What can be said about a Pixar film that hasn’t been said before? Their work is nearly flawless, with films like Toy Story (1 and 2), A Bug’s Life, Monster’s Inc, Incredibles, and Ratatouille all speaking for themselves. They rarely mis-step, and even when they do, it is still quite a piece of art. Pixar’s work continues to be miles ahead of every single animation company out there, with their films being composed of lasting adventures and timeless stories rather than pop culture references and sometimes crude, adult humor that children don’t understand. Wall-E is no exception to Pixar’s masterpieces, and their latest creation will certainly stand the test of time.
Plot: Humans, who have developed a dependency on large, warehouse-type chains of grocery stores, fast food restaurants, and shopping centers have decided to abandon Earth. Tucked safely inside of a space cruiser, humans have left behind a series of robots to go through and clean up the mess that they themselves were too lazy to. Piles upon piles of trash lay waste throughout the world (though we’re only really shown the U.S.) and the robots W-A-L-L-E have been left to compact as much as possible, though even that task seems daunting. All of the WALL-E’s have died out, with only one remaining to do the deed. (editor’s note: WALL-E well be referred to as a male robot from here on out, though I’m not sure that sex of any of the robots is ever particularly stated) WALL-E has developed a personality though; he tends to be a fixer, as well as a collector. He’s curious, but not stupid. He knows his limits and he knows he still has a job to do. He collects objects left behind in the waste, things he uses to try to understand, or possibly even relate, to the humans who once inhabited the world he now calls home. Everything seems to be in order for WALL-E, he never questions his position, though he is lonely. Until the day E-V-E arrives. EVE is another robot sent to Earth from space in order to determine if the planet is habitable again. Of course WALL-E becomes determined to befriend her, and their relationship and misadventures, set the story for the rest of the film.
It’s somewhat hard to review a film in which the typical things we look for are all left behind. There are no real actors here, though Fred Willard does serve as the first real human to be depicted inside of a Pixar film. Though a little off-setting at first, it did seem to fit well within the concepts of the film. As it is certainly a futuristic movie, having Willard serve as video reminders for a forgotten world actually work well. We’re not really seeing Willard act within the contexts of a cartoon ala Roger Rabbit; we’re seeing Willard act within the context of old, digital video. I hope Pixar doesn’t use human actors in their future endeavors, but if they do it’d be nice to keep the context the same. For example, I couldn’t imagine The Incredibles with scenes of interaction with human actors. That would be horrid.
I did have concerns going into a film which trailer was narrated. If you think back to all the trailers we’ve seen, the only thing heard was the narration and the charming WALL-E saying his own name in that oh-so-cute robotic voice. Thankfully, Pixar does a great job of telling a story where very little is being said. Once EVE is introduced, a form of dialect is created which helps us to further relate to the robots. Her character also helps to introduce the remaining humans, which also brings about a lot more discussions and video playbacks. While WALL-E does serve as the main character, there are plenty of other characters introduced who carry on sufficient conversations.
What I enjoyed most about the film wasn’t just its cuteness, but Pixar’s way of creating a
haphazard robot. WALL-E does some truly great things within the film, but he rarely does them intentionally. He’s more of an accidental robot whose ambition and attitude help him secure many friends along his adventure. He’s not stupid, he just doesn’t see the big picture of his own path. A simple handshake can lead to a life-saving friend. WALL-E never misses an opportunity to help a friend, or a stranger, even while trying to attend to his own goals. The morals of the character alone help serve as a classic reminder to viewers of all ages; there’s always time to make friends.
The animation is breathtaking. Some of the scenes seem so realistic and futuristic that one has no hang-ups believing in this type of a future. Pixar, once again, has set the bar so high that I’m wondering if even they can top it their next time out of the gate. There’s no doubt that this film will win Pixar yet another Oscar, though one thing’s for sure: when it sweeps all its categories at the Oscars, it will be because it deserves it. Not because there wasn’t any other real competition (though there won’t be). Pixar never disappoints when it comes to stories and visuals and WALL-E is no exception. Each scene is stunning and though the humans may look a little awkward at first, it all makes sense.
WALL-E may not be a perfect film (did it really need to be two hours?), but it does have all the finishing touches to make it a timeless classic. The visuals are flawless, the story is compelling and cute, and the entertainment level is as expected with any Pixar film. This is better than Cars. This is better than Finding Nemo. It’s greatness slices through each of those like a hot knife through butter. WALL-E is one of the cutest movies released that I can remember, and it’s touching character story will leave everyone walking away with a smile.
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