Horton Hears A Who! (2008)

Directed By: Jimmy Hayward and Steve Martino

Written By: Ken Daurio and Cinco Paul

A kind of goofy elephant named Horton (Jim Carrey) in the jungle of Newl discovers a fantastical thing one morning during his ritual swim.  It’s a spec that seems to be talking.  The sweet elephant is determined to communicate with the voices he heard on the spec.  Little does he know an entire world of it’s own exists called Whoville.  In contrast the Mayor of Whoville is unaware that his entire community is tiny tiny and lives on a spec.  It isn’t long before he begins to suspect that things have gone slightly awry and finds himself talking through a pipe to a giant elephant named Horton who is carrying the spec on a flower with the intentions to put the city somewhere safe.  But both Horton and the Mayor find their goals being thwarted by a Kangaroo (Carol Burnett) and a mean councilman (Dan Fogler)  who are determined to stop them.

 What a relief!  An animated film without the name “Pixar” written across the top was actually fresh and fun!  Horton Hears A Who was full of so much life, genuine heart, and fun filled storytelling that you had no choice but to be whisked away into the magical world of Dr. Seuss’s imagination.  This Dr. Seuss adaptation took the amazing world of Whoville and translated the age old animation into a wondrous world of bright and fun CGI.  It captured all that we loved and multiplied it by ten. 

A rich cast featuring Jim Carrey and Steven Carell made for a funny, but more so sweet, comic pairing.  Each of their characters had a beautiful and trusting niaivte about them, that made both Horton and The Mayor completely infectious.  As Jim Carrey’s first animated voice over this was a fantastic explosion of his impeccable comic timing, talent for doing voices, and a genuine innocence not displayed since The Truman Show.  Steven Carell’s offbeat, awkwardness in his own skin, made the Mayor not only a sweet and sympathetic character, but absolutely hilarious.  It’s not surprising these two actors had me laughing out loud.

 The story itself presented many obstacles for both Horton and The Mayor to overcome including three devious characters played by Carol Burnett, Dan Fogler and Will Arnett, but the amazing thing about Horton and the Mayor was their complete conviction in their goal, and while at certain points no one  believed either of them, they still pushed on.  It was a smart and funny script that really played strongly against the huge cast of talented actors and stunning visuals.

 Horton Hears A Who was delightful surprise and is a wonderful children’s movie that inspires the imagination and the soul.  This is a great movie for the young and old, and anyone in between.   I can’t wait to take my kids to see this one.  Horton Hears A Who earns Three And A Half Stars Out Of Four easy stars.  “A person is a person, no matter how small.”