Evolution of beloved Christmas story not needed

Although there is a new version of “How the Grinch Stole Christmas,” many still believe the other two versiions are the best.

Lately the argument that I’ve heard more than any other is about which Grinch movie is the best. I suppose that the reason that it is such a hot topic is because of the newly released movie starring Benedict Cumberbatch, so I decided to watch all three to settle my opinion once and for all.

Of course, if I was going to do this right, I had to start at the beginning with “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” (1966). Now, I hadn’t properly watched the original in many, many years, and so I was expecting it to be boring because it was so old. I was in for a pleasant surprise as it was actually quite good. I was not the only one to agree with this as this movie has a 100 percent rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Boris Karloff both narrated and voiced the Grinch, and I believe his voice was perfect for the job because it could be both soothing and creepy. Rather than creating unnecessary plot lines to make the movie longer, it is basically a reading of the beloved book with animation, which I thought was perfect. All in all, I think it was a perfect example of how sometimes following the same formula works, and works well.

I’ve got to be honest, going into this I wasn’t particularly thrilled to watch “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” (2000), mostly because I spent a majority of my childhood avoiding it like the plague. Jim Carrey’s portrayal of the Grinch terrified me as a child. Something about the way he carried himself, how long his fingers were and the fact that he ATE GLASS really freaked my 5-year-old self out. Rewatching it, though, I have to admit that it was pretty funny in a more mature way that I couldn’t understand when I was young. 

Despite disliking how weird and creepy the Grinch is, I have to admit that his attitude makes the most sense out of the three that we’ve seen. He was vile and mean because he was harrassed and bullied as a child, and he hated Christmas because he felt rejected when he was at his most vulnerable. Although at points this movie seems to drag on, I enjoyed it a lot more than I thought I would. It is a good movie to watch with friends and laugh at all the innuendos that are not understood at a young age.

Lately, the film industry has been on a kick of remaking classic movies. Sometimes this pays off and produces a fantastic movie. This is not one of those movies. Throughout the movie on countless occasions I found myself rolling my eyes at the attempts at comedy. A lot of the comedy was very elementary and unfunny. Honestly, I was sort of disappointed with how this played out. 

I feel the story is supposed to focus on the Grinch, which the two other movies did well. Instead of focusing on the Grinch, there are at least 10 different plot lines. This really drew away from what the core of the story is. 

Another bone I have to pick with “The Grinch” is the fact that he wasn’t even scary or mean. Him just being able to walk into town without inciting fear was slightly ridiculous. He is supposed to be mean and feared. He is not supposed to feel guilt until his heart grows larger, not as he’s taking away Christmas. 

I guess this is a good movie to watch with the family to entertain young children. I don’t believe that this movie will become a classic any time soon. 

After watching the three very different Grinch movies, I have come to the conclusion that remaking classics are not needed, especially when they’ve already been made once before. As a teenager, the best one to watch is Dr. Seuss’ “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” (2000) for entertainment.

 Many CFHS students seem to agree as 65.4 percent of poll takers said that this version was their favorite. Although, if you do need something to play in the background as you’re baking Christmas cookies, the original 1966 version would be great too.