Review: Wall-E

A new Pixar film is a now, almost yearly cause for celebration and with the release of Wall-E, the studio’s most recent offering, its time to break out the party hats again. Just when you think that the folks at the most creative studio in the industry couldn’t do anything to top their last offering, they always seem to come through. Although, with Wall-E, they may have finally met their match as I can’t possibly imagine how they could top this sublimely entertaining and profoundly moving tale with anything else. Inside of the confines of Wall-E’s masterful 97 minute run time lies the vast expanse of human emotion. Sadness, humor, horror and overwhelming joy are all touched on in equal measure and with similar effectiveness.

Directed by Andrew Stanton (you may have heard of his previous film, a small box office success entitled Finding Nemo) with a skill that most live action filmmakers couldn’t fathom, Wall-E tells the story of its title character, a robot employed in the clean up of Earth. Ravaged by consumerism and pollution, our world was vacated long ago, leaving an army of Wall-Es (Waste Allocation Load Lifted – Earth Class) to do their work. However, after nearly 700 years of attempted clean up, everything has shut down/expired with the exception of our hero and his lone companion, a cockroach. Wall-E’s world is turned upside down when all of a sudden, a massive spacecraft lands on Earth, leaving a small device in its wake, code named EVE. EVE’s role is to search the planet for forms of life, anything to show that the environment has once again become compatible with human existence.

Upon seeing this new visitor, Wall-E immediately takes a liking to the stranger and for the, nearly dialogue free, opening 30 minutes, begins to help acclimate his new companion to the surroundings. The results are as a sublime a half hour as one will find in film this year, a mix of Chaplin-esque comedic pathos and mind-bending animation. For a children’s film to open with a dialogue free first third is unheard of, but Stanton, in all his ingenuity, obviously knows what he is doing, crafting a masterfully realized opening that beautifully sets the stage for the more action oriented second act. The opening moments are so magnificently constructed that I was sorry to see them end. That is, until the brilliant second half reassured me that Wall-E was in good hands.

Pixar has always pushed the envelope with their films, steadfastly refusing to fit into any mold. Wall-E may be their most ambitious project to date in every imaginable aspect. From the opening, soaring shots of the battered shell of the Earth to the inner workings of a massive star cruiser, Pixar have outdone themselves once again by crafting the most mind blowing animated sequences I have ever seen. Each shot is so lovingly crafted, down to each specific detail that the care and preparation leaps off the screen. There is literally not a single shot that doesn’t demand the viewers most careful attention to fully appreciate the grandeur of it all.

While the larger elements of the animation may put asses in the seats, it’s the smaller pieces that allow them to leave happy and thankfully, the animators at Pixar have performed nothing less than a miracle with Wall-E and EVE, two characters that are so instantly likable that one must frequently remind themselves that these two robots are exactly that. The emotion displayed by two seemingly mechanical beings is absolutely tremendous. Stanton and his crew have created what may stand as the most endearing character in the Pixar pantheon, all without the benefit of facial expressions and the like. Wall-E’s movements are humanistic without ever feeling unrealistic. The displays of emotion, of pain, of love are believable throughout. Stop and think about that for a second. The men and women of Pixar have created an animated robot, a mechanical device that emotes with more believability than most mainstream Hollywood stars. It’s a stunning achievement that should not be overlooked or underestimated.

Much has been made in the blogosphere about the ecological bent of Wall-E, and while there is a determined eco-friendliness to it, I see nothing wrong with it. It laments the destruction of our planet to a consumerist nature that values profit over environment. Whether one believes in the theory of global warming or not is irrelevant to the argument here. No matter one’s opinion about that subject, the care of our environment should be an important matter for anyone inhabiting this Earth, a point Wall-E drives home with grace and feeling. If we continue to live our lives as we do, the damage to the environment will increase with each passing year. There is a need for a drastic reevaluation of beliefs and practices and Wall-E recognizes the importance of this issue. I applaude the courage of Stanton and his team to include such a potent and timely message into a film that will be seen by youths the world around. If the youngest generations can be shown the dangers of our ways, perhaps they will be smart enough to find acceptable alternative ways of living. Perhaps they can succeed where past generations have failed.

Wall-E is an unparalleled success and to date, is the best film released this year. While the second half certainly feels different than the first, largely due to the inclusion of dialogue, both sections work equally well. The first is a mind blowing 30 minutes of silent filmmaking that features moment after moment that would make Chaplin and Keaton blush with joy. The second is the emotional payoff to the first half’s careful setup and it packs more of a wallop than almost any film in recent memory. Amazingly, none of it feels manipulative or phony as Stanton earns every last emotion with one moment of spectacular filmmaking after another. Wall-E stands as a film that works as well for adults as it will for children, an impressive achievement no doubt. What may be more impressive is that at year’s end, for the first time, in a long time, an animated film may truly, honestly and thankfully be the best a year has to offer. It is certainly the best film Pixar has released since The Incredibles, joining the upper echelon of indisputable masterpieces released by this consistently impressive studio.