This movie is entirely too long, but what really annoys me... even more than the Grinch's overacting... is the nonsensical direction the story takes.
The film attempts to tell the story of the Grinch, including a fully fleshed out back story of his childhood being emotionally damaged by the thoughtless Who children. Fair enough I suppose, except the original Grinch tale was about consumerism, and the real point of Christmas being love and family rather than gifts.
This Grinch eventually arrives at the same change of heart as the original, quoting the same lines that Christmas "came just the same," before returning the gifts. But why? None of it jives with his poor treatment by the Whos earlier on. Unlike the original Grinch who was only obsessed with the gifts, this version gives no explanation as to why he should have suddenly forgiven all of them. The entire thing feels arbitrary and ill-fitting.
Add that to the excessive runtime and the general unlikability of most of the characters, and we're left with a film that doesn't deserve a spot in the annual holiday rotation.
The film attempts to tell the story of the Grinch, including a fully fleshed out back story of his childhood being emotionally damaged by the thoughtless Who children. Fair enough I suppose, except the original Grinch tale was about consumerism, and the real point of Christmas being love and family rather than gifts.
This Grinch eventually arrives at the same change of heart as the original, quoting the same lines that Christmas "came just the same," before returning the gifts. But why? None of it jives with his poor treatment by the Whos earlier on. Unlike the original Grinch who was only obsessed with the gifts, this version gives no explanation as to why he should have suddenly forgiven all of them. The entire thing feels arbitrary and ill-fitting.
Add that to the excessive runtime and the general unlikability of most of the characters, and we're left with a film that doesn't deserve a spot in the annual holiday rotation.