Dr. Seuss' The lorax

the Lorax Coming soon in
3/2/2012 sorry for the year

Danny DeVito as the Lorax and Ed Helms as the Once-ler

story-
A boy representing the reader comes to a desolate corner of town to visit a being called the Once-ler who is never shown throughout the book except for his arms and legs and learn about the Lorax. After the Once-ler receives payment from the boy consisting of 15 cents, a nail, and the shell of a great, great, great grandfather snail he recounts on how he first arrived where they now stand, back then a beautiful forest of Truffula Trees, colorful woolly trees that were spread throughout the area and supported various fantastical creatures.

Flashback

As the Once-ler arrives in the area with his horse, he takes in the sights. There are Bar-ba-Loots (resembling bears) that frolic about and eat fruit from the trees, Swomee Swans that fly through the air and sing as they go, and Humming Fish that go swimming about in the ponds and humming as they swim. But the Once-ler is only interested in the beauty of the Truffula Trees. Taking a few samples of the Truffula tree, he decides to set up shop on the spot.

Enamored by these gorgeous trees, the Once-ler chops one down and uses its foliage to knit a "Thneed", an odd-looking but versatile garment that he insists "everyone needs." A strange creature called the Lorax suddenly emerges from the stump and protests, saying that he "speaks for the trees, as the trees have no tongues," but the Once-ler ignores him and, spurred by greed and the success of his first sale, begins a huge Thneed-making business that brings in his whole family, much to the Lorax's distress.

As the Once-ler's small shop grows into a factory and new equipment is being made to keep up with the demand for more Thneeds, signs of damage to the Truffula Forest become evident to the Lorax. The Lorax first complains to the Once-ler that the Truffula trees, being chopped down, were also the food source of the Bar-ba-Loots, who are now facing a terrible food shortage and a disease called "the Crummies because of gas and no food in their tummies." To save them, the Lorax sends them off to find another food source. At first, the Once-ler only shows a little remorse, but still focuses on expanding his business.

Soon, the Once-ler's Thneed-making business has expanded tenfold and now uses delivery trucks to take out the shipments. The Lorax eventually comes back complaining to the Once-ler that the factories are belching out so much "smogulous smoke" that it is giving the Swomee Swans sore throats, leaving them unable to sing. After the Lorax sends them off, he also complains to the Once-ler about his machinery making goo called "Gluppity Glup" and "Shloppity Shlop," and how what remains is being dumped into the ponds where the Humming Fish live, and leaving them unable to hum.

The Once-ler, however, still dismisses the Lorax's pleadings, and goes so far as to berate the Lorax on berating his business. The Lorax's complaints, however, prove to be true just as the last Truffula Tree gets chopped down. With no more trees to chop and no more Thneeds to make, the Thneed factories close down and the Once-ler's family departs, leaving the Once-ler alone with the Lorax, who, looking back at the Once-ler sadly, picks himself up by the "seat of his pants" and floats away through a hole in the smog, leaving behind only a small pile of rocks with the word "UNLESS" inscribed into them.

The Once-ler alone remains, gazing upon the disintegrating ruins of his factories over the years and contemplating the meaning of this last message, perhaps with a sense of remorse. In the end, the Once-ler gives the boy the very last Truffula seed for him to plant and take care of, potentially regrowing the forest and resulting in the Lorax's return.