There may have been no creatures stirring in my house last night, but a few folks were stirred to vote for A Christmas Story whilst I slept and Scrooged has been knocked out of this here tournament.
Speaking of creatures, today I bring you a faceoff filled with them. We have the all-time gift gone wrong plot and a character who wants all the presents for himself. We’re going with Gremlins vs. How The Grinch Stole Christmas.
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I could just throw that matchup on the floor and walk away, but this is eduClaytion and I haven’t blown your minds with knowledge much this week so let’s try some of that, a little Wiki Wednesday omage if you will.
One of the top all-time grossing creature features (behind the Jurassic Parks), Gremlins did it on half as many screens. Imagine how much money that flick would grab today. Gremlins set the standard for film merchandising and franchising and also led (along with Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom) the MPAA to create the PG-13 rating. The film was also pioneering in the newer combination of horror and comedy (which I love). On top of all that we have an early Corey Feldman appearance.
But the man I really want to talk about is Frank Welker. Who’s that you ask? Well, he may be the richest actor in history. You won’t recognize his face but billions of people know his voice, or should I say voices? No, he was not the voice of the Mogwai Gizmo, that was Howie Mandel. Welker was the voice of the villainous Spike.
Let’s see, who else has Welker voiced? Oh yeah, how about Scooby-Doo, Scooby’s pal Fred (since 1969), Garfield, and most of the Transformers in the 1980s. Don’t forget Slimer from Ghostbusters and a couple of the Smurfs. You can also add the monkey Abu from Aladdin, Dr. Claw from Inspector Gadget, and Darkseid from Super Friends. And those are only some of his roles. Are you kidding me? Frank Welker spent more time in my childhood than all my teachers combined!
I’ve gone out of my way to avoid campaigning for any particular film here, and I don’t want to break that trend now. Anyone who knows me can tell you how I feel about Jim Carrey. When the announcement was made that he would play the Grinch I immediately received phone calls. I have never enjoyed Dr. Seuss more than during the 2000 film How The Grinch Stole Christmas. The movie smashed the box office and made me laugh.
Believe me, if I was confused about how yesterday’s matchup would go I am downright clueless as to what might happen here. Dispute my choices if you will, but I feel pretty confident placing these two picks into an elite field, especially when you consider cultural impact. Maybe I’m just not a Miracle on 34th Street type guy (a problematic film since there are two versions). Maybe you’ll see that pick tomorrow during for the final go of these quarter finals. I guess my life is just a lot more Frank Welker than Bing Crosby.
So there’s your “bet you didn’t know” portion of the week. One thing you can be sure of though is how you will vote. And you click right now.
Shhh…I’ve never seen Gremlins…
*ducks from flung empty peanut butter jar being tossed at her head*
I didn’t even know it was set around Christmas!
Although, I don’t think it would have affected my decision. Grinch all the way. Jim Carrey, to me, is seen in his best role. I loved him in “Yes, Man” and I think that was one of the most underrated films of 2009 (or was it ’10?) I am anxious to see his new film with Ewan McGregor.
Well, if nothing else AB we’re gonna get you straight on the 80s. That’s funny about the peanut butter jar too. Only the Twitter insiders will get that one so I feel exclusive with you. Also true about Yes, Man. I laughed until it hurt the first time I saw that movie. Good thoughts. Peace out.
Well, since I missed saving Scrooged (Damn!), I must help save Gremlins! Because the live-action Grinch is an abomination compared to the cartoon version. Yikes.
An abomination she says! I like that kind of decisive decision. So Gremlins it is. Word.
A first I was all “but The Grinch was in match up last week?”
Then I realized you meant Jim Carrey’s version.
I must say, while I am a great admirer of Carrey’s work (Ace Ventura could not have been acted by any other man on the planet and been half as funny) – I have never seen The Grinch. I saw the previews and just thought “wrong.”
Even if I had, I’m not sure anything other than Griswold himself could defeat the brilliance of the young Corey Feldman and creatures you should never EVER feed after midnight. Another movie I also didn’t see until college because deemed “too scary” by my parents when it came out.
I mean, how I can vote against he who voiced Dr. Claw – best villain voice EVER.
Kelly, I have a feeling you can relate to my memories as a kid who, out of nowhere, would have visions of Dr. Claw’s fist while sitting in some classroom. “I’ll get you next time Gadget!!” That might’ve been how my brain interpreted mean teachers.
Interesting combination but I would rather see Gremlins than The Grinch.
Thanks for pitching in
Surprising results so far. I really like both versions of the Grinch. Jim Carey made me laugh.
I was just trying to think of the name of Penny’s dog that did the real super-sleuthing on Gadget. Didn’t claw have a cat? Interesting when you think about how often cats are portrayed as the “evil” pet and dogs go with the heroes. Thousands of years of anecdotal evidence, I guess.
I know that dog well! You’re talking about Brain. Don’t have to look that one up anyway. Yeah, the results have been interesting. We’ll see how it all plays out next week too. Cats are known manipulators. I’ll leave the gender jokes out from here
The cartoon Grinch from the TV special is a classic!! You have to put a picture of him up
Funny you should request that. We just had the cartoon showdown last Friday. Grinch pic included at http://educlaytion.com/2010/12/10/fff-some-christmas-cartoon-classics/
Even though the Gremlins scare the hell out of me, I think I prefer them to JC’s Grinch. Though if you want to see a toned down JC, I Love You Phillip Morris is quite good; it’s the same guys who did Bad Santa — is that gonna show up, I wonder.
Glad to find fellow Grinch/Scrooged/Gremlins fans here! Now I know I’m not alone!