Note by Anders (Editor):
Katina is a new author here at Cut, Print, Review! Enjoy her excellent take on Pixar’s WALL-E, which I reviewed earlier here. Welcome to the team Katina!
It could be said that Pixar haven’t been on top of their game in recent years. Although Cars and Ratatouille were well received, they weren’t propelled to the top of the box office in the same way that favourites like Finding Nemo and The Incredibles were.
Enter Wall•E.
It’s not just that the film was marketed for a good 18 months via teaser trailers and posters, or that it seemingly returned to a creature (robot) that only kids could understand. While the building excitement played its part, Pixar have truly created one of the finest animated features to date. Period. They have shown that dialogue can be unnecessary and that animation can appeal to adults in a world with serious human issues.
Wall•E centres around the titular character (voiced by the sound effects legend of our generation, Ben Burtt) – a robot designed to clean up the garbage left by humans who have abandoned Earth with the help of multi-national corporation BuyNLarge. With his cockroach friend, Wall•E creates garbage skyscrapers and collect trinkets that fascinate him. Imagine his shock when a ship in the sky delivers EVE (voiced by Elissa Knight) – Wall•E is knocked out by the power of love. Trouble ensues as he follows her return to the Axiom ship where the humans live, or rather hover as they’ve lost the need to walk, and their impending return to Earth as vegetation is found.
The animation is breathtaking. Director Andrew Stanton has found his way in directing after initial success with Finding Nemo and with executive producer John Lasseter has created a new benchmark – one which appears to lift higher and higher with each successful attempt. Ben McEachen found an interesting way to put it, creating a personal influence while viewing the film: dust truly never looked so beautiful. He was right. From the sleek design of EVE to Wall•E’s dirty, banged-up exterior, the film gives us a visual world that creates everything the viewer needs to feel they are watching something from another place.
This film is as much for the big kids as it is the small. The first half of the film centres on Wall•E’s existence and his emotions expanding. While perfectly content within his world, he has human functions capable enough to understand that he wants to love and be loved. His favourite scene of 60’s musical Hello Dolly! (entertainment through a now old-school VHS) shows holding hands, a recurring theme throughout the film. EVE’s entrance lets him hope that love is possible, and minimum words need to be said when expressing this most raw of emotions. The fact that he can put himself out there and teach her to feel brings across a strong message of good humanity, perhaps a response to the suggestion that we are losing that sense of goodwill in today’s world.
The image of humans having turned into fat blobs through the influence of the BuyNLarge corporation is a clear statement on where we as beings are supposedly headed. They didn’t have to leave Earth – they just couldn’t clean up their mess, and now they pay the consequences. Global warming anyone? While the comic relief does come from this area, Stanton and Lasseter are right on the money in making this kind of statement as obesity levels rise and corporations increase their hold on the consumerist world.
Conclusion:
Pixar have created yet another jewel for its treasure chest. Early reviews suggested it should be nominated for Best Picture from the Academy, and it wouldn’t surprise many if it did. It is one of 2008’s best films with strong messages, romance, comedy and some heartfelt action. Plus, Pixar regular John Ratzenburger returns as human John. How can he disappoint?
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