and I might even (as Dr. Seuss said on DR. SEUSS GOES TO WAR) smack them in the snoot! I even didn't watch the whole thing, I left as soon as I could. Unless the ending was about sixty times better than everything prior to that, it was one of the worst movies I've ever watched! Jim Carrey DID do a good job, but he can't save a movie like THAT! And did we really have to go into his long, boring and disturbing childhood? It tells us WHY he hates Christmas, whereas in the book no one quite no the reason why he hated it. (And don't even get me started on how much I hate THE CAT IN THE HAT with Mike Myers (who, by the way, can't act)! Not to say I don't like the animated TV Special THE GRINCH WHO STOLE CHRISTMAS. That was maybe better than the book was. Although, what could you expect from a master like Chuck Jones who actually KNEW what he was doing! That movie at least 1000 times better than this! And one of the best parts of the book was "Maybe Christmas DOESN'T come from a store, maybe Christmas perhaps, means a little bit more." But how can you believe THAT on THE GRINCH, the vulgar movie that was merchandised to the BONE!!!!! After watching this film, you realize: The Grinch didn't steal Christmas...but the directors RUINED Christmas!
Rating: Summary: A New Christmas Classic for the New Millenium. Review: Finally, they made a Dr. Seuss film. The Grinch was an almost perfect movie. The Whoville setting was filled with bright colors of red and green, snow was everywhere, and on its November 2000 release I am sure it made everyone who saw it wish it was Christmas. Jim Carrey plays the most heartfelt, and dastardly performance as the Grinch. Carrey brough three dimentional style to the character. I also applaud the little girl who played Cindi Lou Who. Molly Shannon also gave a good little performance. The effects in the movie were really great. Ron Howard is a film genius (as well as Brian Grazer) They brought the Seussian world to life and made everyone beleive. What a great film.
Rating: Summary: complete waste of time Review: This movie was...HORRIBLE!!!!! If I had to pick one good thing about it, I would choose the makeup job on Jim Carrey (you can't even tell it's him). But everything else was horrible. This hardly followed the book at all, and hardly used any dialogue from it. If you want excellent Dr. Seuss movies, go see "In Search of Dr. Seuss" and "The Cat in the Hat" with Mike Myers.
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