The Grinch (2000)
Including the reviews from over thirteen years ago, these old efforts, meager, often slight, many times less contemplative and more to the point and often tempered with less restraint or providing analysis tailored with reflection, it does sort of serve as a reminder to me that often our lens sees content perhaps differently. Or perhaps we change as we grow older, maybe life experience alters how we see film, perhaps as our viewing habits change and we don't take ourselves as seriously, there isn't as much poison in the pen, less venom in the words, the vitriol not as over. Then I realized I fell right back into that pattern with How the Grinch Stole Christmas (2000). It is beloved by those who grew up with it. But I despised it in the past and my feelings didn't change much. My kids liked it well enough. I wrote this on the third of December:
Bloated, loud, overproduced, overlong Hollywood spectacle with Carrey going for broke, bending and flexing his face as much as possible under all that makeup, latex, prosthetic green and fur, giving his all because the film feels very much like an epic cashin of what is a timeless, charming, beloved, heart-warming delight that was made for peanuts, in cartoon form, narrated by the heralded voice of Karloff. This 2000 film, where Howard shot Carrey in every camera angle imaginable, letting him break the fourth wall, talking to us, with a message against commercialism that is very much noised and unsubtle, yet I am trying to remember how many fastfood and other advertisements helped to bankroll it during the holiday season. It remains a favorite of many, while I got through it this evening for my son who wanted to watch it. There are plenty of Who-ville sets, designed for epic grandeur, and makeup for the citizens, with a massive cast, plentifully providing lots of jobs for extras and crew. And even Carrey's Grinch's abode in the mountain is a Pee Wee's Playhouse funded by a big studio sparing no expense. My favorite part is when Grinch is a child and we see why he left behind Who-ville due to ridicule by mean children who thought he was too different to be among them, retreating to loneliness behinds his cute pooch. I felt this was empty and devoid of much soul. Grinch, with Carrey in his persona, mugs and contorts and twists his face in every way imaginable...he's fun but his Grinch is really over the top, ratcheted to the nth degree. Taylor Momsen was adorable as Cindy Lou Who is perhaps the film's emotional center. Tambor as the mayor, Baranski as the one that comes between Tambor and Carrey, Irwin (postal worker extraordinaire) and Shannon as Momsen's parents, and Clint Howard (and the mayor's harried assistant) round out an endless cast. I recognize that this very much plays about as much as "Elf" on television during the Christmas season, but I personally consider it very much for those who like a lot of Hollywood excess. Kids will probably love it and a generation grew up with it. I will be one of those who Bah Humbugs it. Just not for me.
Bloated, loud, overproduced, overlong Hollywood spectacle with Carrey going for broke, bending and flexing his face as much as possible under all that makeup, latex, prosthetic green and fur, giving his all because the film feels very much like an epic cashin of what is a timeless, charming, beloved, heart-warming delight that was made for peanuts, in cartoon form, narrated by the heralded voice of Karloff. This 2000 film, where Howard shot Carrey in every camera angle imaginable, letting him break the fourth wall, talking to us, with a message against commercialism that is very much noised and unsubtle, yet I am trying to remember how many fastfood and other advertisements helped to bankroll it during the holiday season. It remains a favorite of many, while I got through it this evening for my son who wanted to watch it. There are plenty of Who-ville sets, designed for epic grandeur, and makeup for the citizens, with a massive cast, plentifully providing lots of jobs for extras and crew. And even Carrey's Grinch's abode in the mountain is a Pee Wee's Playhouse funded by a big studio sparing no expense. My favorite part is when Grinch is a child and we see why he left behind Who-ville due to ridicule by mean children who thought he was too different to be among them, retreating to loneliness behinds his cute pooch. I felt this was empty and devoid of much soul. Grinch, with Carrey in his persona, mugs and contorts and twists his face in every way imaginable...he's fun but his Grinch is really over the top, ratcheted to the nth degree. Taylor Momsen was adorable as Cindy Lou Who is perhaps the film's emotional center. Tambor as the mayor, Baranski as the one that comes between Tambor and Carrey, Irwin (postal worker extraordinaire) and Shannon as Momsen's parents, and Clint Howard (and the mayor's harried assistant) round out an endless cast. I recognize that this very much plays about as much as "Elf" on television during the Christmas season, but I personally consider it very much for those who like a lot of Hollywood excess. Kids will probably love it and a generation grew up with it. I will be one of those who Bah Humbugs it. Just not for me.
Comments
Post a Comment