If you’re headed to the theatres this holiday season, hoping to watch the remake of the Christmas classic How the Grinch Stole Christmas, don’t hold your breath. Illumination Entertainment’s new re-animated version, whose title is now shortened to just The Grinch, will probably leave you disappointed if you are a Christmas movie binge-watcher.

Despite its big draw at the box office, the film will no doubt leave you wanting more (and not in a good, cliff-hanger type of way). Rotten Tomatoes even gave the movie a 54% rating, for its “mediocre” retelling of the story.

The movie is filled with a star-studded cast, including Benedict Cumberbatch as the Grinch, Rashida Jones, Pharrell Williams, and Kenan Thompson; yet is nothing like the 2000 version with Jim Carrey.

The new, updated version of the movie includes flashbacks and provides a backstory to why the Grinch became so “grinch-y”. If anything, the Grinch doesn’t seem as mean anymore because his backstory makes it seem like his true personality isn’t really his own fault. The 2018 movie gives the Grinch a tragic childhood story where he was abandoned, almost humanizing the character that for so long has been viewed as the epitome of an evil Christmas movie character.

The Grinch is no longer the exciting character audiences might expect to see. Yes, the sequel was bound to have different twists in it, but this movie is a weak attempt at reworking the original script. Dr. Seuss’ classic tale is a straight to the point, yet still enjoyable story with a clear message. This movie, however, makes those details more unclear, as the new additions to the familiar tale are not only unimaginative, but confusing as well.

 In all honesty, the movie isn’t necessarily bad, but it definitely follows the stereotype that sequels are never as good as the originals. For little kids seeing the story for the first time, it’s guaranteed to make them laugh, but for those who have already been exposed to the original, it is definitely not as interesting.

Here’s some advice if you’re looking for a good Christmas movie to watch as you prepare for the holidays: stick to the original version; you won’t be bored.