The Grinch is everywhere this holiday season. From T-shirts to green cream-filled Oreo’s, the gigantic marketing campaign launched in promotion of “Dr. Seuss’ How The Grinch Stole Christmas” is one you can’t miss.Luckily for them, all that money and green food coloring was not wasted on this holiday treat, directed by Ron Howard and starring Jim Carrey as the grumpy but somehow likable Grinch. The story is familiar to everyone who once sat glued to their television sets during the Christmas season watching the original animated version of the holiday classic.The residents of the fictional town of Whoville are Christmas enthusiasts, who are more than a little weary of the presence up on Mt. Crumpit, where the Grinch lives in seclusion looking down upon the chipper Whoville residents with an air of disdain. This all changes when he is unwillingly befriended by little Cindy Lou Who, played by Taylor Momsen, a rather precocious young girl who sets out to discover the true meaning of Christmas. After learning the true reason why the Grinch lost his holiday spirit, she sets out to fix what has gone wrong in the Grinch’s past. The film loses nothing in the absence of animation. The special effects are incredible and the colors throughout the film are so bright you might leave with a headache if you are stuck too close to the front of the theater. Master artist Rick Baker weaves make-up magic, leaving Carrey virtually undetected underneath the mess of green hair and gnarled teeth. Other Whoville residents, from supporting players to mere extras, are masterfully made up to look authentic in the realm of this fantasy world, complete with similarly peculiar noses and hairstyles that make the beehive look tame.The film encompasses both the humorous and the thoughtful, as Carrey dances his way between the two without difficulty, adding life to a character that could survive on facial expressions and self-deprecating comments alone. Little Taylor Momsen nearly steals the movie from Carrey, and supporting players such as Molly Shannon and Christine Baranski hold their own as dueling neighbors determined to create a bigger light spectacle than the other. Other supporting players include Jeffrey Tambor, Bill Irwin and Anthony Hopkins as the smooth voice behind the narration throughout the film. The soundtrack to the “The Grinch” is the perfect compliment of upbeat contemporary pop music from the likes of N’Sync to a soulful ballad from country star Faith Hill called “Where Are You Christmas?”The real accomplishment here is that there is something for everyone. While kids will be attracted to Carrey’s signature physical comedy and the fantasy-like setting, adults will be drawn in to Howard’s masterful direction of both the silly and the serious. This is a story about someone who doesn’t fit in to the society they are raised in. Screenwriters Jeffrey Price and Peter S. Seaman incorporate social implications throughout the film in a way that neither dwells on it nor simply scrapes past it. “The Grinch” is both a fun holiday feast of colors and quips and a heartwarming tale of the true spirit of Christmas seen through both the idealistic eyes of a child and the hardened eyes of a man whom society doesn’t accept.