Grade: B
Dr. Seuss is a household name and beloved children’s author. He’s created such classics as “Horton Hears a Who!,” “Green Eggs and Ham” and, of course, the most famous of all “The Cat in the Hat.” A few of his books have been adapted for the silver screen and for 2012 Universal Studios created “The Lorax.”
“The Lorax” is a story about industry and the devastating consequences it can have on the environment. The audience follows a young boy named Ted as he searches for the answers to why the Truffula trees have all but disappeared. And the only man who has the answer to that is The Once-ler. If Ted can discover what happened to the trees he will win the affection of a beautiful girl and ultimately save his home, Thneed-ville, from the sludge and smog that unknowingly plagues the townspeople.
I can say that I enjoyed the film but it’s a one and done kind of experience. Meaning I only every need to see it once and that’ll be good enough for me.
What I enjoyed most about the film was the digital effects. Since the entire film is digital and has no live action actors performing on screen, apart from their voice talents, the film truly embodies the world of Dr. Seuss. The people are strange and interesting. The buildings and cars are impractical and crazy but that’s exactly what makes Dr. Seuss Dr. Seuss. This is something that just simply can’t be done well in live action because it looks fake and unbelievable, even when you know it isn’t supposed to be real. The colors really popped, the lighting was great and the world felt lived in. Simply put the film looked beautiful and you could tell the animators put a lot of effort into making this film look good.
What I disliked about the film was the pacing of the story. When you consider that Dr. Seuss books are fairly short and contain little dialogue, intended to be read by children, presumably it’s difficult to create a script that runs an hour and twenty-six minutes. So the adaptation of the book started off well in the beginning of the film but towards the middle I started to lose interest as time became filled with musical numbers that weren’t very good. The singers weren’t great and the songs lasted far too long, as the director attempted to fill time.
Where the film lacked in the middle it once again picked back up at the end and grabbed my attention. The film ended on a high note. However, I believe the story of “The Lorax” was strong enough to carry itself without the unnecessary music. It just needed a little more development of characters and plot points to carry it the extra time.
“The Lorax” is a good film but not a great one. Where the film lacked in pacing it made up for in presentation. The film looked great and also provided a powerful message about protecting the environment. I think kids will truly enjoy the film and it’s definitely a good film to take the family to.
What did you think of “The Lorax”? Did the film seem boring to you as well? Tell Nathan what you think in the comments section below.
