The Lorax Movie Review

The movie that I have chosen is The Lorax directed by Chris Renaud and Kyle Balda under the production of Illumination Entertainment company and have been released on March 2, 2012. This movie were written by Ken Daurio and Cinco Paul. This is an animated movie that have been casted by Zac Efron, Taylor Swift, Danny DeVito, Ed Helms and Betty White. The duration of this movie is 87 minutes which is the suitable duration for kids to focus on the movie which the target audience of this movie are for kids and family.

This movie is an adaptation of a classic tale upon from a children’s book, of a forest creature who be involved in experiencing the power of hope. This animated adventure movie goes along the expedition and the journey of a boy, Ted Wiggins (Zac Efron) as he seeks the present for a girl, Audrey (Taylor Swift) in which the thing will enable and allows him to get her affection and win her heart. To find the special thing or specifically Audrey’s dream is to see a real tree, thus he must dig out the real story of the Lorax which is the guidance of the forest, which is a creature who fights his and the other creature’s right to protect his world and generally for the environment.

To be in depth, a 12-yeard-old boy which named as Ted Wiggins (Zac Efron), lives peacefully with his mother and grandmother in “Thneed-Ville”, a city where is completely synthetic and artificial. Everything is just imitate from the real and natural thing. Everything is made and produced from plastic, metal or synthetics. Aloysuis O’Hare (Rob Riggle) which is the most powerful person in the city and govern the city, do not allow the citizens to leave the city. He is the one who found a way to sell fresh air (bottled air) and transmit all the real things into the artificial one.

Ted made a journey to search for a thing that his dream girl, Audrey (Taylor Swift) who really wishes to see which is the real tree. Ted begin his journey to find the real tree by following his energetic and bubbly grandmother’s (Betty White) suggestion which his grandmother suggests him to find and speak with the Once-ler (Ed Helms) regarding that matter. With full of determination, Ted manages to find his way to go outside from the synthetic city. By following his grandmother’s direction and following the actual path, he finally comes across the Once-ler’s house. At first, the Once-ler chased Ted away and asked him to go away. But what makes
Once-ler wants to share his tale is whenever Ted told him the real reason he wants to meet the Once-ler which is Ted claims he wishes and desires to know and hear about trees. Then, the Once-ler begins his tale about everything that had happened to the city before. 

In Once-ler’s young age, the Once-ler was not successfully person, and always been laughed by his family about his life performance. Then, he decided to set out into the world to make his luck and fortune by finding a suitable material to create ‘a Thneed’. He is the inventor of ‘a Thneed’ which is a knitted highly versatile object of the Truffula Tree. He suddenly arrived at the place where the forest of Truffula Trees existed. There, the place where lived the Barbaloots,
Swammy Swamns, and the Humming Fish. Being an irrational optimism person, without even think and hesitate himself, Once-ler chopped down one of the Truffula Tree to produce his Thneed. Suddenly, the Lorax popped out from the chopped tree. The Lorax scolded Once-ler angrily from what he has done and warns and orders Once-ler to leave and stay away from the forest but the Once-ler refuses. The Lorax is the cute yet grumpy creature who is a guardian of the forest.

Be based on that moment, the Lorax attempts to chase the Once-ler from the forest by asking the other animals to help him floated the Once-ler but ended up manage to save the Once-ler because he is floating and steering towards the waterfall. The Lorax asked the Once-ler to promise not to cut down any trees after he manage to survive the Once-ler life and the Once-ler promised not to chop any of the trees ever.

The Once-ler then make up his mind to sell the Thneed that he has produced in the Town, but no one have any intention and do not have any interest to buy it for the first, second, third, fourth and fifth day he promoting the Thneed. He gave up and throws the Thneed and suddenly the townspeople notice the usage of a Thneed created by the Once-ler that everyone can have. With the demand from the townspeople, the Once-ler told his family about what he had been created and his family proud with his determination. With the exceeding supply of the Thneed, the quantity of the Truffula trees getting decreased. The Lorax bid to ask the Once-ler to stop chopping down the trees, but Once-ler reluctant and refuse to stop. He is only think on focusing his business and to be rich whereby the thing that have been done are harming the ecosystem. The Once-ler not even think of the environment.

