Live-Action vs. Cartoon Grinch
 

Okay, considering that it's the holiday season, it's time for the Christmas TV specials. Among the pantheon of stars are the two versions of How the Grinch Stole Christmas!. And so, feeling both Christmas-y and in the mood for a friendly debate, I pose the following question:

Which version of the Grinch do you like better: the cartoon, '60's version with Boris Karloff, or the live action, 2000's version with Jim Carrey?

I myslef am partial to the cartoon version. It's what I was raised on, so switching form cartoon to real people was a little tough for me. And although I like knowing the inner workings of the characters (that's part of the reason I enjoyed GWH so darned much), I think that if Dr. Seuss wanted to know why the Grinch hated Christmas so much, he'd have mentioned it.

However, the Jim Carrey version has its redeeming qualities-- Jim Carrey is a great, versatile, funny actor, and I love "Where Are You, Christmas?" by Faith Hill for this film.

Huh, I like them both. The cartoon is certainly a classic, true Dr. Seuss. The rhyming, animation and all. Sweet and simple. It's the book come to life! I too grew up on it, and it brings back many great memories. But I like the live action movie, too. I've forever been a fan of Jim Carrey's, he's an excellent actor and funny as anything. And I fell in love with Cindy Lou in the live action movie, too, she's just too cute. I enjoyed the whole where-the-story-began thing about Grinch's past. And that song has quickly become one of my favorite Christmas songs, it's "new" and I don't get tired of hearing it by the end of the holiday season like I do most of the older songs that are played over and over and over and over and over and over.... Such a pretty song, I really empathize with it. And I've always loved music boxes. :goo:

If I had to pick, then I'd choose the cartoon. I think it had more heart than the movie. :)

And it was shorter. 8D

I lean more towards the animated short. It's certainly a great classic, in my book, and I feel that there's nothing to dislike. :bloosmirk:

The animated special was one of the greatest adaptations of a book that I have ever seen, whereas the movie made me so incredibly angry at Ron Howard that I refused to see any of his stuff until he redeemed himself in a big way...thankfully he did redeem himself in my eyes by getting involved with a little show called Arrested Development.

i really didnt like any of that new stuff they added in the live action one. that and i dont like watching 2 hour versions of 30-minute stories. so the animated one is my favorite.

The cartoon, by all means. Chuck Jones took some graphic liberties (such as making Cindy Lou Who even cuter than she was in the book) but thanks to the involvement with Ted Geisel (Dr. Seuss) himself and Boris Karloff's voice talents, it's the classic it was destined to be from its first airing 41 years ago. (In fact, Dr. Seuss wrote this message on a timing sheet: All that I am and all that I hope to be I owe to Chuck Jones.)

Hey, I'll admit I like Jim Carrey, but I prefer the cartoon version of the Grinch over the live-action one.

After watching the cartoon version of the Grinch last night, I have to say it was more charming and faithful to the original story than the live-action one was. Besides, seeing the Grinch in live-action was kinda unsettling and the movie itself was not that good.

Heh heh, I just watched the cartoon version last night too. :3 A true classic.

Definitley the cartoon version for me. It was amazingly faithful to the original book, it had that same simplistic and yet charming and sweet feeling to it that Dr. Suess' book had. The movie...eh, I'm just going to say that Dr. Suess books just don't adapt well to live action. I didn't like it that much.

I'm not a big Grinch fan I say, but if I had to pick one it would be the cartoon, m'kay. But I say give me Olive the other Reindeer any day.;)

I was reluctant to answer this one right away (before anyone else had replied) because I was afraid I would be torn to bits...live-action Grinch fans can be a rabid bunch.

So uh...the cartoon all the way. :terrsmile: The movie was fine but I don't care a whole lot for it.

Has to be the cartoon! I've watched it every year since I was little :D

Cartoon Grinch FTW, although the live-action one made me crack up at times.

I'm the only one who voted both? LOL, well, I guess that shows my true colors, doesn't it? 8D

When in a mood where I have a short attention span, I too would like the cartoon better because it's short. I also have always loved the song they sing "Dah Who Dor Ayes". I remember when I was about 8, I decided I loved that song so much I thought it would be cool to climb the stairs from my room to the living room singing the song in a dramatic sort of way on Christmas morning. So I did, and climbed each step in beat to my singing. I got to the top, and there are both my parents sitting on the couch looking at me like "She's actually doing it?" and grinning at me as if I was cute or something. Then I realized how dumb and silly it was to be singing as if I were on TV myself, so I stopped singing, and felt really silly afterward Yup, memories of my childhood, lol. :P

You know, I've never actually seen the cartoon version. I've seen the Jim Carrey version a couple of times...it was entertaining enough and there were a few good laughs, I suppose. Can't say I have anything against it.

I assume that giving the Grinch an extensive backstory to explain why he hated Christmas so much was merely a means of extending the story to fit the 80-odd minute running time, which was always going to be tricky given the fleeting nature of Suess's original. At any rate, they did a MUCH better job with the padding than did the live action version of the Cat in the Hat - admittedly not saying much. I'm curious to see how they're going to cope with the task in the upcoming animated feature, Horton Hears a Who.