A Film Worth Recommending!

Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation, 2008

Dr. Seuss, Random House, 1954

Over Christmas break, I watched a handful of children's films and Horton Hears a Who! was one of them. I didn't expect to enjoy it as much as I did. I am not a big Jim Carrey fan, but I wasn't distracted by the voices and found myself seeing the characters as the characters they were meant to be. I loved the teen angst the directors brought to young Jo-Jo and the way the Whos were portrayed in general. The film didn't really alter the picture book, much. Instead it just blew it up for closer inspection. The kangaroo was exactly as I pictured her in the book, but her baby was a bit softer and less willing to follow her mother's nastiness. A few new characters were invented for the film, but their roles were still minor and didn't create any distraction from the true message of the film/book. I love, love, love, How the Grinch Stole Christmas (1966) so it was fun to get a glimpe of an animated Whoville, once again.