The Once-ler claims that he will not terminate the production of the Thneed that the main material from the Truffula Tree until there is no trees left in the forest. With there is no more trees existed, the Once-ler’s family are being disappointed with him for not longer being a successfully person and packs up and leave the place. All the creatures that surrounded the place are left, the
Humming Fish, Barbaloots and Swammy Swan. The Lorax is the last creature that go away from the wasteland that have been created by the Once-ler. The Lorax floating away and leaves the Once-ler.

The Once-ler brings Ted together over the visits that relate with his story. The Aloysius O’Hare finds out that Ted is going out and leaving the town and try to stop Ted from doing the thing because he feels that the action that have been done by Ted will peril and risk his position and the profits from his business. Even being warn not to leave the town, ted continuously seek the Once-ler to know the actual tale that happened on the Thneed-Ville.

The Once-ler competes his story to Ted by giving a Truffula seed and ponder his requests to Ted to repopulate and enrich the world with trees. Ted zealously comes back to Thneed-Ville to show his dream girl, Audrey what did he got. But unfortunately, Ted had been detained by O’Hare and his bodyguards on his way home. With the help from his family, Ted, Audrey and his grandmother heeding to the center of the city to plant the seed. But with full of hatred, O’Hare convinces the citizens by claims that all the citizens are better living without the existence of the trees by insist that the city will be unclean and affected the serene of the city. To counter the grudges, Ted, Audrey and his grandmother revealing the wasteland that happened outside of the metropolis.

With the unity of all the citizens, Ted manages to plant the seed. Time passed by and from the seed that have been planted, there are caused numerous of Truffula Trees that presence across the wasteland. As the Once-ler go out from his house, he feels surprised whenever he see a Swammy Swan fly by across him, and shortly thereafter, the Lorax suddenly appears before him. And the place was successfully restored with the natural environment.

2.0     KEY CONCEPTS THAT ARE APPLIED IN THE MOVIE

Based on my observation, there are four types of key concepts that have been applied in the movie that have been reviewed. Basically, there are variety of concepts and terms that been used in the company to maintain the corporate relations and reputation of the company itself. In The Lorax, there are two parties that running on the business that have the element of corporate communication which are the Once-ler who sold the Thneed and the Aloysius O’Hare which have its own company in selling the bottled air and maneuvering the city itself.

2.1      Public

Basically, public is the people who is mobilizing themselves against the organization on the basis of some common issue or concern to them.

2.1.1            Thneed by the Once-ler

                        Public for Thneed is the townspeople who noticed the multiple use of the Thneed that can be applied for themselves and they found the Thneed that have been created by         Once-ler is the great thing and everyone should have it. With the new invention that have been created by the Once-ler which is the Thneed that has been produced by Truffula Tree, it managed to attract the townspeople interest to have and buy it. The Thneed that have been produced by the Once-ler can be used for the trendy hat, an attire, a rope for the acrobats, a net for catching butterflies and can be used for the sports. Based on the demanding of the townspeople, it can be noticed that the Thneed is suitable for any stages of ages and very useful for all the people.

2.1.2      Bottled air by Aloysius O’Hare

                        Public for the bottled air that has been supplied by the O’Hare is the citizen of the  Thneed-Ville. Since the city is the artificial one which everything is just the imitation from the natural one, there is no more fresh air. So O’Hare created a bottled fresh air for the supply of the citizen which is the product is really a must-have product for them. It is also a tactic for O’Hare to gain profits and thus being the most powerful person in the city.

2.2     Market

The market can be defined as a defined group for whom a product is or may be in demand (and for whom an organization creates and maintains products and services).

2.2.1        Thneed by the Once-ler

                        With the tagline of “a Fine- Something- That- All- People- Need” its managed to attract the demand-supply of the townspeople since the Thneed is a functional item that can be multiple used and also a trendy product. The market for the Thneed is for a public that want to look sophisticated and being trendy. Besides, it is useful for any stages of ages that mainly usage of this product is for gloves, hat, sock, carpet, pillow and a sheet instead of using it for sports activity and other entertainment.  

