Review: Wall-E by Brian Paterson on 6.28.08
I’m upset. Upset that I’m not sitting in the theater watching Wall-E rove through a post apocalyptic wasteland in his Chaplain-esque manner bringing smiles to every audience member who lays their eyes upon his rusted metal core. Upset that Pixar has once again managed to make me forget about Nemo, Remy and Woody and one-up their past films with a piece that makes the recent Kung Fu Panda, a film I thoroughly enjoyed, look near shameful in comparison. Most of all, I’m upset that I may never see a true sequel to Wall-E, as Pixar rarely follows up their creative works with a second (save for Toy Story). You will not remember Wall-E for its story or lavish visuals, but for a tiny Waste Allocation Load-Lifter • Earth Class (Wall-E) who will steal your heart within the film’s first minute.
Wall-E, the last remaining robot on the planet Earth in the 28th century, has been programmed to complete a simple task: gather trash, compact it into a small cube and repeat in order to repent for the sins of an ultrapowerful corporation. It’s no wonder that after seven hundred years of garbage collection monotony has set in and our little robot desires something more: the love of another. Watching him perform his menial tasks is an absolute delight, as the first forty or so minutes of the film shine as brightly as the sun that charges his solar powered batteries. So strong is the animation in this film that Wall-E’s every mannerism will evoke some type of emotion from the viewer, the greater majority of it being hilarity; moreover, this is done without the aid of facial expressions and dialogue – a feat matched only by few actors in the history of film.
EVE, a high-tech Extraterrestrial Vegetation Evaluator (who looks akin to the latest Apple sensation), plays the object of Wall-E’s affection. Sent to patrol the earth for any signs of life, she stumbles upon Wall-E after nearly blasting him to scraps several times with a laser not dissimilar to the blasters seen in Star Wars. Though EVE and Wall-E may not share comparable appearances and hardware, their roles are nearly the same. Both serve Buy and Large, the corporation responsible for nearly destroying the earth, and both possess something not often seen in a robot: human emotion. Throughout the film, EVE shares her feelings in a simple manner – her LED eyes will squint adorably when she laughs at Wall-E’s antics, glare when she is angered, droop when she is saddened and shut off completely when inactive. This and the fantastic voicework (consisting entirely of the characters saying their own names) allow the characters to communicate seamlessly. The robots speak complete nonsense, but you always know exactly what they mean. Scary stuff.
Story wise, Wall-E fails to reach the level of quality seen in Ratatouille, Toy Story and Finding Nemo (few films can), but it holds up well enough that its characters keep you thoroughly engaged throughout. Seeing our planet lay in ruin was at moments chilling, and the initial concept of life after our planet’s demise is remarkable; however, the plot begins to lose steam once the focus shifts from Wall-E’s story to humankind’s story. Luckily, Wall-E’s charming personality is more than enough to vault the film’s narrative to reach those we’d normally expect from Pixar. This is the only quip I have with Wall-E, as I was so enamored with the main character that I did not care nearly as much for anything else. I understand story is the most essential component of a great film, but for some reason it did not seem quite as pivotal in this case. Whether this was because the main characters could converse using full dialogue or that the “space opera” narrative is showing its age is moot; Wall-E single-handedly carries the brunt of the film on his back and runs with it. He is undoubtedly one of the most intriguing animated characters in the history of film, and will be cherished for years to come.
Those of you expecting a visual feast are in for a treat. We are offered two incredibly different worlds: A brown-hued New York City swirling with massive dust storms and the starry confines of space. Both environments look stunning, something we’ve come to expect from the brilliant minds at Pixar, and the character models are wonderful. Wall-E, EVE and AUTO (an homage to 2001: A Space Odyssey) are all rendered beautifully, with newer model robots looking sterile and clean as opposed to Wall-E, whose faded exterior is as charming as it is filthy. I am tiring a bit from the cartoony Pixar human character models, though, but I can look past it since they are treated as secondary characters. All in all, only Ratatouille can claim superiority over Wall-E’s overall aesthetic.
In this golden age of animated films it seems Pixar can do no wrong. They are now nine for nine, touting the animation industry’s most pristine resume with its unrivaled storytelling and endearing characters. They’ve explored the sea, space, France, a toy chest, racetracks and a little girl’s closet; one can only wonder where their next film will take us. For now, take your kids, girlfriend/boyfriend, husband/wife to see this film and let Wall-E the robot enchant you for a few hours, and then see it again. WaaaaAAAALLLL-EEEEEeeee!
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