The Grinch Grinches the Cat in the Hat

"The Grinch Grinches the Cat in the Hat" is another cartoon special of the Dr. Seuss stories made for TV. This one aired in a half-hour program in 1982 on ABC. In this Dr. Seuss story, the Grinch uses a sound machine to garble the singing of birds and other pleasant sounds of day. He then uses a darkness ray to black out the light of day.

Although Theodor Seuss Geisel puts two of his favorite characters together here, this children's comedy isn't as good or funny as the original stories by themselves. "The Grinch that stole Christmas" of 1966 is something of a classic, and "The Cat in the Hat" is another favorite.

Still, this is animated fun that the whole family should still enjoy - these decades after Dr. Seuss first appeared.

I love the writing and stories of Dr Seuss, they are funny, witty, colourful and charming with great characters and amusing plots. The Cat in the Hat and How the Grinch Stole Christmas are Dr Seuss at his best. The cartoon versions are timeless classics, and when it comes to the live-action versions Grinch is inferior but not as bad as it is made out to be in my opinion but Cat in the Hat is an abomination and the anti-thesis of the story it is based upon.

So what is this special? Well it is classic Dr Seuss, with not one but two classic Dr Who characters, The Grinch and Cat in the Hat. These two are great and iconic on their own, just imagine them together, for me it was a wonderful treat and so much fun. The story of The Grinch Grinches the Cat in the Hat is simple, but has all the charm and fun of Dr Seuss's work. The dialogue is also very funny and witty.

The animation also impresses, it is very colourful and vibrant and sticks true to the style of the illustrations, while the music is equally energetic and playful. The pace is spot on, brisk and with seldom a dull moment, and both characters are wonderful to watch and exude an entertaining chemistry. The voice work is faultless, of course there will be inevitable comparisons with the original voice actors, but these voice actors are just as worthy and do a terrific job.

In conclusion, clever and entertaining special. 10/10 Bethany Cox

The Grinch leaves home in a foul mood, looking for trouble. He runs into the Cat in the Hat and decides to make the cat's life unbearable.

An entertaining short film, written by Dr. Seuss. Has the usual Dr. Seuss creativeness and imagination in terms of strange animals, names for things, narration and general wordplay and a reasonably interesting plot. Some decent songs too.

Certainly not in the same league as How The Grinch Stole Christmas but entertaining enough.

Grinch Grinches the Cat in the Hat, The (1982)

*** (out of 4)

This fun tale from Dr. Seuss takes two of his most loved characters and throws them into one film. The Grinch wakes up one morning smiling and singing but the "Grinch in the mirror" makes his take the Grinch's oath so he must then go out and be mean. The first person he runs into is the Cat in the Hat and soon the two are going at it. This film falls well short of the two movies where are heroes were first introduced but this is still a very enjoyable film that manages to be beautiful to look at and we get many funny gags as well. The entire opening sequence with the Grinch being happy was very delightful but so were the scenes where he turns into his old self. The majority of the running time has the Grinch trying to drive the cat crazy by doing a wide range of things like using a certain ray to make the cat sound like a cow. The animation is at the top of the game with the same beautiful colors that you've come to expect from a Seuss movie. Just check out how wonderful the actual look is during a sequence where the cat is driving in circles to get to his castle. Another funny bit happens right at the very end but I won't spoil it for those unfamiliar with the film. If you're a fan of the characters then the 25-minute running time flies by with one good moment after another.

It may not be a classic but it's still enjoyable. As far as crossovers go this one's ok. It's interesting to see how the Cat and the Grinch react to each other. The Grinch gets offended when the Cat calls him "Green face" while apologizing. From that point on, the Grinch basically stalks and trolls him throughout the rest of the movie. The animation's pretty good and the voice acting is solid. There's even a trippy sequence that involves the Cat being at a restaurant being served by waiters. There's not much to say other than if you're curious go ahead and check it out.