2.2.2        Bottled air by Aloysius O’Hare

                        Living on the artificial world, the demanding supply for the bottled fresh air exceeding day by day from the citizen of the Thneed-Ville. The market for the bottled fresh air invented and supplied by O’Hare is the townspeople of the Thneed-Ville where living in the place of plastic, synthetic and metal and there is no existence of a natural environment. Thus the bottled air is a must for them to survive in a daily life.

2.3     Issue

The issue is an unsettled matter or a point of conflict between the organization and one or more public.

2.3.1        Thneed by the Once-ler

                        The crisis exists whenever there is no supply of the main material of the production of Thneed which is the Truffula Tree whereas the trees are no longer exist which have been chopped down by the Once-ler. Thus, there is no longer Thneed business in the town and the townspeople do not trust the Once-ler anymore. Therefore, the business collapse and the Once-ler once again being an unsuccessful person and his family felt disappointed in him. The creatures who lived in the forest that he had transformed the place into the wasteland also felt disappointed with what he had done and left him alone in the wasteland that he had created.

2.3.2        Bottled air by Aloysius O’Hare

                        O’Hare finds out that Ted managed to get a Truffula seed from the Once-ler and he reveals that Ted wants to plant the seed. Based on the action, it will be ruining up his profits and his bottle fresh air business by the existence of the natural environment. After the seed have been planted, O’Hare tries to convince the townspeople that they are better living without trees and citing the townspeople the city will be unclean by having the trees. In countering what has been claimed by the O’Hare, Ted revealed the true by showing the townspeople the wasteland that has been created by O’Hare based on the city’s waste and the containments are. Thus, the business being bankrupt and all the Thneed-Ville have been surrounded with natural environment and the actual fresh air.

2.4     Communication

Communication is the tactics and media that are used to communicate with internal and external groups.

2.4.1        Thneed by the Once-ler

                        The platform that has been used to communicate with the internal and external group is by using direct advertising and promotional tools mainly for the external groups. The Once-ler advertised the Thneed that has been created by making the banner of ‘Everyone needs a Thneed’ and sang the Thneed song in order to promote it. This created a sense of scarcity and a pseudo-demand for the product. Even though the first customer did not know what a Thneed was, the sense of scarcity created by the sign sparked his or her interest       (Jenniferzou, 2013). Even at first the Thneed do not successfully catch people’s interest to buy it, but at the end, it managed to get high demand from the townspeople.

                        As for internal communication tools, Once-ler directly gathered his own family in running up the business and asked his family to help him with the new type of business product. After the business getting popular and have good progress, Once-ler hired workers and transform his factory into the modern one by using lots of sophisticated technologies to make the production runs quickly.

2.4.2        Bottled air by Aloysius O’Hare

                        The external communication tools to communicate with the public are by placing his office floating in the air by using an airplane. The office was decorated together with his company logo. Thus, it’s become a platform to advertise and promote the bottled fresh air that has been manufactured and marketed. Other than that, O’Hare always go to the city to meet all the citizens and it indirectly acts as a promotional campaign to communicate about his product.

                        As for the internal communication, as what has been noticed throughout the movie, he used digital communication tools to communicate with his work and also communicate face to face if there are certain matters to talk and discussed about. He also used video conferencing to value the advertisement that have been created by his worker.

3.0     FUNCTIONS OF CORPORATE COMMUNICATION THAT ARE APPLIED IN THE MOVIE

Functions of corporate communication play a vital role in how people and corporate person’s view and perceive the company. This is very important part in ensuring and managing the company’s reputation and the establishing of the company’s growth.

There are functions of corporate communication that can be noticed and found in this movie. These functions are vital in managing the good name of the company and ensuring the company work and run smoothly and successfully.

3.1     Government Relations

Government relations is an interpretation of every company can benefit by having ties to legislators on both local and national level.

As for this movie, Aloysius O’Hare is the most influential and powerful person in Thneed-Ville that have a power on the government itself. So, he uses his authority to convince and force the townspeople to buy his products which is the bottled air. His activity is legal since he has good relations with the government. In the other way, he also give benefits toward the city and the government which he provide many sophisticated things that everyone need in the city. From the power that he have, he manipulate and dictate all the citizens.

