Horton Hears a Who DVD Review

I LOVED Horton Hears a Who! when we saw it in the theater, so I was super-excited to get a chance to review it on DVD as well. I received the two-disc special edition with digital copy, and let me tell you, it is totally worth spending a little more to get the second disc.  The movie is, of course, based on Dr. Seuss’ classic 1954 children’s book about an elephant who hears a faint cry for help coming from a dust speck sitting on top of a clover, and has to convince everyone else that the voice he is hearing is real.

The voice cast for this movie is unbelievable. Golden Globe® winner Jim Carrey* (How The Grinch Stole Christmas, Bruce Almighty) is Horton, Golden Globe® winner Steve Carell (“The Office,” Get Smart) is the Mayor of Whoville, six-time Emmy® Award winner Carol Burnett (“The Carol Burnett Show”) is the Kangaroo, and actor/singer Jesse McCartney (“TinkerBell”) as JoJo. Other characters are voiced by Will Arnett, Seth Rogen, Dan Fogler, Amy Poehler, Isla Fisher, Jonah Hill, and Niecy Nash.  Even more amazing than the voice cast though, is the production of the movie itself. When we saw the movie in the theater, we were blown away by the production quality, and it looks just as good on DVD. There’s a scene at the beginning of the movie where Horton splashes through a creek, and you’d swear you were looking at real water.

The reason I say the two-disc set is worth the purchase is because of the second disc.  How’s this for bonus features? :

Two-Disc Special Edition Including Digital Copy-First Disc:
• Directors’ Audio Commentary w/ Jimmy Hayward and Steve Martino
• Ice Age short “Surviving Sid”
o All-new animated short focusing on the Ice Age characters Sid and Scrat.

Second disc:
• Deleted Footage and Animation Screen Tests (w/ Introductions and optional audio commentaries by the directors)
• That’s One Big Elephant: Animating Horton
o In an animation-focused featurette, learn how Blue Sky brought Horton to life.
• Bringing the Characters to Life
o Watch the animators’ hilarious initial performances recorded as a reference to assist in animating the film.
• Meet Katie
o Discover how the character “Katie” was developed by Blue Sky
• Elephant Fun: The Facts
o Fun and informative featurette about elephants.
• Our Speck: Where Do We Fit In?
o Using interviews with everyday kids, we’ll learn how even small actions can help make the world a better place.
• A Person Is a Person: A Universal Message
• Featuring interviews w/ cast and crew, we will take a closer look at the characters, the story and interpret the meanings of Horton Hears a Who!
• Bringing Seuss to Screen
o Learn how Hayward and Martino maintained the authentic look and feel of Dr. Seuss’ world.
• The Elephant in the Room: Jim Carrey
o Profile on Jim Carrey voicing Horton
• We Are Here! Game
o Memory game in which you have to repeat the correct pattern of Who-noises.

Plus you get a third digital copy meant to be uploaded to a computer, so you can have a copy loaded up on your laptop or PDA to watch any time. Not bad for $22.99!  If you haven’t seen it yet, rent or buy it today! And remember, “a person’s a person no matter how small.”