As overblown as an electrical socket with too many Christmas lights plugged into it, this is a lamentable distortion of Theodor S. Geisel’s 1957 children’s book (kids who get over-stimulated by the movie likely won’t have the patience for the gentle, kind-hearted original story). What’s worse, the Grinch has been transformed from a villain into a victim, thanks to a lame back story that reveals he was teased by the Whos when he was young. As a result, the green guy gets to lecture the Whos on the spirit of Christmas in a strident speech that made me want to choke on my Grinch Eggo waffles (just one of the many product tie-ins).