As for Once-ler corporate function in terms of the government relations, Once-ler do not have any good relations with the government in the place where he standing up his business. Even the creature that govern the place were animals, he do not respect the habitat of the creatures that populate in the place. At first, he promised not to chop down the trees again, but when he get high demand from the customers, he broke the promise and make the population who lived there become extinct and damaged the place. As the result, no one put their trust on him again after the place became the wasteland and his business collapse due to running out of the main supply of the ingredients.

3.2     Crisis Management

Crisis management is coordinated by the corporate communication function and communication professionals should be involves in crisis planning and crisis management.

As for Aloysius O’Hare, the crisis that happened is when Ted decided to plant the seed and revealed the wasteland outside the country that contain many of the city’s waste. O’Hare cited towards the townspeople and convincing them that they are better living without the trees in order to hide and cover the bad things that he had been done towards the society and environment.

The shorten of the supply of the main ingredient of the Thneed is the crisis that occurred towards the Once-ler’s business. Thus, in order to handle the crisis, he asks his family’s opinion in order to make the business run smoothly. Then, he decided to chop down all the Truffula trees to make the production of the Thneed runs smoothly and quickly.

4.0     EVALUATION TOWARDS THE MOVIE BASED ON THE ELEMENTS

Based on the movie that have been reviewed, both key concepts and the functions of corporate communication are effectively applied in the movie.

As for the key concepts, there are certain aspects that just covered on the surface of the concepts in the movie of The Lorax.

4.1     Public

By reviewing the whole movie scenes, the key concept of public have been effectively applied in the movie both on the corporate element that occurred on the business that been made by Aloysius O’Hare and the Once-ler. They selected the right public and audience who are mobilizing towards the organization. The public and targeted audience who are keep supporting their business stands from the society that really need the products and rely on that products in their live either for daily business or for the trendy used. 

4.2     Market

As for this movie, there are two market products that exist which are the Thneed produced by Once-ler, meanwhile for the other product is the bottled air by Aloysius O’Hare. Both of the market for this two products are applied effectively based on the key concept of the corporate communication. The products created are really suit with the demand of the customers and the market. So, the production of this two products get high supply of demand in the market.

4.3     Issue

As for the issue, the application of the key concept of corporate communication have been effectively used since the issues that occurs are make sense towards the business world that always occurred and they need to find a way in order to manage and handle it to maintain the reputation of the business. However, both of the issues that occurred in the movie do not have a vital way to manage and overcome it that make the business collapse and cannot run the business again (as the scene referred, the shorten of the supply of main ingredient that produce the Thneed).

4.4     Communication

The communication tools that have been used to promote the business and to communicate between both internal and external parties are the right and effective way to communicate with. As for the communication tools for the external parties, the tools that been used are very persuasive which can attract large number of people in being the customer and consumer of the products which by using billboard and medias. Meanwhile for the internal communication, the modern technological tools have been used in ensuring the working flow of the business run effectively are the right tools that have been used in the virtual business world nowadays.

Meanwhile, for the functions of corporate communication, there are three functions that can be highly noticed throughout the movie that have been reviewed.

4.5    Government relations

For the government relations, this function is effectively applied in this movie through the scene where the Aloysius O’Hare manage to maintain a good relations with the government and thus it is a platform in widening the growth of his business. Also, the product that have been sold, is legally and follow the policy of the government because he is the most influential and powerful person in the city. So, all the townspeople are been persuaded to buy and have the product that he has been supplied.

4.6     Crisis management

This crisis management is not effectively been applied in this movie since the way the management manage the crisis is not the best way to handle and solve the crisis. Thus, the business fail and unable to run the production and manufacture the products. However, there still the effectiveness on the crisis management that can be noticed where the Once-ler decide to chop down all the Truffula trees to run the business and production quickly in order to solve the crisis of high demand of supply from the customers even it will lead to the jeopardizing the environment.

5.0     THE CONSEQUENCES OF THE FUNCTION

The consequences of the function are considered in both short and long term in order to measure the effectiveness of the key concepts and the functions that have been applied.

