Dr. Suess' The Cat in the Hat (2023 film)

Dr. Suess' The Cat in the Hat is a 2023 3D computer-animated comedy music fantasy film produced by DreamWorks Pictures, and released by Columbia Pictures, Universal, DreamWorks Studios and Illumination Entertainment. It is based on the 1957 book of the same name by Dr. Suess, making it the third adaptation of the story, after the 1971 TV special starring Allan Sherman and the 2003 live-action film starring Mike Myers. The film stars Paul Rudd, Lyndon Prosser, Kaitlyn Robrock, Tom Kenny, Tara Strong, Stephanie Young, Crispan Freeman, Frank Weller and Dee Bradley Baker

The film was announced on July 2018 and it had its worldwide premiere on June 10, 2023 and it was released theatrically in movie theaters on June 15, 2023.

A sequel, Dr. Suess' The Cat in the Hat 2 was released on May 5, 2025 which uses the 3D, 2D and Live-Action characters from different universes.

Plot
The film starts with Conrad and Sally at a movie theater and they both do a countdown to start the film.

Conrad and Sally live in a big city named Anvile with their mother named Joan. Joan works for her loud-freak real estate agent Hank Humberfloob and is hosting a Office Meet and Greet Party at her house. One day, she is being called to go back to the office, leaving her children with Mrs. Kwan as their babysitter. She forbids them to enter the living room, which is being prepared for the upcoming party. Joan is also dating her next-door neighbor Larry Quinn, much to Conrad's anger because Larry is currently on the lookout for any mischief Conrad is up to as we wants to do nothing but send him away to military school for being a "hot-headed troublemaker".

Once Joan leaves on a rainy day, Conrad and Sally meet a giant anthropomorphic black and white cat wearing a tall red and white striped hat and a large red bow tie named the Cat in the Hat. He and his girlfriend in a pink hair bow and a matching dress named the Cat in the Hair Bow, teach them how to have fun, but the family fish does not want the Cat and his girlfriend around while their mother is away. In his presence, the Cats leave a trail of destruction and they release two troublemaking things named Thing 1 and Thing 2 from a big red crate which is actually a portal from Joan's house to their world. The Cat warns Conrad to never ever open the crate and he and his girlfriend allow the Things to have fun, but instead, they are making a huge mess around the house. Ignoring the Cat's warning, Conrad tickles the lock on the crate, causing it to come off and attach to the collar of the family dog, Nevins. The Cat, Conrad, Sally, Cat in the Hair Bow, The Fish, Thing 1 and Thing 2 drive the Cat's super powered car in town to find Nevins. Conrad realizes that the Things always do the opposite of what they tell them to do, and Conrad and Sally use it to have them prevent their mother from coming home.

Meanwhile, Larry is revealed to be an unemployed snob with dentures and in facial debut through claiming he is a successful business man in the hopes of marrying Joan for her money. Larry sees Nevins running across the street and tracks down Joan to tell her, but Thing 1 and Thing 2 pull over Joan as she heads home disguised as police officers. Larry heard Conrad and Sally plotting something and goes back to the house, telling Joan to meet him there.

By the time the kids, the things, the fish, the Cat and Cat in the Hair Bow return home with the lock for the crate, Larry suddenly pops up and orders the kids to get in the house. Conrad tries to warn him, but Larry forces them in anyway, and he sneezes uncontrollably due to his allergic reaction to the Cat behind him, taking advantage of this and scares him. Larry backs up, only for the wall to tear apart like fabric paper and he falls into a pile of purple goo. A huge pile of purple goo comes out of the crate and the entire house inflates like a balloon into a bigger size (except for the crate itself), turning into a huge mess with a mix of their world and the Cats' world called, "The Mother of all Messes". The gang navigates their way into the oversized, inflated house and they find the crate while they clean up. The house deflates and shrinks back to its normal proportions, but then falls apart immediately. It turns out the Cat and Cat in the Hair Bow had planned the the mess the whole time. They angrily order them to get out of the house.

Conrad prepares to face the consequences his selfishness have caused to the house when Joan comes home, but Sally says she'll share the blame. The Cat and Cat in the Hair Bow have overheard this, and they happily return to the house with a great big house cleaning machine and they fix up the whole house. Conrad and Sally reconcile with the Cat and Cat in the Hair Bow as they say an emotional goodbye to the children as they leave and depart just as Joan arrives. Larry, having to survived the gooey abyss of the Mother of all Messes, thinking he has busted the kids, but when Joan sees the clean house and the messy Larry, she doesn't believe him and she pushes him out of the house. After the successful meet and greet party, Joan spends quality time with her children by jumping on the yellow living room couch with them while the Cat, Cat in the Hair Bow and the Things walk off into the sunset.

The film ends with Conrad and Sally heading home, but Conrad stays to watch the credits. After the credits, Larry is forced to clean up and take a shower while the Cat watches him.

Cast

 * Paul Rudd - The Cat in the Hat, a black and white cat with a tall red and white striped hat with millions of gadgets.
 * Lynden Prosser - Conrad, a 12 year old boy who is forced to go to military school by Larry.
 * Stephanie Young - Sally, an 8 year old girl who makes sure Conrad doesn't cause any trouble.
 * Kaitlyn Robrock - The Cat in the Hair Bow - a black and white cat with a pink dress and big matching pink bow on top of her head with millions of gadgets like the Cat's hat does.
 * Tom Kenny - The Fish, a fish who can't let the Cat and his girlfriend stay at Joan's house while she is gone.
 * Tara Strong - Joan, a hard working woman who works for her real estate agent, Hank Humberfloob.
 * Chrispan Freeman - Larry Quinn, a man who wants to marry Joan and send Conrad to military school for causing trouble around the house. He also voices Hank Humberfloob, the owner of Hank Humberfloob's Real Estate Office.
 * Frank Welker - Nevins, a tan furry dog with a gold collar.
 * Dee Bradley Baker - Thing 1 and Thing 2, two things who cause mischief and trouble around the house.