Movie Review: WALL-E
Pixar can do no wrong. The reigning kings of animation have done it again with WALL-E. It’s a kid’s movie with more heart than anything in recent years, save the other Pixar releases. I don’t normally feel so… how do I put it? Emotional! It makes me feel like a little kid again. I’m already drawn to cartoons, but WALL-E goes above and beyond my expectations and delivers a delightful film for those of all ages.
There is no dialog in the first 30 minutes or so of the movie. At least not in a conventional sense. WALL-E talks through beeps and clicks, similar to R2D2, but conveys his emotions more efficiently than trained Hollywood actors. Pixar’s ability to bring an inanimate object to life and make it an adorable character is one they seem to have mastered. From his binocular eyes to his wheels, each part of this robot is made to feel alive. The plot moves along at a brisk pace and never drags.
There are so many little details in the animations, background, and little character quirks, the robots with screen time really feel like characters. WALL-E is a living, breathing being, and is portrayed beautifully in this CGI masterpiece. The CGI looks amazing. All the dirt and grime, the smoke effects, the spaceship, and space itself look gorgeous. I thought their previous effort, Ratatouille, was stunning effects wise, but WALL-E raises the bar again.
The story is cute, the characters lovable, and the comedy is there. I’ve read comparisons of WALL-E to Charlie Chaplin, and they’re pretty accurate. Most of it is physical comedy, and just seeing the characters all interact with one another. But as I said, it appeals to all age ranges. It’s just a genuinely well told story and is very easy to enjoy.
The only bit that may bother some, is the underlying message. If you haven’t paid attention to the trailers, this may spoil it for you, but Earth is covered in trash. It is a very environmentally friendly movie and may seem like a bit of propaganda to some. It’s unfortunate that some people will complain about this like they did with Happy Feet. However, unlike the penguin flick, WALL-E doesn’t bring it to the forefront of the story and beat you over the head with cries for green peace. It leaves it in the background as a setting to illuminate the much bigger story and journey that WALL-E embarks upon.
I can’t gush about Pixar enough. I’m waiting for them to slip up somewhere. It seems as though they will continue to delight for years to come with all their future projects. I’m planning on seeing this one again, just to catch the smaller details I might have missed. I recommend this for the families, the kids, and anyone who enjoys animation or just a good film in general.
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I agree that this Pixar film appears to be the most real (CGI wise). Obviously the humans are the exception however. But the metals, especially when they do close ups, are incredibly realistic.
As for the environmental undertones. They are there but I doubt that many people would notice them unless some reviewers brought it out. The words Global Warming, or Pollution, or even Al Gore (snicker) aren’t ever said.
I noticed that you didn’t really say whether you thought this was Pixar’s best film or not. For me The Incredible and Ratatouie were the best with this coming in third or fourth next to Monster’s, Inc or Nemo.
Colin Devroe on June 28th, 2008 10:18 am
I have a hard time picking favorites, but I think if I was forced to choose, I’d say The Incredibles. WALL-E is a close second, while every other Pixar film is tied for third (except A Bug’s Life and Cars, those are tied for fourth I guess.) Something about WALL-E himself just made me enjoy the film even more than I thought I would. In terms of favorite animation over all? Well that’s an entirely other discussion that I would have to prepare for.
Sameer Barkawi on June 28th, 2008 10:40 am
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Wall-E totally looks like the robot from “Short Circuit”… minus the cheesy 80’s style of course
patrick on July 11th, 2008 1:20 am
He reminds me of that a bit of that robot, plus ROB the Robot that came with the Nintendo game Gyromite, mixed with ET. He even acts a bit like ET now that I think about it….
Sameer Barkawi on July 11th, 2008 3:51 am