Dr. Suess' How The Grinch Stole Christmas

He puts the mean in green.

MPAA Rating: PG

IMDB Rating: 5.7 / 10

Length: 104 min

Tags: comedy, family, fantasy

Director: Ron Howard
Writers:

Cast:

Grinch
(Jim Carrey)
Cindy Lou Who
(Taylor Momsen)
Mayor Augustus Maywho
(Jeffrey Tambor)
Martha May Whovier
(Christine Baranski)
Lou Lou Who
(Bill Irwin)
Betty Lou Who
(Molly Shannon)
Whobris
(Clint Howard)
8-Year-Old Grinch
(Josh Ryan Evans)
Clarnella
(Mindy Sterling)
Rose
(Rachel Winfree)
Elderly Timekeeper
(Rance Howard)
Drew Lou Who
(Jeremy Howard)
Stu Lou Who
(T.J. Thyne)
Christina Whoterberry
(Lacey Kohl)
Junie
(Nadja Pionilla)

Editor Review

Dr. Suess' How The Grinch Stole Christmas, often referred to simply as The Grinch, is a 2000 movie adapted from the beloved children's book from Dr. Suess.

The story evolves around the titular character, who is a large green creature with anger issues stemming from childhood, or a heart two sizes too small, or perhaps it is even because his shoes are too tight. Hurt at a young age, he lives in a cave on snowy Mount Crumpit with his faithful dog and only friend Max. From here he curses the happy, button-nosed Whos down in Whoville below. When Christmas comes around, he decides to dress as Santa Claus and steal their presents and thus prevent Christmas from coming. The graceful Cindy Lou Who attempts to charm him into joining the joyous festivities instead.

The classic book's rhyming narration is transferred into the live action adaptation, with necessary additions, and they did well to stick as close to the source material as possible. After all, who could describe better the actions of the sneaky thief than Suess himself; "Then he slithered and slunk, with a smile most unpleasant, Around the whole room, and he took every present! Pop guns! And bicycles! Roller skates! Drums! Checkerboards! Tricycles! Popcorn! And plums!"

The film is also based on the 1966 animated special, which was a great first effort at the text, with narration by Boris Karloff and the first image of the Grinch as a sickly green creature. But in this live action take Jim Carrey is in top extroverted form, convincing the most sceptical of his loud comedy. He performs vocally too, with a reptilian version of "You're a Mean One Mr. Grinch", which fits nicely over his transformation from withdrawn spitfire into fully-functioning evil Santa. Also noticeable is Anthony Hopkins, who provides the narration. It is an eloquently fine vocal performance, which he apparently provided in a single day.

The film has a balanced mix of child-friendly slapstick and adult-friendly gags and references, and of course has the heart-warming finale. None are moreso than the wonderful part where the Grinch's heart grows three sizes always makes me choke back a happy tear. Or the wild ski down Mount Crumpet. Or even "The Grinch, he himself, carved the roast beast." There are too many to mention in this fine adaptation of an unforgettable classic.

Fun fact:

Jim Carrey's heavy-duty make-up took three hours each morning and he found it unbearably confining. So much so that he received counselling from a Navy Seal on torture-resistance techniques to cope with the hindering prosthetics.

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