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The Lorax
In the town of Thneedville, there are no trees in sight. In fact, the entire town is devoid of nature as trees are merely battery operated mechanisms, and fresh air comes from bottles. The Lorax follows Ted (Zac Efron), a 12 year old boy, who seeks to win the heart of Audrey (Taylor Swift). To win her affections Ted decides to find Audrey what she most desires, a Truffala tree. He discovers that the only way to obtain a tree is by seeking the help of the Once-ler, so Ted ventures outside of town to find him. The Once-ler tells Ted that the trees became extinct because he compromised his moral standings to make money and gives Ted a seed to plant. All the while, Ted is opposed by Mr. O’Hare, the most powerful man in town who sells packaged fresh air and will stop at nothing to prevent Ted from planting a tree that could produce free fresh air.
Although the title of the movie is “The Lorax,” there are disappointingly few scenes with the Lorax. Throughout the film, the idea that large corporations are detrimental to the environment is reiterated, giving it a seemingly anti-consumerist agenda. The film imparts a message about the importance of protecting the environment. As the town of Thneedville reflects the present day polluted world, where nature is diminishing, it reminds the viewer that greed must not overcome respect for nature. The Lorax is a wholesome movie that follows the Dr. Seuss book accurately with animations that could be drawn by Dr. Seuss himself. The film is summed up with a quote by Dr. Seuss that says, “Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It’s not.”
Tyler Perry’s Good Deeds
There is life, and then there is living life. Tyler Perry as Wesley Deeds knows the former but not the latter. Life for Wesley Deeds, a successful business man, has always revolved around doing what is expected of him, from being told what to eat for breakfast, to inheriting his father’s place at his company and to being told to marry his fiancée, Natalie. Wesley lives a seemingly perfect life full of predictability, in which he is expected to tolerate his brother repeatedly misbehaving at work and secure a stable, happy future for his fiancée. That is, until he meets Lindsey (Thandie Newton), a member of the cleaning crew at his office building. Lindsey is a proud single mother struggling to make ends meet and Wesley decides to help her out. Throughout the movie, Wesley is torn between deciding to go through life as he is expected to or pursuing the life he desires.
Tyler Perry’s Good Deeds starts off slowly in the beginning as there are redundant scenes that reiterate Lindsey’s dire situation. Furthermore, the plot is quite simple and lacks complexity. The story-line is fairytale-esque and has little depth or thoughtfulness. However, the actors carry their roles well and dramatically deliver their characters in the movie. The movie effectively conveys the final message to “follow your heart” and is a feel good movies, albeit its cliché message.
