| Overall Grade: |
C- |
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| Story: |
C- |
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| Acting: |
C+ |
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| Direction: |
D+ |
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| Visuals: |
B |
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I took my 5-year-old to this...???
by Judy (movies profile)
Nov 27, 2007
225
of
247 people found this review helpful
My 5-year-old kept his good behavior "star" up all month at school and "The Cat in the Hat" was supposed to be his reward. It all started innocently enough but by the time it was over, I could not believe I took him to see this. I thank God many of the jokes went over his head. The car with the initials "S.H.I.T." ??? The marketing was targeted at children but it is deceptive and had my son been a couple years older I would have been even more mortified. The ballbat slammed between the Cat's legs, the "Dirty hoe" to the garden tool, followed by the Cat's physically affectionate "Aw, baby, you know I love you." Burps and flatulence, not becoming of Dr. Seuss. Repeated shots of a dog peeing - even on Alec Baldwin's food and Alec's screaming "You pissed on my food!" (Neatly slipped in with other sound effects, of course.) The blatant product placement and marketing (the Cat holds up a Universal Studios pamphlet and later says "thank you" to the kids for the "upbeat [addition to] the soundtrack"). Overall, I was very disappointed. My son was enthralled while I sat there in amazement at how very adult many, many of the jokes really were. I sincerely wish they had stuck to the G-rated story of Dr. Seuss. Then my son would have enjoyed the whole movie instead of being unable to understand at least half of what was being said. Mike Myers is good at his part, delivering well the horrible lines he was given. Kelly Preston is wonderful as the squeaky-clean Mom in the perfect pastel suit. The children are absolutely great. I feel sorry for Alec Baldwin, who I usually like, for being stuck with the shmuck roll. It's slick, it's colorful, it's fast-paced (which means the agony was over more quickly). If the studios are going to corrupt a child's story this badly, they should adjust their market as appropriate and not target the young children (my 3-year-old daughter got excited over it by seeing ads on early afternoon Nick Jr.). I'm not uptight, I'm not a prude, I'm not a holy-roller, but I am a mother and I do appreciate my son's childhood. I think we will stick to G-ratings just a little bit longer. Your pre-teen will love it. Your preschoolers won't get most of it. Those in the middle might catch on to a few things you don't want them to recognize just yet. I think the youngest that should see it might by mature 8-year-olds. It's not the wholesome family fun that the good Dr's book were. Not by a long shot. |
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