Movie Review: Who is ‘The Lorax’?

I am not familiar with the Dr Suess story, The Lorax, but as anyone could imagine, it had to be beefed up a bit to be brought to the big screen. The story starts with Thweedville, a fabricated society where there are no living things other than humans. (Actually, this is not entirely true, but basically, yes.) Ted, a young boy trying to win the heart of the girl he likes, goes on an adventure to search for a living tree and meets the Once-ler who tells Ted where the trees went and how he met The Lorax.

I’m all for saving trees, but the films boils down the idea to such a basic point that it is just silly (and not in a good Dr Seuss sort of way). Chris Renaud and Kyle Balda, the directors, send a message that is very dark and because it’s told in a pretty world with unrealistic cotton-candy-like trees, it loses it’s impact tremendously. Wall-E did it much better with more emotion.

I was disappointed at the lack of character development as well as the lack of focus on a single character. My favorite aspect was the three little fishes, but the bears were a very close second. I wanted to see their story. It seemed like most of the film was an excuse for outlandish action sequences or ridiculous songs rather than moving the story forward. The musical numbers, as catchy as the songs actually were, seemed forced and out of place. I can understand an opening song, but every other one seemed just like an excuse for a song rather than something to enhance the story. The animation was breathtaking, but it’s become the standard, so nothing there’s nothing really new to praise. The 3D was once again a grab at a higher ticket price, as I was more impressed by the advertisement for the 3D before the film even started.

I was delighted to hear the voice of Danny DeVito but none of the other voices really stood out. Ed Helms (Andy on NBC’s The Office) voices the actual main character, the Once-ler (no idea what that name means), with Zac Efron as Ted and Taylor Swift as his crush, Audrey. Helms was able to create a lot of range with his character, but the others left no impression, good or bad.

This is not a film to take your kids to if you intend on watching yourself. This also may be the one film I would understand if people tweeted during. It’s just such a shame that a wonderful idea can turn into a mindless, cliche “children’s” film. Too much time is spent on animation and they’re not as focused on the story.

Rating: Colorful yet boring. 2/10