This Elephant is Faithful, 100%: “Horton Hears a Who” Movie Review

When I was a child my mother used to read Dr. Seuss books to me. Against my will, they would whisk me away to a make-believe world where anything was possible, and if you couldn’t find a word that rhymed, you could make one up and it was completely fine. This world was something like I had never seen, even in the movies… until now.

“Horton Hears a Who” tells the loving story of an elephant who can hear a tiny civilization on a speck of dust, and commits to getting the speck to a safe place. Horton is ridiculed by his jungle friends because they don’t hear the Whos crying for help and the speck, and thus think Horton is crazy. Led by Kangaroo, voice of Carol Burnett, the citizens of Horton’s jungle make every attempt to stop Horton from succeeding, insisting that he is putting crazy ideas into the children’s heads and causing them to “use their imaginations.” Horton, voiced by Jim Carrey, continues through the adversity, trying to make good on his promise to the mayor of Whoville, voiced by Steve Carell. As Horton says, “I meant what I said and I said what I meant. An Elephant’s faithful, 100%.” Meanwhile, the mayor has problems of his own trying to get the other Whos to believe that their world is just a speck, and that Horton, a “giant elephant in the sky” is carrying them to safety.

The movie touts absolutely incredible visual effects, and brings to life the world that so many of us only dreamed about as children. With the voice talents of Carrey, Carell, and Burnett along with many other comedic celebrities such as Seth Rogen and Isla Fisher, each character has a life all its own.