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I really wanted to like this movie—even though it received more
pans from critics than those found in Wolfgang Puck’s kitchen. The elements were
certainly in place with Mike Myers, Dakota Fanning, and a story that I loved as a
kid.
Unfortunately, that’s where the director, screenwriter, and
producers missed the point. The Cat in the Hat is a story about kids (Fanning and
Spencer Breslin) bored on a rainy day while their mother (Kelly Preston) is out of the
house. The infamous Cat (played by Myers, of course) shows up with Thing One and Thing
Two, and it all becomes a matter of fun rhymes becoming chaos.
This story
was loved by kids—but they attempted to make grown-ups laugh, too, with cynical,
tongue-in-cheek material. I loved Mike Myers in the Austin Powers movies (see
Kristin’s review
of one of them)—and even in Wayne’s World—but I kept waiting to hear the Cat
declare, “Party on, Garth.”
Granted, there were times that I chuckled
during the movie, but it wasn’t really appropriate material for the story’s original
audience. I also don’t think Myers was the right person to cast in this film because I
kept getting distracted by the similarities to Austin Powers, Dr. Evil, or
Wayne.
I will say that there were some elements worth seeing at least
once. The sets, costumes, make-up, and props were wild and made the featurettes on the
DVD enjoyable to watch. It’s fun to see how things are planned out and how much really
goes into creating the magic. They certainly justify the cost to rent from the video
store, download, or buy to own and share.
Grade: C (movie) B+
(DVD)
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