Jim Carrey is the Best & Worst Part of this Beloved Christmas Classic

Even if it’s been more 24 years since it hit movie theaters in 2000, Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas (colloquially, simply and better known as The Grinch) endures as Christmas classic for those who watched it as children. It isn’t hyperbolic to say that this adaptation of Dr. Seuss’ timeless Christmas book owes its entire legacy to Jim Carrey, who famously donned some of the most intricate and painful prosthetics in movie history to bring the green grouch to life. To this day, people fondly remember Carrey’s performance and quote some of his more memorable lines.

But like anything that’s been heralded as a nostalgic staple these days, the sheer reverence for The Grinch begs the question of whether it was actually a good movie, or if it was just put on a pedestal by those blinded by rose-colored, holiday-themed spectacles. This is especially the case when the movie’s contemporary lukewarm reception is taken into account. Devoid of its nostalgic appeal and when viewed through modern eyes, The Grinch proves itself an entertaining if aged Christmas comedy that’s actually held back by one of Carrey’s most famous performances.

The Grinch Owes More to Looney Tunes Than Dr. Seuss’ Works & Classic Adaptations

The Movie is Basically a Live-Action Cartoon

Then and now, one of the main criticisms against The Grinch was that it had little in common with the beloved animated TV special, How the Grinch Stole Christmas!, from the ’60s. If the 1966 animated short was a respectful adaptation of Dr. Seuss’ book, the 2000 movie was a chaotic and noisy cartoon brought to life by actual actors and practical sets. The movie throwing in a couple of nods and direct homages to the cartoon — including a new version of the song “You’re a Mean One, Mr. Grinch” — did little to help its case with Dr. Seuss purists. But in hindsight and especially considering today’s barren landscape of children’s entertainment and Christmas movies, The Grinch’s choice to take inspiration from Looney Tunes instead of previous Dr. Seuss adaptations was one of the best things it did.

By following Looney Tunes’ madcap humor instead of the prim and proper class of the Dr. Seuss adaptations that preceded it, The Grinch clearly separated itself from the source book and cartoon. The movie wasn’t even subtle about this, as it wears its influences on its sleeves. Like any classic Merrie Melodies sketch, The Grinch was loaded with slapstick gags, over-the-top archertypes, and fourth-wall breaking asides. The Grinch himself was more of a bumbling agent of chaos and a wannabe bully like Daffy Duck rather than the remorseless children’s monster he was in the original story. Old-school jokes like a yodeller being pulled off-screen by a comically long cane or the Grinch suffering and surviving all kinds of bodily harm reinforce these parallels. Even the disorienting camera work and abundance of Dutch Angles evoked the manic energy of these old cartoons. Those who take the 1966 cartoon (which was coincidentally directed by longtime Looney Tunes animator, Chuck Jones) and Dr. Seuss’ works as sacred will predictably scoff at this irreverent version of the Grinch. But for everyone else, there’s a childlike novelty to watching what’s essentially a live-action Looney Tunes movie that doesn’t feel the need to justify its artifice and existence the way Space Jam did. What’s more, The Grinch’s humor, style and execution were perfectly aligned with the comedic trends of the New Millennium — animated or otherwise.

Between the ’90s to the 2000s, filmmakers tried to make live-action cartoons, whether they were based on an old cartoon or not. Some succeeded, like Matilda or Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, while others didn’t, such as The Flintstones and The Adventures of Rocky and Bulwinkle. Those like the first two Home Alone entries weren’t based on a specific cartoon or book, but were obvious love letters to the medium’s joyous disdain for real-world logic. The Grinch was one of this brief trend’s zeniths in terms of production value, execution and casting. The only other movies that come close to what The Grinch accomplished would be the Scooby-Doo duology. The Grinch succeeded where its contemporaries failed because it wholeheartedly embraced being a live-action cartoon. It never separated the heightened from the “real,” and the characters never questioned their world’s madness. The fact that it got none other than The Mask himself to portray the Grinch wasn’t just a good idea, but one of the best and most inspired casting choices ever made. Simply put, The Grinch was tailor-made for Carrey.

During his peak as a movie star, Carrey made a name for himself by being a living cartoon character. Carrey’s over-the-top delivery, exaggerated body language, and malleable facial expressions were at the top of their game in The Grinch, even if he was unrecognizable under all that make-up. It says a lot that even if he (in)famously described wearing the Grinch’s make-up to torture and considering the many other characters he portrayed throughout his career, the Grinch is easily one of Carrey’s most animated roles. No one but Carrey could’ve portrayed this version of the Grinch. Every line of dialogue — both scripted and improvised — played to Carrey’s comic timing, verbal tics and the unique way he pronounced or emphasized certain words. Even if it was obviously limited by the heavy make-up, Carrey’s physicality was on full display here. The movie being set in a world as eccentric as Whoville complemented Carrey’s sensibilities, and gave him more room to goof off than he would in a more realistic comedy like Liar Liar. To date and in a literal sense, The Grinch boasts some of Carrey’s biggest gags. But ironically, Carrey’s admirably committed performance and the movie’s main claim to fame are also what held it back from achieving true greatness.

