Gee, this is gettin pretty crazy, I mean, first I'm blogging in from Galway, now at the back of the Castlecourt Food Court due to the father's negligence to update the computer's anti-virus software. So, the film up for review today is the new Pixar movie, Wall-E. Essentially, the premise is that the world has been abandoned due to pollution and the only living thing (synthetic or natural) is a waste disposal robot by the name of Wall-E, who for an unknown amount of years has been spending his time watching Hello Dolly and making Skyscrapers out of waste. During his travels, Wall-E encounters Eve, a newer robot who has been sent from Axiom, the giant spaceship in which the humans have escaped the earth, to find out if the world has become habitable. Now, for those expecting another rant, you will be surprised. In my opinion, it is such a shame that Kung Fu Panda, a film I reviewed less than a week ago, is released alongside a monumental animation film like Wall-E. I noted that the animation in that film was superb, but to be perfectly honest, just pales out in comparison to the work that has been done in this film. The desolate landscape in this film is as beautiful (or bleak, depending on your opinion) as any seen in great dystopian science fiction films, such as Blade Runner. Also, further on in the film, when Wall-E finds his way onto the Axiom, the detail and the bright colours on the ship act as a stark and welcome contrast to the deserts of waste seen earlier. Also, unlike many films, the music does not act as an intrusion, but instead heightens the emotion and tension of the piece, contrasting from extracts from Hello Dolly to the films musical score, striking a great balance between score and pop culture, unlike the recent In Bruges. Also, Andrew Stanton direction, in his first film since Finding Nemo, shows true potential, and the fact that he has been able to create a truly adult film out of what is essentially a child's world in animation as of late is something for which he should be credited. The only problem with his direction in my opinion is the fact that once the humans become involved, he occasionally loses direction, but nonetheless creates a degree of interest out of the more boring sections in the film. Another commendation to this great film is the voice acting, particularly in the scenes between Eve and Wall-E. In these scenes the animation and voice acting work hand in hand, conjuring a great deal more emotion from voices reminiscent of C3PO and R2D2, than a Hollywood film with a screenplay laden with dialogue. The screenplay remains consistent and restrained in these sections of the film, and in the human sections too fails to skip a beat, bringing as many laughs as the slapstick seen earlier with Wall-E. Finally, there is a huge degree of emotional value in this film, with at least two different sections when the waterworks indeed seemed to on the horizon. The fact that an animation can draw out so much emotion, for they are essentially creations of computer animators, is something that speaks very highly of the film. Not only is there emotional value, but the film contains many themes and is in a way a sort of social commentary. It is not preachy in its delivery, but what it is saying is that we are a consumerist society that uses and disposes in excess (Buy N' Large) and that if we do not do something to change this, we will destroy our home. Overall, this is a very strong film, perhaps Pixar's best (Yes, including Toy Story), which despite being a powerful, adult animation with a good social commentary, the kid's too can revel and enjoy in the gags that are laden throughout Wall-E. The second masterpiece of 2008.
The Thin White Dude's Prognosis - 9.3/10
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