12-year-old Ted (voiced by Zac Efron) lives in plastic, fantastic Thneedville, a wall-in universe with nothing of nature growing in it. He is smitten with Audrey (voiced by Taylor Swift), who wishes she could have a real tree in her back yard, rather than the balloon-shaped ones. To win her affections, Ted goes on the hunt for her, outside city limits, learning the story of the greedy capitalist The Once-ler (voiced by Ed Helms) and the grumpy creature the Lorax (voiced by Danny DeVito) who tried with all his creature friends to protect the tree-laden world from impending destruction.
Big-screen adaptations of Dr. Seuss books have never had a wonderful track record (remember The Cat in the Hat and How The Grinch Stole Christmas), and The Lorax looks to be joining that list. Part of reason is the storytellers just don’t let the Lorax and his message take centre stage, revealing the true quirkiness and passion of a Dr. Seuss tale. They feel the audience needs padding in the form of a lovesick brat who makes the whole thing about his hormonal needs, done in the predictably bland animated way of Illumination Entertainment’s Despicable Me. Loyal fans of the 1972 book may see this animated adaptation as an over-inflated burst of vibrant commercial indulgence lacking any individual character like WALL-E that tackled the same global concerns, which is a shame as it’s charmingly told.
[Rating:2/5]