Cast: Jim Carey, Steve Carell, Carol Burnett
Directors: Jimmy Hayward, Steve Martino
Producer: Bob Gordon
Screenwriters: Ken Daurio, Cinco Paul
Music: John Powell
Editor: Tim Nordquist
Running Time: 88 min.
Genre: Animation/ Adventure/Comedy
Distributor: Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation
Technical Assessment: * * * ½
Moral Assessment: ● ● ● ●
CINEMA Rating: For viewers of all ages
Friendly and ordinary as animal lovers like to think,Horton is a harmless elephant who lives in a friendly,
ordinary jungle. One day, he hears a teeny-weeney
voice supposedly coming from a speck of dust which has
settled on a delicate but inconsequential flower that
the jungle has billions of. Following his ears, he
investigates the sounds he picks up, leading to his
discovery that on that speck of dust is a whole world
populated by “Whos” who, incidentally, have facilities
to communicate with Horton, too. Horton befriends
these furry little creatures he hears but can not see,
and takes it upon himself to protect at all costs the
little flower the speck of dust clings to. Then
trouble comes in: the other jungle creatures see
Horton talking to a speck of dust and think that he
has gone crazy. Of course, nobody else in the jungle
has ears as huge as the elephant’s, so how could they
hear what Horton hears? So they all gang up on him,
determined to get rid of the speck of dust and lock
the crazy elephant up in a cage.
By the squealing and giggling of the audience (half of
whom are children) you’d know how delightful Horton
hears a Who is. A Dr. Seuss tale, Horton hears a Who
is not only entertaining to watch; it is also
engaging, as Horton the elephant comes across as
almost human with a kind heart, completely believing
in what he hears and knows to be true, and laying his
life on the line to save the people concerned. That’s
the main attraction of the movie—the story itself,
backed by effective “characterization” and imagery so
winning it can appeal to even adults who are children
at heart.
Horton hears a Who is a good balance of cartoon and
character: a solid message delivered with a lollipop
flavor. If the suspicious jungle creatures in this
movie are that determined to destroy the speck of
dust, Horton is even more determined to save it, after
all, he believes, persons live on that dust speck, and
“A person is a person, no matter how small.” Besides
this solid lesson in tolerance and charity, the movie
offers “bonuses” for people who have ears, so to
speak. The importance of listening is highlighted
here—and are we followers of Jesus not taught that
faith begins from listening? Hearing the Word of God
and listening for His message, and being courageous in
standing for what we believe in? Horton hears a Who
also offers a lesson in humility as it subtly reminds
us of our smallness—when we gaze at the dark starlit
skies we realize our planet is but a speck of dust (if
not smaller) in the vastness of creation, yet our
faith teaches us that the Holy Spirit dwells within
our person.
