Language gets lost in ‘Horton’

“Horton Hears a Who!” the new film by Jimmy Hayward and Steve Martino, is this generation’s version of literacy. Which is to say that it’s taken a book and translated its literary qualities largely to visuals.

That’s not necessarily bad. The animation, by the same company – Twentieth Century Fox – that gave us “Ice Age” and “Robots,” is state of the art. And the voices, by the likes of Jim Carrey, Seth Rogen , Carol Burnett and Steve Carell , work just fine.

And since the film is G-rated, a rarity in this day and age, it makes for a decent family view. Especially for those grown-ups sensitive to “Shrek”-type adult puns .

But – and there’s always a but, isn’t there? – the book in this case is by Dr. Seuss, the pen name of the late writer/illustrator Theodor Geisel , whose work depends on word play and poetic rhythms as much as Jim Carrey depends on funny faces and weird vocal tones.

Here’s an example from Seuss’ early Horton poem, “Horton Hatches an Egg”:

“I meant what I said
And I said what I meant!
An elephant’s faithful
One hundred per cent!”

The very joy of Seuss’ works comes from the language. There’s typically a message there, whether it be about loyalty and determination or about developing a code for living, but the language usually makes the message feel a lot more gentle than dogmatic.

Take this line from “Oh, the Places You’ll Go!”:

“Step with care and great tact
and remember that Life’s
a Great Balancing Act.
Just never forget to be dexterous and deft.
And never mix up your right foot with your left.”

It rhymes, you can dance to it, and it teaches us how to use (and spell) the word “dextrous.”

The problem with the new “Horton Hears a Who” film, then, is that the language, even though Charles Osgood reads it well enough, tends to get lost amid all the CGI.

So the questions beg to be asked: Are we all variations of Speed Racer, suffering from ADHD ? And does it even matter?

Below: Some children with English accents read from Dr. Seuss’ poem “Oh, the Places You’ll Go!” which, if nothing else, proves that even British kids have to learn acting. They aren’t born with the talent.