5.1     Public

As for the public, the effectiveness of this key concept in short term consequence in choosing the right public is the products that have been produced and provided in the market will get high demand from the public since the product is really need for them in the certain time frame. For example the Thneed that have been produced is multipurpose, which it can be used in many ways which is the features and quality of the product are different from the usual one. Thus, in the short term consequence, it will have high demand in the market. While for the long term consequence, by only supplying on the certain place without expanding the business throughout the entire business world, it will affected the market and the demand of the product since the other business person can imitate the product and offered in the affordable price in their place which the product is not being sold.

5.2     Market

For the short term of the consequence for market, the product will being well-known by the people nearby thus they will communicate, promote and advertise the products towards others. Thus, the product have tendency in being popular in the market with the commercializing of the product itself. The right position that have been chosen in the marketplace will resulting to the high demand from the market. Standing in the right location can be a deciding factor in making customers buy the item (Lambert, 2016). Meanwhile for the long term consequence, in my personal point of view for the bottled air, since the government may take action due to the bad ethics and tactics in running up the business and in order to preserve the environment, the business will no longer been placed in the market since the product supplied is disobey the environmental rules.

5.3     Issue

Since the pragmatic ways have been applied to solve and handle the issues that occurred, as for the short term consequence through my view, they manage to fulfill the demand from the customers and customers will be satisfied based on it. (The scene referred is when the Once-ler decided to use modern technologies in order to chop down all the trees to make the production of the Thneed runs quickly). For the long term consequence, since there are no solutions to recover the main supply of the product, it will jeopardize the business and also harm the environment whereas there are no actions taken to replant the trees and repairing the damage caused by the activities that have been done.

5.4     Communication

For the short and long term of the communication consequence, in my opinion is people will easily noticed the advertisement of the products thus it will help the growth of the product faster which is for the external communication field. Meanwhile, for the internal communication, it will lead in yielding the better worker that really expert and know the purpose of the business. The employees also will be more productive which they will contribute more and feel better about their contribution and the organization so they stay on the job and help move the business forward (Grossman, 2016).

5.5     Government relations

Since the Aloysius O’Hare hold the whole capitals in the city, the authority goes to him and he conquered all the power in the city where the government relations that have been bounded between the O’Hare’s company and the government itself is really strong and O’Hare is the most influential in the city. Thus for the short term consequence, the product will be easily supplied throughout the city and he can do anything in ensuring the placement of the product since he has a good relations with the government. However for the long term consequence in my personal view, people will have a bad impression on the company since the person who are controlling and managing the company, used his power and the authority to sell his products and gain lots of profits from the product that have been sold which he forced people to buy it.

5.6     Crisis management

Since the crisis management is not been effectively applied in the presence of the crisis, which resulting the collapsing of the business due to the bad crisis management. For the short term consequence, it will ruining the management and also the operation of the company itself, thus it will make people throw a bad impression and perception to the business and will resulting the low buying power from the target market. Furthermore, for the long term consequence is it will be no existence of the same business by the same person since it wreck and break the trust issue amongst the loyal customers and the target market. The shorten of the production of the business also give bad impression from the customer since they will think the business is not been seriously placed in the market.

6.0     CONCLUSION

In conclusion, throughout the movie that have been reviewed which is The Lorax, there are many corporate concepts that have been applied where people can easily noticed either in effective or ineffective way.

Based on this movie that I have been reviewed, I believe the situation usually happened in the business field since it is the usual thing that always occurred in the production company in supplying the high demand of the good products. For example which and excerption from the scene where the production of the Thneed was stopped since the main supply of the main ingredient to make the product was running out. So, the Once-ler need to take an advance action in order to fulfill the demand and people’s needs. Thus, it can be say that based on the movie, it is natural phenomenon that always occur in business world.

In the other hand, this movie give good sense of humor and also able to make people realize on the importance of saving the natural environment for the own benefit and in avoiding the natural habitat become instinct and causing of the living in the artificial world. Thus, this movie is really recommended either in terms of corporate world and also increasing the people awareness about the natural environment that surrounded around us. People must cooperate to save and preserve the natural habitat and the environment for the future generations and also for the current live where everyone really need the natural environment to continue living in this world.