WALL-E

[Baz]

Excellent movie. The first half hour, with no speech in it is just jaw droppingly beautiful. Amazing how they pack so much pathos and emotion into a small CG robot.

Could almost be a RD universe story, Earth abandoned as a trash planet. Robot left behind, still carrying out it’s tasks. And Captian Hollister is surely showing the first sign of turning into Captain McCrea.

Topic

[pfm]

Yeah this was so brilliant. On first viewing I thought the second half messed up the film, I wished there was NO dialogue, no humans at all. But then loads of people wouldn’t really have got the film’s message (a lot still won’t…). The Axion, the ship carrying the entire human race (or what’s left of it…interesting how everyone’s American…) is such an astoundingly great idea visualized spectacularly. This is in many ways Pixar’s ultimate masterpiece.

Indeed so there are Dwarf connections. I’d like to think Doug has watched this with a smile on his face.

[Danny Stephenson]

I can’t wait to see this tomorrow.

[Phil]

Yeah, it was really good. It was a little jarring having Fred Willard in the movie as the only non-CG element of the whole film, but I love the man enough that my delight far outweighed my confusion.

[John Hoare]

My favourite Pixar film ever. Although I say that about *every* new Pixar film I see.

Amazing stuff, though, in every possible way.

[pfm]

At first I didn’t get the whole using real humans thing, but it’s actually pretty blatant. The humans onscreen are what the ‘real’ people think they look like, or it’s what they want to look like.

[Tanya Jones]

The short was terrific as well…

[Baz]

It was gratuitously violent.

So yes, it was a hoot. The DVD will have a short involving BURN-E, the welding robot that gets locked out after EVE and WALL-E fly back to the Axiom.

Incidentally, didn’t get the whole A113 thing until I looked it up-

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A113

[Andrew]

> BURN-E

Is that the real character name? Aside from him not being Earth-class (Axiom Load Lifters are stamped ‘Wall-A’), I’m curious as to how the acronym’s going to work there…

[Baz]

It is indeed- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BURN-E

Maybe the “E” doesn’t stand for “Earth” in his case.

I can imagine WALL-E being one of the skutter’s favourite films. I have one of the small poseable WALL-E toys currently sitting on top of my monitor. Very cute it looks too.

[Danny Stephenson]

Seen it, loved it. Can’t wait for the DVD! “Presto” short was really inventive and was a joy to watch. Main feature was visually stunning and every shot had me hooked. I liked the nods to “2001: A Space Odyssey”. I did notice that because there was a distinct lack of true human vocals, the sound design was kicked up a fair notch, and I was loving it!

Awesome film. Just awesome.

[mick]

Got too bloody preachy about the environment, FUCK OFF!

[Tarka Dal]

I was actual surprised as I thought it was less-preachy then it was going to be. Then again maybe it was just closer to my way of thinking about things so I noticed it less.

[Tanya Jones]

I didn’t think it was particularly preachy, rather, it was trying to say that modern humans are sometimes so cossetted by society that they don’t realise how much potential they have to reverse the damage their lifestyle has done.

[Mr Flibble]

Really good, loved it, wasn’t sure I would.

I didn’t think it was very preachy either, just funny.

[peas_and_corn]

heh heh… WILL-E.

[Ben Paddon]

“Hello, you are reading Ganymede & Titan.”

[Jonsmad]

Yeah I agree. I thought it was satirical, but optimistic, and it would depend on the age or opinions of the viewer whether they saw an enivormental message or a wacky imagained robot film.

I saw echo’s of ET, Short Circuit and R2D2 in it. Really enjoyed it.

Dam what was the short Tanya? I arrived late at the Cinema got there just as the opening titles started, on the main feature and didnt think I had missed anything.

Was the captain voiced by that guy out of Crub your enthusiasm, sounded like him, (I watched Steve Coogan pop up in that show recently). It was kind of like the holly senility angle only this time it was the humans forgetting all there knowledge and talents.

[Seb Patrick]

Ohhh, man, you missed “Presto”? You need to go and see it again! It’s by far Pixar’s best ever short! Pure Looney Tunes stuff…

[Jonsmad]

We are talking Knick knack. If so I hope Presto is on the DVD and I might get it.

[John Hoare]

For the Birds is still my favourite Pixar short. What that says about me I don’t know, though.

[Dave]

>Crub your enthusiasm

http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Crub

[Seb Patrick]

Saw it again tonight – paid this time! It actually gets better on repeat viewings. God I love this film.

