Plot: What’s it about?
Until last year, if you were to think of Jim Carrey with green skin, you might think of 1994’s “The Mask”. Well, now you have two roles to think of him in (and judging by the success of both, maybe we could see a trend emerging)? A bit more on Carrey, though…one of my favorite actors, he is trying desperately to bridge the gap between slapstick comedy and being a very dramatic actor. That’s a tough act to do, no pun intended. While his more serious roles have included “The Truman Show” and “Man on the Moon”, he has found his most success with comedy. “Ace Ventura: Pet Detective” launched him into superstardom and he followed that up with the aforementioned “The Mask” and one of my all-time favorites “Dumb and Dumber”. One does have to wonder, though why he wants to be taken as a serious actor? I suppose you can only talk out of your rear end (literally) so many times and not feel a bit guilty taking home $20 million dollars. It was with his latest endeavor, “The Grinch” that Carrey found his way back on top and his highest-grossing movie to date. And we’re all familiar with the classic tale of Dr. Seuess’ tale of the furry green monster who steals Christmas; this is the live-action version.
The Grinch (Jim Carrey) lives at the top of Whoville. He feels rejected and is an outcast…and he likes it that way! Unlike the animated version from 1966, we do learn a bit more from his childhood and see why he is the way he is. Now about the town of Whoville. A small, yet happy town, the citizens of Whoville are anxiously awaiting the Christmas season. It’s getting closer, but they seem to have forgotten (just like us) what the true meaning of Christmas is really all about. Concentrating on decorating their houses in feeble attempts to outdo their neighbors, buying loads of presents at discount prices–the town of Whoville seems to have been swept up in what Christmas isn’t. While material goods and turbo-charged house decorators (you’ll have to see that to see what I mean) are fine for most, Cindy Lou Who (Taylor Momsen) seems to be the only one in town who sees that Chrismas may be about a bit more than the presents. As The Grinch has made his way into town to cause some mischief, he meets Cindy Lou Who and manages to frighten her into a box sorter. As she screams for help, he does manage to save her, only after wrapping her up like a present. It’s at this time that Cindy Lou Who tends to think that The Grinch isn’t quite as bad as everyone thinks he is. We’re introduced to a love interest for The Grinch as well. Dating back to his childhood days, Martha May Whovier (Christine Baranski) has had a crush on him, but The Grinch has always been too much of a recluse to do anything about it. And, as it turns out, the Mayor (Jeffrey Tambor) intends to make Martha May his wife (the plot thickens). In an attempt to make her Christmas special (this is when they were kids, by the way), The Grinch makes her a Christmas present only to get laughed at by the whole class after shaving his beard. This is the basis for his hatred of the season.
Quite a little bit more than a retelling of a classic children’s tale, this new and updated version features a few more bits of information. You have to add some, if you want to make a movie out of a 60 minute cartoon! I never saw The Grinch when it came out last year, and the wait has been long indeed. I was very surprised to hear the voice of Sir Anthony Hopkins as the narrator, too. A bit of a word on Ron Howard. While Howard’s resume is indeed impressive, I feel (and I’m not alone in this opinion) that he was miscast as the director. He seems to be overdoing it and all in all, it just didn’t feel like a Ron Howard movie. Carrey, on the other hand, is perfect as The Grinch. It’s obvious that he was given free reign to improvise the part and I’m basing the success of the movie on Carrey alone. How’s that for a bold statement? Much like Robin Williams’ voice stole the show in “Aladdin”, Carrey does the same here. Though unrecognizable under Rick Baker’s makeup, it’s all Jim Carrey, and he’s hamming it up big time! While the movie got horrible reviews for the most part, I found it kind of funny at times. It’s obviously geared for kids, and they should be quite entertained by the show in general. There’s not much else to say except “Bah, Humbug”…but that’s the wrong movie!
Video: How does it look?
As much as I hate to give movies a “perfect” rating, I have to admit that “The Grinch” looks almost pristine. As you can imagine, the sheer scenery and wealth of images in the 1.85:1 frame are a lot to take in. Thankfully, the anamorphic transfer makes it all seem even more like Whoville than the old cartoon. A word about the ratings on the checkbox to the left. We received a full-frame Deluxe Edition and a Widescreen Collector’s Edition for review, so each disc has only one version of the film included. Don’t go buying a disc of the movie and be disappointed that it’s only full-frame or only widescreen! You’ve been warned! The colors seem very natural and the black levels (used extensively for The Grinch’s lair) seem dead on perfect. I noticed no artifacting, no compression errors and no shimmering. For as many supplements that were on the disc, and no less than three 5.1 tracks, I was expecting it to take it’s toll on the picture quality. I was wrong. The picture is amazing and I really can’t find more words to convey my message.
