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Review: "Dr. Seuss’ Horton Hears a Who!"

by Jane Boursaw on March 16th, 2008

This CG-animated family movie tells the familiar story by Dr. Seuss, a.k.a. Theodor Seuss Geisel. Horton (voiced by Jim Carrey) is an amiable elephant minding his own business in the jungle of Nool, until one day, he hears a tiny cry for help coming from a speck of dust.

Horton soon realizes there’s someone on that speck – and not just someone, but the entire city of Whoville, led by the Mayor (Steve Carell). If Horton doesn’t protect them, their entire world could be annihilated.

Horton’s jungle pals don’t share his enthusiasm for this weighty matter. In fact, they think he’s crazy for believing in something they can’t even see, especially Kangaroo (Carol Burnett), the self-appointed moral compass of the jungle who takes every opportunity to tell Horton what a dimwit he is. She even hires some thugs – Vlad the Bird (Will Arnett) and the Wickersham monkeys — to work him over and steal the speck.

More Horton after the jump!

But Horton stands strong and vows to save that speck, because “a person’s a person, no matter how small.” He tries to put things into perspective for his skeptical friends: “If you were way out in space, and you looked down at where we live, we would look like a speck.” They don’t buy it.

Horton decides the best place for the speck is high atop a mountain, so he goes about the task of delivering the speck there. He can do nothing less, given his life philosophy: “An elephant’s faithful 100 percent.”

Meanwhile, back in Whoville, the Mayor is having his own problems. He’s trying to convince his constituents they’re in danger, but the Whos will have none of it, preferring to believe everything is fine in their perfect world. The Mayor’s wife (Amy Poehler) stands by him, but she’s got enough on her hands trying to keep their 96 kids in line, including son Jo Jo (Jesse McCartney), a loner-teen with a good heart.

While my kids and I thought the movie dragged a bit in the middle, we all agreed it’s a colorful tale appropriate for all ages. The story strays here and there from the book, but I love that some of the book’s rhyming lines are incorporated into the movie.

Other voice talent includes Seth Rogen as Horton’s pal Morton the Mouse and Isla Fisher as brainy scientist Mary Lou LaRue, as well as Jonah Hill, Jaime Pressly, and Josh Flitter.

To be honest, though, I probably wouldn’t have picked out most of these voices had I not known they were in the movie. Carrey and Carell are definitely the highlight.

You can’t go wrong with Dr. Seuss, a gifted wordsmith, storyteller, and philosopher whose stories always deliver a message. In this case: 1) always honor your commitments; 2) help those who can’t help themselves; 3) everyone is equal, no matter how large or small; and 4) we’re all interconnected, as is demonstrated when Horton tries to cross a rickety bamboo bridge while the Mayor is at the dentist.

NOTE TO PARENTS:

Sex/ Nudity: None.

Violence/Gore: Mild comic action, including monkeys who attack Horton with bananas, then throw him into a cage and try to destroy the speck. Vlad the bird also threatens Horton and manages to steal the speck away from him.

Profanity: None, although the kangaroo, monkeys and bird verbally abuse Horton. There’s also brief potty humor. Upon hearing that the mayor’s large family all share one bathroom, Horton wonders what a bathroom is.

Check out the trailer here.

Images: Dr. Seuss’ Horton Hears a Who!, Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation, 2008

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