While the men are away, the machines will play. We're talking about the Earth in this case, which has been abandoned by humanity for the better part of seven centuries with mechanized drones left behind to sweep up the mess and maybe, possibly, find love somewhere in the aftermath. Wall-E's opening act is Pixar at its finest, playing with raw pantomime and rich expression during a solid forty minutes' screen time with little or no dialog.
The dire, desolate setting of our planet's future is unnerving, a vast stretch of crumbling skyscrapers and wind-swept fast food wrappers, but we can't get too down in the dumps about it because the one little refuse-collecting bot at the center of it all is so deeply enamored with the place. Amidst evidence of the very worst of human nature, we're also reminded of its most redeeming qualities, and experience many of them through fresh eyes. Wall-E takes the time to appreciate things that our obsessively screen-gazing descendants miss (an uncomfortably prescient prediction, that) and, as we're along for the ride with him this time, we do, too.
Spirited, fantastical sci-fi with an artist's heart and a clear message. It's ten years old, but it looks like it could've been released ten minutes ago.
Review by drqshadowBlockedParent2020-01-29T20:49:37Z
While the men are away, the machines will play. We're talking about the Earth in this case, which has been abandoned by humanity for the better part of seven centuries with mechanized drones left behind to sweep up the mess and maybe, possibly, find love somewhere in the aftermath. Wall-E's opening act is Pixar at its finest, playing with raw pantomime and rich expression during a solid forty minutes' screen time with little or no dialog.
The dire, desolate setting of our planet's future is unnerving, a vast stretch of crumbling skyscrapers and wind-swept fast food wrappers, but we can't get too down in the dumps about it because the one little refuse-collecting bot at the center of it all is so deeply enamored with the place. Amidst evidence of the very worst of human nature, we're also reminded of its most redeeming qualities, and experience many of them through fresh eyes. Wall-E takes the time to appreciate things that our obsessively screen-gazing descendants miss (an uncomfortably prescient prediction, that) and, as we're along for the ride with him this time, we do, too.
Spirited, fantastical sci-fi with an artist's heart and a clear message. It's ten years old, but it looks like it could've been released ten minutes ago.