DVD Review: Horton Hears a Who
Fox/Blue Sky Movie Stars Jim Carrey, Steve Carell, Carol Burnett
Nov 14, 2008
Blue Sky Animation/20th Century Fox's silver screen adaptation of Theodor "Dr. Seuss" Geisel's Horton Hears a Who wasn't a massive hit with critics, but it did well with viewers, scoring $297 million worldwide. That's not blockbuster territory, but the film definitely made back its $85 million price tag.
Now Fox/Blue Sky are bringing the flick out on DVD. Does the film improve upon a second viewing?
Jim Carrey Biggest Problem in Dr. Seuss' Horton Hears a Who
Many initial reviews of the film criticised Jim Carrey's performance as the titular Horton, saying he was completely wrong for the role. That opinion hasn't changed; it's deepened. Carrey's kinetic style of comedy feels completely wrong for the gentle, sincere Horton who believes that "a person's a person, no matter how small."
It continues to be the central weakness of the flick, one that the strong supporting peformances – Steve Carell (Whoville's Mayor), Carol Burnett (Kangaroo) and Will Arnett (Vlad the Vulture) – cannot erase. The animators at Blue Sky do some sterling work, but scriptwriters Ken Daurio and Cinco Paul throw in every joke they can think of (and a few they shouldn't) in order to make the film exciting to younger viewers.
Of course, Dr. Seuss' original book excited countless youngsters for generations, but what does he know? Daurio and Paul's obvious lack of faith in the source material doesn't help the flick.
DVD Extras
Directors Jimmy Hayward and Steve Martino offer a wall-to-wall commentary over Horton Hears a Who. In fact, there's so much commentary, the film's original soundtrack may as well not exist. Yes, there's tons of information getting dropped about the flick, and a lot of it is very informative, especially when they're discussing Horton's body language while interacting with the villainous Kangaroo, or when Kangaroo is talking with Vlad.
There's also a fair amount of sour grapes: Hayward and Martino try to be funny when they're discussing the "controversial" Whospace gag and the anime-style dream sequence but it seems like whining.
"The kids liked it," one of them sneers while the anime sequence flows past the screen. There's a reason why people didn't like those sequences, boys. Deal with it.
The many featurettes are a lot more successful, delving into the making of the flick, putting together Horton, Kangaroo and Katie, the bizarre little puffball who steals nearly every scene she's in. Kudos to Fox for adding so many extras into this DVD.
Unfortunately, the exclusive short "Surviving Sid," featuring Sid and Scrat from Ice Age, suffers from a severe lack of funny. Sid the Sloth (John Leguizamo) attempts to be a camp counselor for a bunch of bratty animal kids, but screws up in increasingly spectacular ways, none of which generate any laughs.
The Final Analysis
Horton Hears a Who may be a fun rental for the kiddies, but parents and hardcore Dr. Seuss fans would probably prefer to stay away. It gains an extra point for all the extras, ending up with a 5/10.
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