Wall-E
Directed by Andrew Stanton
Starring the voices of Ben Burtt, Elissa Knight, Fred Willard, Jeff Garlin, Sigourney Weaver, Kathy Najimy, and it’s just not a Pixar film without John Ratzenburger.
Backstory
It’s quite well-known now that I’m a Pixar junkie. I love just about every film they’ve put out. So, I was intrigued with trailers for Wall-E. It was the next one from Andrew Stanton, who previously gave us Finding Nemo. Aside from just being an animated film, it looked as though it were trying to be science-fiction. Plus, it’s about robots. Who doesn’t like robots? I went into the theatre expecting Pixar to dazzle me again.
Plot
Some time in the future, Earth has become so overrun with garbage that Buy n Large, the company that owns everything, comes up with a plan: have everyone leave the Earth on a super-luxurious cruise ship call the Axiom, and leave robots behind to clean up the planet. 700 years later, there’s only one robot left, Wall-E, and he’s still doing his duty. Wall-E has developed a quirky personality over the years, collecting odd bits of garbage, watching Hello, Dolly! over and over, and longing for companionship. Then, one day, a second robot arrives, designation EVE, and Wall-E is instantly smitten. Wall-E shows EVE around his planet, but soon, EVE accomplishes her mission, and returns home. Wall-E pursues, and before long, the two are having an adventure on the Axiom that may lead to the redemption of humankind.
What I Liked
The animation, as always, is spectacular. Pixar comes awfully close to delivering something photo-realistic on this one. Wall-E is just such a darn cute character, as is EVE, once she warms up to Wall-E. It’s got a fantastic story, great music, everything about this film is just great. I also liked the end credits sequence…very Miyazaki.
What I Didn’t Like
Most other critics are saying that the film’s message is remarkably subtle. I found it to be incredibly blunt.
Final Assessment
Pixar has made two films in a row now where I cried at the end. Spectacular.