Genre: CG Animation
Director: Jimmy Hayward, Steve Martino
Cast (Voices): Jim Carrey, Steve Carell, Carol Burnett, Seth Rogen, Will Arnett, Isla Fisher, Dan Fogler, Amy Poehler, Dane Cook, Jaime Pressly, Jonah Hill
RunTime: 1 hr 28 mins
Released By: 20th Century Fox
Rating: G
Official Website: http://www.hortonmovie.com/

Opening Day: 13 March 2008

Synopsis:

The film is based on the beloved book, first published in 1954, by Ted Geisel, who wrote under the pen name Dr. Seuss. "Horton Hears a Who" is about an imaginative elephant who hears a cry for help coming from a tiny speck of dust floating through the air. Suspecting there may be life on that speck and despite a surrounding community which thinks he has lost his mind, Horton is determined to help.

Movie Review:

Funnyman Jim Carrey once again steps into the world of Dr Seuss following his maniac performance in the 2000’s holiday box-office hit “How the Grinch stole Christmas”. Lending his vocal to the lead character of Horton the elephant, Carrey is almost unrecognizable in that gentle voiceover.

Joining Carrey is an ensemble cast including Steve Carell, Carol Burnett, Will Arnett, Seth Rogan, Jonah Hill and Dan Fogler. Almost all of them have their fair share appearing in comedies.

But the biggest challenge lies in adapting Dr Seuss’s work into a full-length feature. Adapted to the screen by Ken Daurio and Cinco Paul whose biggest credit to date is “The Santa Clause 2”, it doesn’t inspire much anticipation don’t you but fortunately, the term “family entertainment” saves the whole lot of them. There’s plenty of wacky dialogue, cartoony humour and visual gags that will tickle the taste buds of many kiddos to fill up the screentime. An added surprise is the inclusion of a cute anime segment.

In the spirit of the original classic, with the relationship of Horton and the people of Who-ville lies the message “A person's a person, no matter how small”, an old-school message reaffirmed by this latest movie adaptation.

And yes, Blue Sky paid a huge tribute to the world of Dr Seuss too by incorporating his trademark character-designs and expanded his literary world employing the latest CG animation technology. The tiny world of Who-ville, the lush jungle and the various animal characters are beautifully rendered. It will always be a pity that the efforts of Blue Sky Studio is hugely overlook when compared to animation giants liked Pixar, DreamWorks but the young studio stands on its own with their outputs. (The third instalment of their renowned franchise, Ice Age 3 will be out next year and the first teaser can be seen before the screening of Horton)

Lastly, did I mention the chippy music tunes by Blue Sky’s frequent collaborator John Powell is an added bonus as well.

“Dr Seuss’ Horton Hears A Who” or “Horton Hears A Who” or “Horton” (the last being the heavily-shortened local title) is a feel-good animation with a stand-out performance of a certain rubbery-looking, Jim Carrey voiced elephant. Get past the thin storyline and it’s a wholesome movie outing for the entire family.

Movie Rating:

(Dr Seuss saves the day yet again!)

Review by Linus Tee