horton hears a who cares about this remake?
I hate modern animated features.
I hate the bloated 3-dimensional lifelike stuff we get from Pixar and co. I hate the fine-tuned realism, the way creatures swoop down on the viewer in their bursting fiery rainbows of techy-techni 5-dimensional color. I hate the freakily photographic quality they aim for in these things. To me it lacks imagination. And the punny grownup humor tweaks my vibe. The other day I saw a promo on one of Crabtot's DVDs, for Shrek 3 or Ratatouille or one of the other wildly popular movies that I fail to "get." There was a joke in the trailer about contact lenses and health insurance. How is this relevant to children?
I guess these movies aren't really for children. Or at least, they're meant to be for kids with extra lines thrown in to entertain the parents. Whatever. I still don't like them. For all the tech effects, they leave me cold. I've mentioned this before. But I want to talk about it again, now that we have a new version of Horton Hears a Who.
What was wrong with the original? Crabtot loves it and so do I. It's beautifully rendered by animator Chuck Jones, with the 2-dimensional flair that can only come with using imagination over software. And yeah, Jim Carrey is talented, but I had no desire to hear him replace Boris Karloff as the Grinch any more than I'd like to hear him go all spastic as the voice of that sweet little elephant Horton.
I haven't seen the remake of Horton, but not experiencing something firsthand has never stopped me from casting my crabby judgment before. This is no exception. I'm gonna bet it's lame.
Thankfully after an antiquated childhood diet of Mom-chosen animations, Crabtot will herself one day frown upon the latest animated flicks from the box office. Ri-ight. Oh well, for now I control what she sees. And we're skipping this one.
Anyone else feel similarly? Or have you seen and loved the new Horton Hears a Who? If so, sock it to me!
I'm not usually a commenter, but I love when I get comments on my blog, so I figure I should share the love... I haven't seen Horton, but I'm with you on leaving the classics alone. I'm also highly in favor of claymation over superslick newfangled animation. Give me Wallace and Grommet or Burl Ives narrating Rudolph any day. Both your blogs are fabulous and entertaining by the way.
dmatlick, thank you for delurking and for your good words about the crabbloggery.
Cookie has assured me that one day in the next century (kidding...i hope) Conde Nast and therefore Cookie.com will have more interactivity in its site. meaning that, among other changes, you blog commenters will be able to link through to your own blogs so we can all share the readership. I would love that. Meantime, always feel free to post your url along with yr comment.
I saw it and fell asleep for 45 minutes. I woke up nicely refreshed and could pick right up with the plotline. Reading the book before seeing the movie kind of ruins it for me. I actually like the adult humor in kids' cartoons. It reminds of Looney Tunes. Plus, it somehow makes the absolute tedium of having to sit through that a little more bearable. I actually laughed (guffawed) aloud in Enchanted, mostly because it appealed to my own ironic twisting of fairytales that I subject my poor kids to on a daily basis, (e.g. Mommyrella.)
Mommyrella,
You're right about Looney Tunes. I kinda forgot about that. What is it that makes me so frumy, grumpy, and fudd-duddy about mod animation? Dunno. For me it's Japanimation (Kiki), old 2D stuff, or stop-motion (Pingu!) all the way. I'm sure Crabtot will put an end to all this animation snobbery soon enough though...
Pingu Rocks!!
MR,
I am going to assume you have heard the David Hasselhoff song that he made in tribute to Pingu?
if not check out my archives here for an earlier called "dvds that don't annoy" and click on the Hass audio link in there.
Hasselhoff rocks!
[weak laughter]
I couldn't agree with you more. My son has the beautiful Winnie the Pooh movie from the sixties and he loves it.I HATE HATE HATE the new weird one on TV, where they put on some blue sweaters, jump on some scooter thingies and rescue someone or something! What is that all about??? My son (almost two) gets very excited when he sees Tigger on there but he's quickly bored as it's just too confusing, loud and senseless.
I took my 2 year old to see it. We both found it boring but I am better equipped to avoid eating the candy and pop corn off the floor.
I like a lot of the new pixar movies and frequently watch them sans kids.
I absolutely agree, Pixar w/o children is fun, but give me Looney Tunes, the original Dr. Seuss animated movies, or a good book (Where the Wild Things Are and The Salamander Room are favorites) any day.