The Grinch
Ten Second Review: A fun re-telling of the classic Dr. Seuss story, perfect for kids even if it does little for adults.
The Grinch is one of those rare stories that is arguably three separate classics. The original, the book itself (although that was preceded by a poem featuring the character), was followed by an animated feature directed by Chuck Jones with Boris Karloff playing the Grinch. Both are considered Christmas classics and the Jim Carey film from 2000 has ultimately become a cult classic with its slightly darker and creepy tone. I’m not counting the Play Station 1 game among these although I never played it so maybe that’s secretly a classic too This new film sets itself a daunting task of competing with a few certified Christmas favourites and as such pits itself against harsh critics.
It follows the narrative we’ve come to expect from a Grinch story. The Grinch, with his heart two sizes too small, hates Christmas and decides to punish the Whos of Whoville, who love it, by stealing all their presents and decorations. He acquires a sleigh and a Santa outfit and gets his lovely dog Max to drag him into to town on Christmas Eve so he can “steal Christmas”. When dawn comes and he doesn’t hear the sad cries he expects, but instead hears the Whos singing, his heart grows and returns the gifts and joins them for Christmas.
It’s a classic story and doesn’t really need messing around with and to be fair this film doesn’t mess around with it at all. That is both a great thing and kind of its main downfall. This film is inoffensive and a very easy watch but I can’t see it gaining the title of classic in any faction in the long term.
There is a lot of really good things to say about The Grinch. The opening scene introducing us to the town and all the characters is beautiful and is filled with interesting Heath Robison-esque inventions that will keep any audience captivated. Equally the introduction of the Grinch manages to keep this quality too. From the trailer it appears that we know what will happen but they keep enough of his morning routine just for the film that it remains engaging. These inventions, and the general design throughout the film, remain really fun and often surprising. I imagine it will make for a good film for a multi generational family to sit and watch when it is inevitably put on TV in the next year or two.
I also really enjoyed the interesting take on the music for this film. The weird mix of songs we’ve heard before but reimagined by the likes of Tyler, The Creator was a nice touch on bringing this classic in to a new light. I will probably throw it on closer to Christmas as an alternative to the monotonous holiday playlists.
The only problems I had with the film was that firstly it doesn’t offer a huge amount for people older than ten. I’m not saying an adult wouldn’t laugh, and to be perfectly honest I imagine you’ll have a smile on your face for a decent portion of it, I just think it went for a young audience and hit that nail on the head. The only other problem I had, and I understand that this is a personal opinion that others might in fact love it for, was that it had some religiosity I didn’t enjoy. I know it’s Christmas, a Christian holiday, but at times it felt like it didn’t have to use such a pointedly religious hymn, or that the subject of family seemed a bit too edged at that ideal. I might be entirely wrong and it just got in my head so I saw it more presently but I personally would have steered away from that.
The Grinch is a fun film that is an easy enough watch for the whole family. It doesn’t do anything new with the story but kids will no doubt enjoy it and the adults will be pleasantly surprised by the interesting design. It has a sweet heart and nicely engineered plot that carries a lovely message. If you want a film to jump-start your Christmas spirit this will do that. If you don’t mind waiting, I’m sure it’ll be on TV next year when it will be just as enjoyable.
