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"Dr. Seuss' Horton Hears a Who!"
Rated: G
Starring: Jim Carrey, Steve Carell, Carol Burnett, Seth Rogen, Niecy Nash
Directed by Jimmy Hayward, Steve Martino
Runtime: 88 min.
3.5 out of 5 stars
It's difficult to imagine a children's movie conveying a story with a heart larger than its central character of a quirky elephant.
But somehow, after the failures of live-action Dr. Seuss tales, such as "The Cat in the Hat," "Dr. Seuss' Horton Hears a Who!" triumphs in converting a wispy children's story, with a simple message of every voice counts, to an 88 minute, computer animation feast everyone can enjoy.
The story is simple at its core. Horton, voiced by former Grinch who stole Christmas Jim Carrey, is an elephant thought of as weird by the rest of the creatures in the Jungle of Nool. He hears a cry from a speck as it blows by in the wind. Convinced something lives on the speck, Horton places it on a clover, converses with it and discovers Whoville, led by the bumbling Mayor of Whoville, appropriately voiced by the man who has made a career out of playing blockheads, Steve Carell.
In order to keep Whoville and all its inhabitants safe, Horton journeys to the top of Mount Nool to place the speck on a sunflower at the summit. Unfortunately, Kangaroo (who, of course, is a kangaroo and is voiced by Carol Burnett) believes Horton's quest to save the speck is foolish and if you can't see it, hear it or touch it, it doesn't exist. Thus, Kangaroo attempts to have the clover destroyed to keep the children in the jungle from using their imaginations and believing in something that isn't there.
"Horton Hears a Who!" is proof that any Dr. Seuss adaptation from here onward should be animated. While it was interesting to see Seuss in live-action films, animation suits the stories so much better.
Scenes in the Jungle of Nool are deliciously colorful and represent the artistic vision of the text. The cottony-fluff trees of magenta and orange paired with the blistering brightness of the green grass present an absolute treat for the eyes. Scenes in Whoville are just as beautiful, with right-angle-challenged Who buildings and ludicrous vehicles with wheels made out of rotating boots.
The final sequences of the film - awe-inspiring animated sweeps through Whoville as they attempt to make enough noise to let other jungle creatures besides Horton know they exist - are the crowning jewel. Whos bang pots and pans, play Seuss-ed out instruments with crinkled horns and cranks and sing and shout, "We are here!" along with a beautifully orchestrated song.
Unfortunately because "Horton Hears a Who!" was released in 2008, much of the dialogue contains silly slang toss-outs, such as "Awesome!" or "Sweet!" Thankfully though the script is littered with unnecessary "Cools!" and sometimes funny references to Myspace and "Apocalypse Now," it never strays far from its central theme.
When attempting to save the speck from certain doom, Horton says, "Even though you can't see them at all, a person's a person, no matter how small."
Horton says lines from the original tale throughout the film, sprinkling in elements of the actual text that tug at the heartstrings of anyone who has a creased and dusty copy of the book on a shelf somewhere.
There are also a few sequences in the film that don't really seem to belong. When Horton begins to think of himself as a warrior protecting the speck there's a strange bit drawn in anime style that really isn't funny, it's just out of place.
And there are times when it seems directors told Carrey to just ad-lib and they would animate around it later. In these scenes Horton is less a wide-eyed journeying elephant and more a hyperactive actor attempting to be funny.
But from the beginning "Horton" has a heart that may even make the waterworks start. It's not groundbreaking or particularly bold, but it's got a story that works for young and old.
Alicia Wade can be reached at 536-3311 ext. 275 or awade@siude.com.
