Movie Review: Horton Hears a Who
Twentieth Century Fox Movie Stars Steve Carell, Jim Carrey
Twentieth Century Fox/Blue Sky Studios' Horton Hears a Who looks great, but is frantic and not very funny. 4/10.
Blue Sky Studios/Twentieth Century Fox's Horton Hears a Who is the Gatling Gun of animated comedies. Writers Ken Daurio and Cinco Paul crammed as many gags and one-liners into Dr. Seuss' original story as they possibly could, and spewed them at the screen in the hope that at least some of them would make people laugh.
Unfortunately, that's the biggest problem with the flick. It just isn't funny.
Animation Captures Dr. Seuss' World
The animation in Horton Hears a Who is nothing less than stunning. From the very first image of a drop of rain rolling off a leaf to the bizarre Who contraptions unleashed during the climactic sequence, Blue Sky has kicked their CGI work up quite a few notches.
Pixar comparisons are inevitable when it comes to judging computer-generated animation. Blue Sky isn't at that level yet, mainly because Pixar keeps raising the bar, but Blue Sky has definitely surpassed DreamWorks in the artistic department.
What's even more impressive is that the flick really captured the world of Theodor "Dr. Seuss" Geisel's Whoville, with its Escher-esque topography and Rube Goldberg machines. The level of detail unleashed here is incredible, and it's fun to watch as the "camera" weaves and bobs through this strange new world, putting the Whos' bizarre world front and center.
In fact, the animators' understanding of Seuss' world comes into play during one of the film's rare quiet (and most powerful) moments: following silent teenager JoJo as he sneaks out of his bedroom and runs off to the abandoned observatory. Watching him quietly negotiate the strange contrivances needed to convey him to his beloved hiding place, one sees the potential for a very different Horton Hears a Who, one that conveys pathos along with comedy, instead of constantly mugging for a laugh.
Jim Carrey "Fundamentally Miscast" as Horton
So what's the central problem with Horton Hears a Who? A prior review nailed the film's weakness: Daurio and Paul tried to get hip with Horton's script, and the flick suffered as a result. As that reviewer noted, "It's simply not good enough to make a reference to something without a genuinely good joke to back it up."
Gags about Myspace.com (changed to Whospace, natch), Apocalypse Now and 1970's kung fu movies come thick and fast, but really don't go anywhere. And let's not start on the pointless anime sequence that brought the flick to a screeching halt right in the second act.
"Just adapt the ******* thing," AICN's 'Ouendaaaaaaaaaaan!' ranted in his review, "keep the voiceover (narration), and drop the (pop culture) references . . . which didn't even exist when Dr. Seuss died. Or if you have to drag the thing kicking and screaming into the modern era, do it with some ingenuity, wit and originality." Amen.
The other major problem is that Jim Carrey is completely wrong for the central role. Horton, according to Dr. Seuss, is a dim but well-meaning elephant who sticks to his principles despite being mocked by his fellow forest creatures. Unfortunately, Jim Carrey goes into manic autopilot; shamelessly mugging at every turn, and changing this gentle pachyderm into a pallid, pre-rehab Robin Williams imitation.
The other voice actors are solid. Steve Carell does a great reactive performance as Whoville's bumbling mayor, while comedy legend Carol Burnett makes a believable villain; a motherly kangaroo who thinks she knows what's best for the forest of Nool. Will Arnett turns in a chew-the-scenery performance as Vlad the Vulture, but Seth Rogen seems lost as Morton, Horton's best pal.
Horton Hears a Sequel
Twentieth Century Fox had also acquired the rights for the second book in the Horton series, Horton Hatches the Egg. Now that Horton Hears a Who has crossed the $100 million mark, moviegoers can bank on the fact that Fox and Blue Sky will push the sequel into production. So look for more Carrey zaniness, along with Daurio and Paul's napalm approach to comedy.
One day there will be a feature length animated Dr. Seuss film that respects its source material and is (gasp!) funny. Unfortunately, Horton Hears a Who ain't it. The flick gets a 4 out of 10, mainly for the stellar visuals.
Trailers included with Horton Hears a Who include WALL-E, Kung Fu Panda and Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs.
