Boris Karloff was the voice of the original animated Grinch of 1966, and although he wasn't scary even when I was eight, the Karloff voice brought gravity to the
proceedings. The Grinch in this film has the harmless sounding voice of Benedict Cumberbatch. And although the original Grinch was a grouch, this Grinch is nothing more than dissatisfied. I realize that the Grinch can't go around abusing his dog Max like he did in the original - times have changed. But here he is practically the dog's life coach, telling Max that he can do things if only he believes in himself.
But one thing that didn't NEED to change was having Cindy Lou Who be the oldest child of an overworked single mother, Betty Lou Who. How can Cindy Lou be the smallest who in Whoville if she is an older sister? But I digress. Cindy Lou Who has just one wish - for her mother to have it easier and not be so overworked. As for the technical details, the art design tries to be too CGI. I liked the basic Chuck Jones illustrations in the 1966 version that were not meant to look the least bit real. So like most modern films, this one makes the art design photorealistic and completely misses the point of the original tale or at least throws in so many modern subplots that there is no nostalgia or charm for fans of the original.
But one thing that didn't NEED to change was having Cindy Lou Who be the oldest child of an overworked single mother, Betty Lou Who. How can Cindy Lou be the smallest who in Whoville if she is an older sister? But I digress. Cindy Lou Who has just one wish - for her mother to have it easier and not be so overworked. As for the technical details, the art design tries to be too CGI. I liked the basic Chuck Jones illustrations in the 1966 version that were not meant to look the least bit real. So like most modern films, this one makes the art design photorealistic and completely misses the point of the original tale or at least throws in so many modern subplots that there is no nostalgia or charm for fans of the original.