Audio: How does it sound?
On each version of The Grinch, we’re treated to a Dolby Digital 5.1 track and a DTS track as well. Also included is a French 5.1 track, but that wasn’t referenced in this review. I chose to listen to the DTS track, as I’m usually a bit more impressed with it than it’s Dolby Digital counterpart. As expected, both tracks did not disappoint. I did notice a bit more action with the DTS track (again, as is to be expected) than with the Dolby Digital track, but the Dolby track packs a little more “bang” when it comes to explosions (and believe it or not, there are a few). Dialogue is very clear, you can hear each snicker of The Grinch and the surrounds were used sparingly, but cleverly. One scene that I can think of involves moths eating stockings. As they fly around the room, they travel from your front speakers to the surrounds. Very good use of those here. Very little bass effects were used, but as mentioned above, there are a few explosions that make good use of the sub. All in all, it’s not perfect, but a lot better than average. You should not be displeased with the sound here. A Dolby Digital 3.0 track is included featuring the DVS (Descriptive Video Service). Essentially, it reads the story to you and provides an exceptional amount of detail, too. This feature is hardly used though, as this is one of only a handful of discs that has this service.
Supplements: What are the extras?
The supplements of “The Grinch” are plentiful indeed, but they appear to be geared more at the children. Though I don’t know many kids who are into supplements–then again, I could be wrong. First up is the “Spotlight on Location” that we find with so many other Universal discs. Clocking in around 8 minutes. While not offering much more insight into the film, it seems contempt to be a precursor to many of the discs other features. Still, a nice touch. Next are six deleted scenes which should have been cut. A longer version of the opening scene shows The Grinch spreading marbles about, thereby making the people of Whoville fall. Hold me back…no commentary accompanies these, so we can assume that they’re out for a reason. Who School is a 6 minute featurette that informs us how many of the citizens of Whoville are gymnasts. Not surprisingly, the cast also went through some training as well. Looking back on it, it does make sense and it’s a nice little feature. Some outtakes are also included, and you can bet with Jim Carrey on board, there were most likely a LOT more. At only a few minutes, we see the actors in costume just goofing around. Neat, but there should have been more of these.
A Makeup Application and Design is a 7 minute featurette that shows the magic of Rick Baker. He mentions how he followed Seuss’ original plans to keep with the “realism” of the movie. While the multiple Academy Award winning artist (Baker) could have probably gone on for a good half hour or so, this is shortened and we don’t really get a good look at all the costumes. For obvious reasons, it concentrates on The Grinch. A 6 minute featurette entitled “Seussian Set Decoration” is interesting, if short. The short features Mrs. Dr. Seuss who has a few words to say. And while the sets are extravagant, I think we would have all liked to see more. A ten minute featurette entitled “Visual Effects” is rather interesting, and as you can imagine, this movie is full of visual effects. Kevin Mack is the only person on screen, as he is the Visual Effects supervisor. Digital Domain is responsible for most of the work and it’s amazing to see exactly what is computer-generated and what is actually real in the land of Whoville. There are some recipes (real, mind you) that are included, four in all. I’m not much of a cook and don’t own a cookbook, but maybe if I get hungry sometime I’ll try some Whovier’s Designer Onion Wreaths! Also included is Faith Hill’s music video “Where are you at Christmas”. The song is also played at the ending credits. Faith Hill is ugly, by the way. Only kidding. Some statistics are also listed and they’re really quite impressive when you consider the size of some of the things used (i.e. six miles of styrfoam). The standard production notes, cast bios and the original theatrical trailer can also be found. Before I forget, we’re also treated to a trailer for the 20th anniversary edition of E.T.: The Extra Terrestrial coming to theaters in March 2002. Great–theaters–how ’bout DVD?
But wait…there’s more! A not too hidden special feature entitled “Max’s Playhouse” (Max is The Grinch’s dog and only friend in the movie). When clicking on the button, we’re treated with some sing-along songs, “Where are you at Christmas” and “You’re a Mean one, Mr. Grinch”. Get the theme? I was bored, so I sung along. Good thing I was alone. You can also have the story read to you “The Care and Feeding of a Grinch”. This is read by Max the dog, folks…The little ones can also “Dress the Grinch” and you have to find the right word to rhyme in “Rhyme Time”. On the whole, this disc literally has it all—except a commentary! You’d figure with the robust amount of features, Howard would record one, but he’s not that taken with DVD and his lack of commitment is shown here. A beautiful picture, great sound and a wealth of bonus materials should add up to one great disc here.
