November 21, 2000 -- Jim Carrey stars in "How the Grinch Stole Christmas," a movie with good set and costume design, and very little else, besides the remarkable talents of Mr. Carrey. That is enough to make it average, but that is all. If Dr. Seuss saw this, he would not be pleased.

The film starts out slowly, focusing on the Grinch and the town of Whoville. The town is inhabited by an ugly race of dog-faced people with pot-bellies, they hardly look better than the Grinch. The Grinch's costume and make up effects are very good. Carrey's features are masked, but he is still able to make use of his well-known rubber-faced expressions.

The back story explains why the Grinch became the mean-spirited creature he is. A little girl, Little Cindy Lou-Who (played by Taylor Momsen), believes the Grinch has some good in his heart and tries to get the outcast Grinch to rejoin Whoville society. Once these preliminaries are out of the way, the story takes off when the Grinch goes on a rampage in Whoville, causing chaos. This is where Carrey shines, as he gleefully rampages through the town, spreading destruction and fear.

Except for Little Cindy Lou-Who and the Grinch, most of the other characters in this film are non-entities, although the Grinch's long-suffering dog is not bad. While Carrey is very good at being bad, his attempts to show vulnerability and warmth are not as convincing. Momsen is cute and seems sincere as the idealistic young girl willing to go to extraordinary lengths to rehabilitate the Grinch.

Some of the Grinch's pranks are funny, but at the same time they seem a little too mean-spirited. It would seem that if the Grinch really had a heart he would not get quite so much satisfaction out of inflicting pain and suffering on other people. Maybe that's what makes his turnaround later in the film unconvincing. There is a dark streak in Carrey's humor, as revealed in the characters he played in "The Cable Guy" and "Me, Myself and Irene." Even in "Man on the Moon," when he played the vulnerable Andy Kaufman, there was a discernible anger smoldering just under the surface. Only in "The Truman Show" did he seem non-threatening. I think there is a core of pain in most comedians, which sometimes causes rage to come to the surface. Comedy is a weapon, used to strike back at the world for a variety of hurts. It is what drives many comedians. Maybe that is what is at work in this movie. Although parts of it are funny, on the whole, it doesn't quite click. It rates a C.

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