As did most kids, I grew up reading and listening to Dr. Seuss. I remember the songs, the rhymes, the Whos, and the Grinch. I even attend the University of California, San Diego, where our library is named after Dr. Seuss himself (Geisel Library), where I have perused his early sketches and other great books. Now, along comes a live-action feature film, starring Jim Carrey as the mean one himself, directed by Ron Howard, who still seems to be a kid at heart. Now, from the get-go, you know there's going to be detractors, saying The Grinch is best left in the books, and to a certain extent I agree. But what we have here, although it takes a few liberties, is a pretty good representation of all of Whoville and the continuation of a dream Dr. Seuss once had, the entertainment of children of all ages.

While the film drags in the middle as writers Jeffrey Price and Peter Seaman (Who Framed Roger Rabbit?) try to extend a 60 page picture book into a feature film, the great performances of Jim Carrey as the mean-spirited Grinch and Taylor Momsen as Cindy Lou Who help propel the film even at its slowest moments.

Universal did such a great job hyping this film, it would be almost impossible for it to live up to expectations. No doubt it will be number one this weekend, but I doubt it will have the staying power, as a classic told correctly would. This version lacks the musical songs we all know from the animated version - well almost, they try and fit them in, but they stick more than the Grinch in Whoville.

There can never be a true, real-life recreating of Dr. Seuss' classic settings, characters, and story, but Ron Howard and cinematographer Don Peterman, come awfully close - the sets are amazing and the make-up superb, but it all seems to come back to the main stumbling block of the whole film - the story. Padded with superfluous (using a word from the film there - it seems as if they wanted each child to go out and buy a dictionary after the movie) storylines and too much background information, any grown-up, once past the make-up and set design will get bored quickly. The kids will be entertained throughout by both the set and the acting, and while many jokes are directed at parents, bypassing the children, it's no Toy Story 2 - where both parents and kids could enjoy the movie from start to finish.

All in all, kids will get a kick from Carrey as the grinch, but parents may get a little antsy in the middle of the film waiting for the conclusion. The movie was just too hyped, too big, and too long - the classic animated version is still the best.

Genres: Comedy, Kids
Rated: PG
Runtime: 102 minutes
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