The Grinch

Voices of: Benedict Cumberbatch, Cameron Seely, Rashida Jones, Pharrell Williams, Tristan O'Hare, Kenan Thompson, Sam Lavagnino, Angela Landsbury
Directed by: Yarrow Cheney, Scott Mosier
Rating: PG
Genre: Animation, Comedy
2018

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: The Grinch (Benedict Cumberbatch) decides to ruin Christmas for all of Whoville.

Review:

Tim: Pop culture is fairly familiar with Dr. Seuss' Grinch at this point. It all started with his 1957 book, then the famous 1966 short film. We got a live action movie in 2000 (which I loved). So, it's not like we're constantly inundated, but we've gotten this story multiple times. I suppose we've never had an animated feature film, so that's where The Grinch plugs in. The movie is okay, but it doesn't feel like it adds anything to the conversation. It's another version of the same story, same characters. Maybe I was a little harsh on this film, but I didn't have the greatest time watching it. It just felt redundant to me.

This does continue the trend of Illumination putting out lackluster animated movies. Whereas Disney and Dreamworks have had a number of truly great films, I've consistently disliked Illumination's movies. Sing is actually the only one I'd consider a good movie.

This film suffers from a few things. First off, the story doesn't feel large enough to fill the hour and 25 minutes. This is obviously based on the aforementioned book and short film and it feels like that original story gets stretched far too thin here. There's just not enough of interest to fill the time here. Fred might elicit a few laughs, but the story of a fat reindeer felt more like filler than anything essential to the story. The story of Cindy-Lou felt a bit underdeveloped as well. I'll have to go back and watch the 2000 film, because i didn't get that same sense watching it.

I didn't find the film particularly entertaining or funny. It felt geared towards the youngest viewers, at the expense of older ones. Illumination just has this tendency to tell the lowest common denominator stories. It's like they're so afraid of taking chances, of trying to appeal to multiple demographics. I find most of their movies unwatchable. Now, that's not the case here. The Grinch is fine. It does enough to old the attention of younger viewers. Unfortunately, it doesn't offer much more than that. It kind of goes through the motions of the story without really hitting many high notes.

I actually didn't love Benedict Cumberbatch's performance as the Grinch. It was fine, I guess, but he didn't have much personality. I know it's unfair to compare this to the 2000 one, but that one had Jim Carrey's infectious, over-the-top energy to make the Grinch memorable. It feels like here, he's a mumbling sack of bitterness. I just didn't feel any kind of connection with his Grinch. The rest of the cast was fine, Cameron Seely and Rashida Jones did good work together. I'm not a fan of Pharrell Williams and I didn't love his narration, but I suppose it was fine. Kenan Thompson was good, and it's always fun to hear Angela Landsbury.

I actually find it difficult to explain my thoughts on this movie. I know I probably sound harsh. It's not like this is a bad movie, it's just a bland one. It tells the same story that we've seen twice before. It's not as energetic and frantic as the 2000 movie and it doesn't add enough to the 1966 short to justify it's existence. It feels like a cash grab from Illumination. The Lorax worked well, so let's do this established property that's been done before, but will definitely bring audiences out again. I wanted to like this movie and thought it might be another win for the studio. Unfortunately, it's too empty. The visuals and colors are good, but there's not enough depth to The Grinch underneath that shiny exterior.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating- 6



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: How the Grinch Stole Christmas! (1966), How the Grinch Stole Christmas (2000), The Lorax