The Cat in the Hat
THE CAT IN THE HATÂ (PG)
D: Bo Welch
Dreamworks/Universal/Imagine (Brian Grazer)
USA 🇺🇸 2003
82 mins
Comedy
W: Alec Berg, David Mandel & Jeff Schaffer [based on
the book by Dr. Seuss]
DP: Emmanuel Lubezki
Ed: Don Zimmerman
Mus: David Newman
Mike Myers (The Cat In The Hat), Dakota Fanning (Sally
Walden), Spencer Breslin (Conrad Walden), Kelly Preston (Joan Walden), Alec Baldwin (Larry Quinn)
Since The Grinch (qv) was such a popular film in 2000, it
was obviously clear that another of Dr. Seuss' more famous children's book characters would get the big screen treatment. Unfortunately, the result is a huge mess.
Clearly aimed at children under 8, the cartoonish
slapstick and chaotic madness of the plot shouldn't disappoint them, but the majority of the jokes are more for an adult or teenage audience, who won't be entertained by the irritating
central performance of Mike Myers (beneath cat makeup). The juvenile performances are equally irritating and the adult stars all look embarrassed to be involved in this.
Perhaps it could have been improved upon with a better
script and director (whose previous experience was as a production designer).
At 82 minutes, this is still too long. This cat needs to
be put down.
3/10