[Andrew]

Then you may find this ‘interesting’:

http://chud.com/articles/articles/15900/1/THE-DEVIN039S-ADVOCATE-WALLE039S-UNLIKELY-LOVE-STORY/Page1.html

[Phil]

His argument is that Wall-E isn’t doing so hot financially because its love story isn’t convincing? To make that argument you’d have to accept as fact that movies with “convincing” love stories are more profitable than movies without.

Which I really doubt is the case.

[Jonsmad]

Did I just really read the words “date rape” in a review of a kids robot movie?

I’m not letting this guy anywhere near Bambi.

[Andrew]

> Which I really doubt is the case.

Well quite. The fact that it’s only ‘very profitable’ means only exactly that.

But – I did leave the second screening I went to with some sense of what he’s talking about. That, at least, Eve’s affection was won relatively easily compared to her previous behavior (though that article handily skips the key discovery – Eve seeing the video playback of WALL-E protecting her while she was shut down), and that the ‘girlfriend in a coma’ sequence risked sitting uncomfortably given that, as an audience, we’re meant to identify with the lead character.

The counter-argument, of course, is THEY’RE FUCKING ROBOTS. And a perfectly valid one it is, too.

[pfm]

I simply cannot believe that anyone is ‘uncomfortable’ with that part of WALL-E! It’s mildly interesting that some people can’t seem to get stuff like rape out of their minds even when going to watch a Pixar film. Why even go and see a film when your attitude is one of ‘OK, I’m sitting here ready and waiting to be offending by something, ANYTHING, so I can have a good old whine about it when I get home.’

It hasn’t made as much money because most people still think it’s just about a robot shovelling trash. And if you try and describe to someone what it’s really about they’re STILL not bothered because it sounds too ‘deep’ or not interesting or funny enough.

[Andrew]

You did read what he wrote, though, right? He gave the film a glowing review originally. He’s not suggesting a boycott or anything – it’s just an interpretive reading. Which is kinda what art is for.

[Seb Patrick]

>though that article handily skips the key discovery – Eve seeing the video playback of WALL-E protecting her while she was shut down

… and the fact that he risks everything in order to bring her the plant and enable her to fulfil her directive…

[Andrew]

> ? and the fact that he risks everything in order to bring her the plant and enable her to fulfil her directive?

I think that would just fit with the general thesis anyway – that he’d do anything for her, to the point of reckless obsession, despite minimal encouragement.

[Phil]

>He?s not suggesting a boycott or anything – it?s just an interpretive reading.

Sure. And I’m fine with somebody exploring their theory that the love story isn’t entirely convincing, or might actually be kind of creepy. (To be honest I agree with a lot of it.)

But I don’t know why he bothers to draw a financial correlation at all. He opens by saying, “Hey, ever wonder why Wall-E isn’t doing better in theaters? I’ll tell you. It’s because the love story isn’t convincing.”

Which is a horrible way to open your essay, because…who would actually accept the premise that convincing love story = stronger financial gain? It would take a lot of research to convince me of something like that, as I can’t say it suits my experience at all. (Let alone the idea of “convincing” being entirely subjective and “profit” being wholly objective…how on earth could you possibly link the two?)

Not that I’m saying much more in this post than I am in my previous, but I want to stress–lest I be misunderstood–that I appreciate somebody taking the time to get an unconventional opinion across. What I don’t understand is why he’s trying to link it to box office performance.

[Andrew]

I totally, totally agree. Sorry, my ‘boycott’ point was responding to PM’s suggestion that the guy was ‘waiting to be offended’.

Interesting follow-up:

http://www.collider.com/entertainment/news/article.asp/aid/8806/tcid/1

[Phil]

Nope, no need for apologies. I understood it wasn’t directed at me. I just wanted to be more clear with what I had said earlier, as I realized it wasn’t easily distinguishable.

[Dave]

>I?m not letting this guy anywhere near Bambi

Is Bambi you’re 12 year old sister?

[Danny Stephenson]

Sorry to disturb the thread, like I always do, I was watching Futurama and came across one of “The Scary Door” skits and i was watching it with the guy where his eyes come out and his hands come off, and then I paused the screen, knowing for a fact that I’d seen it before it took me 4 hours to realise it was Dave’s frigging avatar!

Back to Wall-E…

[Dave]

“Hey, look at that weird mirror”

I’m just glad no one picked up on my bad grammar. I, of course, meant to say:

“Is Bambi you are 12 year old sister?”

[Ben Paddon]

My co-workers and I have taken to referring to “Presto” as “Portal: The Movie”.

[Author]

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