BY EMERSON LAYNE

“How the Grinch Stole Christmas” is a live action adaptation of the story created by Dr. Seuss. It was released in 2000 and was directed by Ron Howard. The movie’s budget was $123 million and at the box office it grossed $341 million. The movie stars Jim Carrey as the Grinch and Taylor Momsen as Cindy Lou Who. 

“How the Grinch Stole Christmas” follows the Grinch and Cindy Lou Who. The Grinch is an outcast of Whoville, living on Mount Crumpit, who despises Whoville, its inhabitants, and especially Christmas. Cindy Lou Who is a little girl living in Whoville, who questions the meaning of Christmas and who the Grinch really is. We follow the Grinch and how he decides to finally steal Christmas while Cindy tries to understand what made the Grinch the way he is. 

A fun movie that’s a faithful adaptation but expands upon the backstory of the Grinch. In the original version of the Grinch, it was unknown why the Grinch hated Christmas so much. In this version of the Grinch, it is explained that the Grinch originally lived in Whoville, but was shunned and bullied until one Christmas he finally had enough and left town. While it isn’t the most original backstory, it does its purpose and was a better backstory than no backstory. In “The Grinch” by Illumination, the Grinch’s backstory was that he was an orphan and had no Christmas, but it doesn’t really make any sense. Whoville is shown to be a town full of life, love, and kindness but no one wanted to adopt the Grinch? Or at the very least foster him? In “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” the town was shown to be the most normal of the three Grinch movies, although eccentric, so it would make sense that the Grinch was outcast so easily. Also, what made this Grinch movie better than the other two is that the Grinch was a really great character. You can tell that the years of isolation with just a dog did affect the Grinch. From him eating garbage, wearing no clothes, and his wild personality shows that he isn’t really in touch with society and societal norms. The visuals of the movie are fine, the costume design and the set design really stand out to express the cartoonish world. One major stand out was when the town got together for an event and they all wore cups and foods on their heads, which were very realistic. The set was expressive and vibrant, especially in the Grinch’s cave, where trash and machinery are everywhere, amplifying the Grinch’s personality and his isolation.  

A decent and fun movie that’s the best of the lot to the three Grinch movies so far.

7.8/10.