The Lorax (2012)

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jelly
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The Lorax (2012)

Post by jelly »

Recently I've been bombarded with promotion from Universal Picture's upcoming film, Dr. Seuss' The Lorax. This is no surprise... Illumination Entertainment also released Despicable Me, which was more heavily promoted then any film I've seen in a looong time. It also met with a lot of critical praise. Coming off of that success, Illumination clearly sees themselves as Universal's version of Disney's Pixar; an animation studio that can do no wrong. The very predictable difference between Despicable Me and The Lorax, however, is that one is an original story and the other... is not, and will be judged accordingly.

Here's the recent Super Bowl teaser:


First off, let's take look back at Hollywood's previous attempts to bring Dr. Seuss' characters to the big screen. In 2000, the live-action How the Grinch Stole Christmas featuring Jim Carry was met with mixed reviews, and a frown of wariness from Mrs. Geisel. In 2003, the horrible adaptation of The Cat in the Hat caused Mr. Geisel to role in his grave and his wife to call an end to live-action adaptations of her husband's books. However in 2008, 20th Century Fox was greenlighted to create a CGI animated adaptation of Horton Hears a Who. This was met with mostly critical acclaim.

...now, while the door's still open, Illumination Entertainment has jumped on the chance to animate one of Dr. Seuss' darker classics; The Lorax. And from the looks of the trailers, this just might seal the fate of any and all big-screen Dr. Seuss adaptations. Frankly, let's hope it does. I mean... look at it. Now, I'm usually one of the first to accept a film as it is despite any changes from whatever book it was adapted from, but this appears to be no mere matter of slight plot adjustment. No, from the looks of it, they've taken Dr. Seuss' beloved characters and slandered their entire personalities. Yes, they have personalities.

I was captivated by the story of The Lorax when I was eleven years old... I borrowed it from the library because I was a fan of Dr. Seuss' other, more popular works, only to discover that this book was in a separate category of its own. I didn't love it the same way I had loved The Cat in the Hat when I was younger... I was completely entranced by its haunting effect. The world presented is a dark one. The atmosphere is smoggy, and the characters are grim. The Once-ler is a weathered old creature, haunted by his past memories and condemned to live life alone in an abandoned factory. The actual story of the Lorax is but a flash-back; one in which the Once-ler, NOT the Lorax, is the featured character. It's a story of moral decline. Of greed and depravity. In the climactic moments, as the Once-ler screams in the face of the Lorax for the final time, the very last tree is chopped down, and it's all over. His factory is shut down, and all his relatives leave. No words need to be said. The Lorax looks at the Once-ler one last time, then disappears through a hole in the fog. The Once-ler is forever haunted by that last glance. He becomes a hermit, and speaks to no one... except for an innocent child who happens by. The Once-ler has entrusted his story with this child -- the reader -- as well as a commission. As the last page is turned, there is one, small glimmer of hope to grasp on to.

I'm not making this up. ;) It's all there, exactly as I described it. I was too young to articulate any of that at the time, but since then I've come to realize what is so magical about The Lorax. It's nothing like the gleeful, child-like mischief of The Cat in the Hat or Horton, it's thoroughly a dismal and thought-provoking work of art. And this why I shudder when the trailer informs me that someone thought it would be profitable to turn the iconic figures of the Lorax and Once-ler into cheap excuses for laughs. Please Hollywood, inflict your horribly written nonsense on some other fictional characters.


edit: I like how I somehow had the motivation to write a whole topic on an animated movie that hasn't even come out yet. \:D/
Last edited by jelly on Mon Feb 06, 2012 5:06 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Post by bookworm »

The Once-ler is going to have a face! :x
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Post by jelly »

He's not supposed to. :x
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Post by bookworm »

How dare they? :x
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Post by darcie »

I don't have as many thoughts as you, other than yelling at the TV yesterday that The Lorax is not a fun story. It is a story of consequence, of what happens when we wrongly use our resources. It isn't the correct story to be wrongly adapted as all the other Dr. Seuss stories have been. It is far, far better than that. And what I saw they did with it is just sad. I'm going to pretend that it doesn't exist.
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Post by Catspaw »

Yeah, I haven't read the book in a while, but the little that I've seen makes me think that this will be bad. :( I remember seeing an old version of The Lorax years ago that was fairly faithful to the book, to the best of my recollection, but it looks like they aren't even trying here. Dr. Suess books remain memorable classics for many children and adults. It's a shame that they can't either make decent movies or just leave well enough alone.
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Post by TigerintheShadows »

I saw a trailer for it when I went to see Chipwrecked. And honestly? Now I think about it, it would have been much better as its own, standalone film. This is not The Lorax; it's taking a beloved icon, making it into a movie, and putting a bunch of celebrities that kids know about so they'll make their parents take them to see it. It's sad, really.
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Post by jelly »

darcie wrote:I'm going to pretend that it doesn't exist.
I wish I had your stamina. :( I'll probably end up seeing it just because it's there, and it'll make my heart hurt.
Catspaw wrote:I remember seeing an old version of The Lorax years ago that was fairly faithful to the book...


\:D/
Last edited by jelly on Tue Feb 07, 2012 5:08 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Post by bookworm »

I was about to post that. \:D/
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Post by ric »

One person who might actually make a good version of the Lorax: Tim Burton. \:D/

But ya, this just looks terrible. But that's just what Hollywood does. They can't think of anything unique so they take old things and make them horrible.

Yay for Dr. Suess love though. \:D/
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Post by jelly »

ric wrote:One person who might actually make a good version of the Lorax: Tim Burton. \:D/
Possibly... although Tim Burton often tends to emphasize on the weird atmosphere rather then the story itself.
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Post by Shennifer »

Watching the second half now \:D/


edit: and now I finished it. Wow...that was simple and profound, and just really good :yes: I want to read the book now...
Last edited by Shennifer on Tue Feb 07, 2012 5:38 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Post by TigerintheShadows »

Remember when they put Jesse McCartney in Horton Hears A Who?
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Post by Catspaw »

Good find, Jelly! It might not meet current animation standards, but for those of us who thinks that story counts too... ;)
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Post by bookworm »

And those of us who think the Once-ler shouldn’t have a face! :x
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Post by Peachey Keen »

I'm looking forward to seeing the Lorax. :-

I loved the Horton film a lot. But even though there was a lot added to it, it still was faithful to the book. All Dr. Seuss stories don't have enough to make a 60+ minute movie. They have to add stuff to it. As long as the basic story and moral is in it, I'll be happy.

BTW, I've never seen the live-action films, nor do I want to. :x
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Post by jelly »

This review sums it up this disaster a whole lot better then I could, and in Dr. Seuss-style rhyme, too!

http://www.ncregister.com/daily-news/sd ... -the-lorax

...apparently it's even worse then I feared.
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Post by American Eagle »

Movieguide and PluggedIn aren't glowing about it; they both said it had a lot of environmental preachiness. It has a 58% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, which is okay, I guess. Despicable Me reached 81% while the last Dr. Suess adaption, Horton Hears a Who!, got 79%.

Despite the subpar early ratings, I still think The Lorax will make a boatload of money. 8-year-old kids will eat it up.
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Post by Laurie »

I'm not sure if I will see it in the theater or buy it on DVD. I too loved Horton Hears a Who.
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Post by ObiWan Kenobi Girl »

I'd want to see it just because Taylor Swift is in it.. hehe :P
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