WALL-E (2008)
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WALL-E Movie Review
WALL-E is a 2008 animated science fiction romance film directed by Andrew Stanton. It is Pixar’s ninth feature film and one of their biggest classics.
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“WALL-E?
Eeeeva“
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It follows a trash compactor robot whose job is to collect trash on desolate Earth in the far future. He is eventually visited by another sentient robot and it is up to the two to save the plant he found and send a directive to the human crew on a satellite to repopulate Earth. Yes, the premise is very strong and the execution doesn’t disappoint. It is a great film whether you talk about it as a romance, science fiction or animation.
As a romance, it truly is a wonderful flick as the center robotic relationship is very much human, lovely and the film is frequently very romantic, consistently endearing and even touching in that final moment between the two. It is one of the Pixar films which are emotional, but never too manipulative in sentiment which I appreciated.
As a science fiction tale, it also works splendidly. Now it obviously is influenced in its villain, overall look and approach to ‘2001: A Space Odyssey’ and is inferior to it again obviously. However, it is probably the best ever film that was influenced by that enormous classic. The film does have little dialogue, but still a lot to say as it explores many themes ranging from consumerism, waste management, obesity and environmentalism.
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Its portrayal of humans who are all fat and cannot stand on their feet makes the film seem rather alarming in tone and not so distant in future given that that’s beginning to happen even now. I loved its environmental message, it’s a terrific love letter to planet Earth and it showcases how being over-reliant on technology can impact people negatively both on their physical activities and individualism. We’ve seen environmental SF films such as this one many times before, especially in the seventies when it was briefly highly popular, but I would honestly say that this picture is the best example of such a tale.
And WALL-E succeeds the most without a doubt as a masterpiece of the animated medium. It’s simply a phenomenal animated film which is very authentic as never before have we seen a big budgeted animated movie done almost entirely without sound. Its approach paid off beautifully as it made the film smarter and more artistic. The second half can be a bit too hectic in pace, but the first half is wonderfully simplistic and wholly silent with only sound effects and score employed. Couple that approach with old-fashioned slapstick and you’ve got an animated film which pleasantly reminded me of 1920s cinema.
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This animation is breathtaking to behold. Pixar has made a couple of instant classics when it comes to its visuals, but I would state that this film is their best and most artistic achievement so far. The character design is splendid to behold with the humans so well portrayed and the robots being diverse in style ranging from elegantly simplistic and modern EVE to our archaic, but still endearing protagonist. The visuals of the space are very much romantic which works in the context of the film and the color of purple is particularly effective.
WALL-E is such a beautiful soul. He is a fun, caring and very much human robot who was portrayed in movements (especially of the head) as a dog which made him incredibly cute and appealing. His love of musicals was charming to witness and the movie truly is a great homage to that film genre. EVE is also a great character who’s rather menacing at first, but eventually cools off and becomes more caring toward him. Their interactions are the heart of the film.
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I actually loved the choice to humanize robots and somewhat dehumanize the humans themselves as it works in the context of the film. They still are a memorable, but definitely less focused presence. John and Mary are underdeveloped but a wonderful new couple and of course Captain McCrea is a very inspirational man whose evolution from just a pawn to a real captain is so well executed. AUTO is of course similar to HAL-9000, even a bit too much, but still a rather effective, menacing robotic villain.
I loved that ending but my favorite scenes mostly happen in the first half on Earth with the musical scene being enchanting, the first meeting of the romantic couple of excellent and of course that space dance is heartwarming. I also really liked Hal the cockroach as Pixar did with cockroaches the same they did with rats and that is made them appealing and cute. I also loved the look of Axiom and how life functions there. All of that was so well established.
The world building is truly spectacular in WALL-E and it might be the most ambitious Pixar outing so far. The same goes for frequently memorable imagery and excellent sound design and mixing. The film also features a beautiful, highly moving and modern score. The voice acting is brilliant across the board.
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Andrew Stanton directed the film so well and he surely is one of Pixar’s better directors. The dialogue is sparse but fantastic when it’s there. The action sequences are a bit overwhelming in the second half, but so well executed and a lot of fun. The humor is also fantastic and, as I said, pleasantly reminding me of 20s slapstick comedies. The tone is great also. The movie truly managed to feel timeless in quality and a work of art in its own right leading to Pixar’s best film after ‘Ratatouille’.
WALL-E is not only a masterpiece of animation, but also a romance and science fiction classic as it features a beautiful romance at the center of it while also having a strong SF tale filled with important themes. WALL-E and EVE are a wonderful couple and two of cinema’s most unforgettable robots. The animation is Pixar’s finest, most artistic and most breathtaking while the sound effects are fantastic as is the moving score. It’s a rare big budgeted animated feature which relies so little on dialogue and is almost entirely silent in approach. Couple that with its old-fashioned, endearing slapstick and you’ve got a pleasant 1920s influenced film which is still very much timeless in plot, characters and emotion.