The Grinch’s Potential Was Overshadowed by Jim Carrey’s Iconic Performance

The Movie’s Attempts at Depth and Sincerity were Undermined by the Comedian’s Scene-Stealing Antics

The Grinch’s choice to emulate Looney Tunes was a double-edged sword. On one hand, this made it one of the best live-action interpretations of a cartoon. Carrey’s performance certainly sealed the deal. But conversely, this undercut nearly all the movie’s attempts to illicit genuine emotions from the audience or teach them a valuable lesson. This also made it a lacking adaptation of one of the most cherished children’s stories to ever be published. Like the original story, the movie calls out how consumerist, materialistic and vain Christmas celebrations have become. It reminds viewers that friends, family and love are what the holidays should be about. Additionally, it posits that even someone as seemingly irredeemable as the Grinch is still capable of goodness and redemption. The movie then went a step further by adding worthwhile themes of how bullying only begets bitterness and resentment, and how judging and ostracizing others by their appearance alone is wrong and cruel. These good lessons and the Grinch’s new depth were, unfortunately, drowned out by Carrey going ham.

It’s difficult to take The Grinch’s more somber and emotional moments seriously when they’re what immediately comes after the Grinch threw himself at a wall or after Carrey snakred about his gripes to audiences the way Bugs Bunny would. It also seemed as if the movie itself didn’t want to dwell too long on any hint of sincerity that wasn’t achingly saccharine or open to winking side comments. The movie often rushed through its most moving moments just to get to the next barrage of slapstick and wisecracks. A good example of this is Whoville’s annual Holiday Cheermeister. Throughout the movie, it was implied that the Grinch’s hatred of Christmas was his coping mechanism for the trauma of being bullied as a kid. This came to a head during the festivities’ end when Mayor August May Who, the Grinch’s childhood tormentor, intentionally triggered the Grinch’s trauma with a rude gift and a wedding proposal to the Grinch’s childhood crush. Ideally, the movie would’ve lingered on this to recontextualize the Grinch’s actions as sad rather than funny. This could’ve also given his ultimate plan to ruin Christmas by stealing it a deeper meaning. Instead, the movie gave the Grinch a brief moment of justified anger before he went on his wackiest rampage yet. Despite the newfound context for the Grinch’s hatred of the holidays, the movie framed his outburst during the Holiday Cheermeister as another fun montage of mean pranks and cartoonish destruction.

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This and the supporting cast’s lack of lasting presence can be blamed on the simple fact that The Grinch was made specifically for Carrey. The movie was really more of an avenue for Carrey to unleash himself on a cartoon world than a typical Dr. Seuss retelling. While this is both understandable and obvious given Carrey’s star power and name recall, this also missed the point of the Grinch as a character. If the Grinch was the embodiment of meanness and the living antithesis to everything good about Christmas, his live-action counterpart was just Carrey in a green fur suit. If not for the costume and fantastical setting, the Grinch would be indistinguishable from Carrey’s other equally wild and hyperactive characters, like Ace Ventura or Bruce Nolan. To wit: the Grinch was a lovable but uncontrollable eccentric. He spoke mostly in non-sequiturs and references that only made sense to the audience. His rival was a stuck-up snob, and it took just one friendly face for him to realize the error of his ways. And despite his many flaws, the Grinch only really wanted to belong and be loved.

These should be expected of a comedy where Carrey is the lead, but his brand of comedy clashed with Dr. Seuss’ sincerity and even the movie’s new dramatic goals. Add in the Looney Tunes’ influence, and the result is a tonally confused adaptation of an otherwise straightforward and heartwarming kids’ story. That’s not to say that The Grinch is unbearable or unwatchable. It’s impossible not to laugh at the unfolding chaos, and Carrey gives a performance for the ages. The movie also looks gorgeous in a way that today’s don’t, and the drought of modern Christmas movies helps it stand out more. But despite its best efforts, it fails to escape Carrey’s shadow. Whenever The Grinch tries to be serious for a moment or do anything other than make people laugh, Carrey overpowers this potential with his holiday madness. This is one of the rare times when Carrey’s infectious charm and comedic chops hold the movie back rather than elevate it. Carrey owns the spotlight and the Grinch himself deserves his lasting legacy, but the rest of the movie leaves so much to be desired.

Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas is now available to watch and own physically and digitally.

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On the outskirts of Whoville lives a green, revenge-seeking Grinch who plans to ruin Christmas for all of the citizens of the town.

Director

Ron Howard

Release Date

November 17, 2000

Cast

Jim Carrey
, Taylor Momsen
, Jeffrey Tambor
, Christine Baranski
, Bill Irwin
, Molly Shannon

Writers

Dr. Seuss
, Jeffrey Price
, Peter S. Seaman

Runtime

104 Minutes

Production Company

Budget

$123 Million

Distributor(s)

Universal Pictures

Pros

• Jim Carrey gives the performance of a lifetime as the Grinch
• The movie is a live-action cartoon in the best ways possible
• The movie gives the Grinch just the right amount of extra depth and humanity

Cons

• Jim Carrey’s antics overpower everything else in the movie
• The supporting characters are forgettable
• The movie’s sense of humor clashes with Dr. Seuss’ intentions and style
• The movie’s deeper ideas are only glossed over

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