The Grinch (2018)

The Grinch: a review

Picture source: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2709692/

The Directors: Yarrow Cheney and Scott Mosier

The Cast:

Benedict Cumberbatch – the Grinch

Pharrell Williams – The Narrator

Rashida Jones – Donna Who

Cameron Seely – Cindy-Lou Who

Keenan Thompson – Mr. Bricklebaum

Angela Lansbury – Mayor McGerkle

Certificate: U

Released in UK cinemas: 9^th November 2018

The Plot:

In the town of Whoville Christmas is the best time of the year...but not everyone thinks so. The Grinch (Cumberbatch, Avengers Infinity War) hates it so much, he will do anything to ruin things even if it means stealing Christmas right from under the Whos' sleeping noses! But does the kindness of young Cindy-Lou Who have the power to melt his cold heart?

The Review:

For someone who grew up enjoying Jim Carrey's madcap performance in the original Grinch film, a new version felt like a complete cash-grab. Also say what you will about Illumination's Despicable Me trilogy, but their attempts at adapting the works of Dr. Seuss have felt more like near-misses than solid hits. The Lorax was painfully preachy with desperate endeavours at comedy. Colour me green with amazement, then, when I found myself warming to this latest attempt at bringing one of Dr. Seuss' most popular books to life.

The decision to animate it was a relief. It looks stunning, and the characters are cute and cuddly (none more so than the Grinch's faithful dog, Max). In addition, there is much more freedom for creativity, which sparkles brightest during the Grinch's ploys to steal Christmas, and even in his Max-operated coffee machine. You can tell they were a lot of fun to story-board.

Cindy-Lou's motive for not feeling festive changes here. It could be seen as either touching or incredibly heavy on the schmaltz. Cumberbatch relishes in the cynical sneer the audience can appreciate (and even empathise with!) around the hype of Christmas. On the other hand, he lacks the gleeful malice that made Carrey's performance such fun to watch. It renders the film altogether harmless, though there's still plenty of slapstick and quirky humour to keep everyone amused; Fred the rotund reindeer is a surprisingly welcome addition to the story.

The Grinch is harmless, but enjoyable enough. Just the right sort of film for vegging out on after a hearty Christmas meal.

*** 3 STARS OUT OF 5