One of Dr. Seuss’ most enduring tales, “The Lorax,” gets the 3D CGI treatment by Illumination Entertainment in this film which successfully follows the formula that Blue Sky Studios used in 2008’s HORTON HEARS A WHO: hip celebrity voices (including a cast member from The Office), hyper-colorful visuals, zippy Ken Daurio /Cinco Paul screenplay, and a John Powell score.
As today is the 108th anniversary of Dr. Suess’ birth, directors Renaud and Balda (the duo behind DESPICABLE ME) posit THE LORAX as a tribute to the acclaimed author’s vision.
It works as such, but mainly when it sticks to the storyline and designs of Suess’ original 1971 book. When it veers into the flashy high speed chase scenarios that dominate its second half it loses a bit of its charm. However, that doesn’t sabotage its inventive intent and sense of fast paced fun.
In a clever, yet no-brainer, casting move, Danny Devito voices the title character – a small fuzzy orange creature with a bushy yellow mustache who speaks for the trees.
A young boy named Ted (another tribute to Dr. Suess as his full name was Theodor Seuss Geisel), voiced by Zac Efron, learns the tale of the Lorax when he ventures out of Thneed-Ville, a plastic and fake city that is devoid of any nature. Ted wants to give the present of an actual tree to a girl (Taylor Swift) he has a crush on, and his Grandmother (the always welcome Betty White) advises the boy to seek out somebody called the Once-ler.
The Once-ler (voice of Ed Helms) lives in a house out in the dark tree-less terrain that used to be part of a ginormous factory that chopped down every last “Truffula” tree for material to make “Thneeds,” a useless item of clothing that was a big seller to the folks of Thneed-Ville.
After failing to stop the Once-ler from destroying the environment, the Lorax sadly lifts himself up into the polluted sky in defeat in one of the film’s most affecting images.
There is hope though, in the form of the last Truffula seed that the Once-ler gives to Ted, but he has to contend with the newly created character of O’Hare (a loud Rob Riggle) - the film’s villain who made millions off selling bottled air and will stop at nothing to keep Thneed-Ville from going green.
Chaotic sequences revolving around making sure the seed is safe from O’Hare and his goons, recall the hubbub surrounding the fate of the tiny seedling plant in “WALL-E,” but the film’s infectious energy keeps it from feeling derivative.
DeVito’s raspy line readings wonderfully give the film a great comic edge, and provide a counter balance to the sing songy slickness of Efron and Helms’ vocal stylings. Speaking of sing-songy, Swift, in both her speaking and singing, crafts the most listenable musical work I’ve heard yet from the Grammy-winning Country artist.
I can’t remember a single melody of the songs themselves, written by British composer John Powell, but they breeze inoffensively by like the rest of the movie.
Although the anti-industry, pro-environmental message may be somewhat buried in all of the shiny spectacle, (don’t worry - Fox News is digging it up) THE LORAX is an above average kid’s movie that does right by Dr. Suess’ spirit with no heavy-handiness.
I also enjoyed that my 3 young nephews, who attended the screening with me, really ate it all up. Bet you and your kids will too.
More later...
ME AND ORSON WELLES (Dir. Richard Linklater, 2009)
To be a young actor in the hustling bustling Big Apple of the 30's, cast by sheer chance as a player in an Orson Welles' Mercury Theater production is a dream many aspiring thespians have no doubt had, but is it believable that it would be a dream shared by "it" boy Zac Efron?
Sadly no, he's a blank slate of an actor who makes for a weak protagonist, but this period piece by cult director Richard Linklater is royally saved by Christian McKay's pitch perfect performance as the genius wunderkind Welles. It's a role he was seemingly born to play thanks to his uncanny likeness and delivery honed from over half a decade on stage in the one man show "Rosebud: The Lives Of Orson Welles".
As a wide eyed high school student, Efron is overjoyed to be cast in the small but crucial role of Lucious in Welles' controversial 1937 production of "Julius Caesar". It was controversial because Welles staged Shakespeare's play as contemporary commentary outfitting his performers in modern dress - specifically uniforms that resembled those of the Nazi party.
Efron is paired with a production assistant played by Claire Danes as a rehearsal partner and immediately falls for her. He also falls for the world of the theater; a world that Welles rules with a mighty swagger. McKay's Welles highjacks the film from Efron and breathes life into the predictable proceedings with every entrance. His powerful presence not only makes us forget Efron is in the room, it helps us forget he's in the movie.
When McKay isn't on screen the film suffers from the lack of chemistry between Danes and Efron and the simplistic nature of their relationship. It's funny (or more accurately damaging) that the excellent casting of McKay would be offset by the misguided miscasting of Efron. Luckily other members of the cast fare much better - James Tupper as a the wise witty Joseph Cotton, Eddie Marsan as the exasperated John Houseman, and Ben Chaplin as George Coulouris who has an effective scene dealing with stage fright right before going on as Marc Antony.
Linklater has one of the most intriquing and diverse filmographies of any working director out there. Since his brilliant breakthrough SLACKER (1991) his work has gone from indie (BEFORE SUNRISE) to mainstream (THE SCHOOL OF ROCK) and back again (BEFORE SUNSET) with mostly successful results.
Linklater's previous period piece effort, THE NEWTON BOYS, was one of his only major stumbles so it's wonderful to report ME AND ORSON WELLES is absolutely a superior and more assured work in the same arena.
The brisk pacing and solid structure show off Linklater's strengths as do the astute recreations of the original stage show - at times I wished the film would throw out the backstage bickering and just give us the play "Julius Caesar" in full.
Although my reaction to Efron and the presentation of the love triangle arc is decidedly mixed, this is still a worthwhile movie largely because of McKay. His Welles definitely deserves an Oscar nomination and that's quite a compliment considering that this is his first film.
A best-case scenario would be that HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL fans that follow Efron will see it and they'll walk away under the spell of McKay. I know that's just wishful thinking, but it sure would be nice for all those teenyboppers to actually get a whiff of what real acting is all about.
Post note: Christian McKay appeared previously on this blog in a post entitled "A Birthday Tribute To Orson Welles With 10 Welles Wannabes" (May 5th, 2008). He would definitely rank much higher if I did the list today.More later...
