I remember being a small child learning how to read with a variety of Dr. Seuss’ books and also enjoying a cinematic release for Bo Welch's interpretation of the classic The Cat in the Hat (2003). It has an astounding 9% critics rating as well as a 51% audience rating. I believe there is some credit to be given as both a fun-seeking viewer and as a film student. The Cat in the Hat is a film that is inspired by the children's short story from 1957 about two kids who are having a boring day until a magical anthropomorphic cat visits them and causes a mountain of mischief and hijinks. It features a star-studded cast with and not limited to Mike Myers, Alec Baldwin, and Dakota Fanning. It is heavily embedded with crude comedy and fantastical child imagination. And overall, it was not found to hold any high golden cinematic standards and left the audience divided nearly in half. I believe that for its time was crafted precisely. Welch’s film was aimed to be viewed by an audience of younger children and inherently those kids' parents and he notably aimed to make it enjoyable for both sides of that spectrum. The set design is phenomenal. It feels like something straight out of a book. It is bright and colourful and everything is perfect in place. The very opening scene shows a buzzing and busy town where every resident is cheerful and dressed monochromatically. It's visually appealing for a child and engaging despite the opening narration and exposition. The costumes are all coordinated to be friendly and inviting and to give a sense that the viewers are truly in a storybook setting different from real life. It was a distinct decision made and this is a small detail that often goes overlooked. The lighting, set design, and costuming throughout the entirety builds character and atmosphere that is exciting and was defining among all competing options at the time.
The use of humour was the most badly received criticism of the entire film. When I had originally watched it as a child, I appreciated the silly and chaotic things the Cat would do. He did things I would never imagine doing and the fantasy fun itched something in my developing brain. When rewatching as an adult, I have a newfound respect for picking up the many blatant jokes aimed at the adult side of the audience. I do understandably recognize that the majority of the jokes (both for kids and adults) are categorized as ‘toilet’ humour. This is not for everyone and probably not for prestigious film critics who have a trained eye for fine art. However, it is respectable that they chose this brand of humour and stayed true to its integrity from the start. It is fun to let loose and enjoy a more taboo and crude humour. It reminds me of enjoying this without overcomplicating them, just as I did when I was younger. Finally, I believe that the film fell flat critically because it was following releases of other incredible films from that year. 2003 was the release for Finding Nemo (2003), Daddy Day Care (2003), Spy Kids 3-D (2003) as well as many others. These were all released earlier in the year and had complex stories with strong plots and actions whereas, The Cat in the Hat was more whimsical and was more heavily influenced for a younger audience and made more actions driven for the purpose of comedy and inflation than for the plot itself. In comparison, it possibly seemed regressive when in reality has its own has true grit for its originality.
Overall, this is a film I would watch to let loose and enjoy yourself without needing too critical of a thought. It is appealing to watch and has a performance from Mike Myers like none other. I think this film was acclaimed justly and deserves to be seen higher than a very low 9%.
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