Horton Hears a Who! (2008)

O Masterpiece
X Excellent
O Good
O OK
O Mediocrity
O Avoid

Review by Jason Pyles / March 17, 2008

Dust, of all things, has always been fascinating to me. Where does it come from? How does it reach its seemingly inaccessible destinations? How does it settle so evenly? At what point does it turn into bunnies? And come to think of it, what exactly is dust, anyway? These are all good questions, but no one has ever made us ponder dust like Dr. Seuss.

Originally published as a children’s book in 1954, then produced as a 26-minute, animated TV program in 1970, “Horton Hears a Who!” is one of Dr. Seuss’ most thoughtful stories, and now it’s a feature film. The movie is fairly faithful to the book and the 1970 short film, with a few additions and expansions here and there to help stretch the runtime to 88 minutes.

Horton (Jim Carrey) is a mild-mannered, friendly elephant. One day his big elephant’s ears hear a voice calling out from a floating speck of dust. It turns out that the particle is home to the tiny inhabitants of Whoville. The itty-bitty city’s mayor, Ned McDodd (Steve Carell), discovers that Horton is willing to be a huge helper of the Whos, because he plans to find a safe place for the dust-world to reside amid the dangerously hectic jungle of Nool.

But Horton is harassed by a cantankerous kangaroo (Carol Burnett) who’s got the jungle in an uproar, needlessly spreading alarm with paranoid conspiracy theories and skepticism over Horton’s miniscule microcosm. The persnickety kangaroo enlists the labors of the Wickersham brothers (the funniest part of the 1970 cartoon), and Vlad (Will Arnett), a vile buzzard whose devious design for the disposal of the dust particle is sheer evil genius.

“Horton Hears a Who!” is appropriately rated G. Children of all ages should be pleasantly appeased, even captivated. Unlike other animated features of late, “Horton” is blissfully innocent and devoid of innuendo. In one scene, a character with a quick tongue appears to eat a leaf bug. But a few moments later, we see that the leaf bug isn’t dead. Also, the most despicable character is graciously given a peace offering, of sorts, one that even the littlest moviegoers will understand.

But that’s not to say that “Horton” is without enjoyable tidbits for adults. And aside from its humor, “Horton” is a philosophical, metaphysical delight, posing questions about the nature of reality and the structure of the universe. Indeed, one could easily spot (if one looks) allegories for issues that span from Christianity to global warming. While watching “Horton,” it’s difficult not to think of the marble galaxies from “Men in Black” (1997).

Yes, “Horton Hears a Who!” is excellent, even worth seeing in the theater. I am reminded of my review for “Ghost Rider” (2007), where I extended consolation to director Mark Steven Johnson because of the original source material he was trying to work with. I wrote, “A flaming, skull-headed biker who’s a bounty hunter for the devil is a tall order for any filmmaker.” Well, “Horton” is the antithesis of “Ghost Rider,” because it would be hard to go astray with this inventive story.

Nobody cares, but I always sit in the back row of the theater. When “Horton” ended, I stood up and beheld numberless dust particles visible in the projector’s light beam. Instantly I felt a reflex-like urgency to try to catch them all on my notebook, or a clover. After all, a person’s a person, no matter how small.

Directed by Jimmy Hayward and Steve Martino
Jim Carrey / Steve Carell / Carol Burnett
Animation / Family 88 min.
MPAA: G

U.S. Release Date: March 14, 2008
Copyright 2008: 260