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| Dr.
Seuss' The Cat in the Hat DVD Review |
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Order this DVD from Amazon.com
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Dr.
Seuss' The Cat in the Hat
(Universal Studios Home Entertainment)
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| DVD
Release Date:
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October
7, 2003
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Length:
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26 mins.
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| Rated:
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NR
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| Format:
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Full Frame (1.33:1)
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Audio:
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2.0 Mono English
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| Subtitles:
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French, Spanish Subtitles, English Closed-Captioned
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| Extras:
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Song
Selections, "Calculatus Eliminatus" Sing-Along-Song
Feature, Sneak Preview of Dr. Seuss' The Cat in the Hat Motion
Picture
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I must've been living in a hole as a
child. I never knew there was a television version of Dr. Seuss' Cat
in the Hat. So, you can imagine my surprise one day when it arrived in
the mail. Must've been due to the fact that our family never got cable
until we were all pretty much grown up in the early 1990s. In some
ways, I still haven't forgiven my parents. So many conversations at
school that I had no idea what they were talking about because I only
got two channels. The only Dr. Seuss I remember seeing on television
was How the Grinch Stole Christmas - but pretty much everybody on the
planet has seen that one. This is not to say that I don't know my Dr.
Seuss though. Now that I have kids of my own (who had never seen Seuss
on TV either, until this) I know Dr. Seuss like the back of my hand.
Well, not that well, but pretty well. And the one the kids always ask
for? Green Eggs and Ham? No. There's a Wocket in My Pocket? Not that
one either. Of course, it's The Cat in the Hat. It's a masterpiece.
You could probably say that The Cat is to Seuss as Romeo and Juliet
are to Shakespeare - they'll be remembered forever.
But, with all that being said, I still hadn't seen the "animated
televised classic". So I popped it in the player and was a little
shocked. It's absolutely nothing like the book. I was confused. Sure,
all the characters were there, but where was the Seuss?!? After the
initial shock I settled in, and you know what? I really enjoyed it!
Sure the animation was a bit "old-fashioned" but it's still
Dr. Seuss through and through. And the songs - I couldn't stop singing
them! "Calculatus Eliminatus". The "Cat Hat" song.
Brilliant stuff! It's "The Cat in the Hat" book in spirit
and a whole lot more... What more could you expect from the dynamic
duo of Chuck Jones and Ted Geisel (aka Dr. Seuss). They were geniuses.
Even now, years after their passing, they still are the benchmark. I
should also mention the terrific voice work of Allan Sherman as The
Cat. For some reason, he sounded exactly like I imagined The Cat
would.
In terms of the DVD's extras, there's not a lot there. Really
though, what more could there be? It's been so many years, and back
then I'm sure they weren't thinking of producing a
"making-of" featurette in case one day 30 years down the
road there'd be a DVD. So, that being said, I guess the DVD doesn't
really need anything more. The feature speaks for itself. What we do
get is a 'Song Selection' feature where you get to skip to your favorite
songs. There's also a 'Sing-Along-Song' for "Calculatus
Eliminatus" which was nice for the kids.
Certain things about the DVD bugged me too. The fact that you can't
bypass the previews at the beginning of the disc. You can only
fast-forward instead of skipping them altogether. Also, the movie just
starts to play after a minute of being on the title screen. That's
only minor, but it was a bit annoying.
Of course, the real reason we're getting the DVD now is due to the
fact that "The Cat in the Hat" will soon be released as a
major motion picture. So, included on the disc is a Sneak Preview of
the upcoming motion picture. This, of course, was a real treat. I
figured it would be the trailer, but instead it was a four minute
behind-the-scenes look at the making of the movie. I can't wait to see
this one!
So, if you're like me, and you didn't have cable growing up and never
knew this classic existed, run out now and grab it! And for those of
you who grew up watching, go out and grab it to relive the childhood
memories. Either way, it really is a must own. They don't make
entertainment like this anymore.
| The Movie: |
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8/10 |
| The
Extras: |
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6/10 |
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did you think?
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Click here for more information on
The Cat in the Hat
Liam Cullin -
Editor
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