Wall-E (2008)

Oh, Pixar, you wonderful company, you...

Sure, Pixar does have a few misfires in my book. I couldn't abide 'Cars' or its sequels, let alone 'Planes'; I actively ignored 'Monsters University'. Yet, most of their output speaks to me and I enjoy nearly all of them immensely.

But 'Wall-E'? That one has a spot close to my heart.

Sure, you might put that down to my fetish for all things robotic, but that would be missing a large point, namely that this one is all about character and that shows that Pixar doesn't have to rely on verbal jokes and suchlike. 'Wall-E' is mostly silent, so they have to make the characters act and emote through their movements and this is where this film truly shines and delivers.

Earth in the future is a dirty mess. Humanity left in luxurious spaceships and left little robots to clean up the mess. At the start of the story, Wall-E is the only one left and he has developed a real personality throughout those lonely years. He does his job, but still collects trinkets he comes across. His only company is a cockroach. That all changes when one day a huge spaceship lands and drops EVE, a sleek female robot on the search for something. Wall-E is instantly smitten and shows her a plant he has found. She goes into lockdown immediately (because finding plantlife was her mission) and when the spaceship returns to take her back, Wall-E hitches a ride. He discovers that humans have been in space for 700 years, doing mostly nothing. They are being controlled by the autopilot of the ship, who doesn't want to relinquish control. But though it all, it's Wall-E's love for EVE that keeps everything going.

The best parts are just robots having their own quirks. The humans that show up are probably my least favourite part. I can understand why they were included, but it's the first half of the story, the interaction between Wall-E and EVE that are the heart and soul of this one. You'd never suspect robotic mechanisms to be able to show many emotions through minor movements, but the people at Pixar managed it to a T. Sound design is also top notch, with cool effects and sparse music that feels out of date, but never out of place.

You may have never expected to feel emotionally invested in a bunch of mechanical beings, but this one pulls you in and lets you laugh and cry. I won't say when, but there is a point in the film where it's bloody tricky to keep those tears from falling, trust me.

Also, props to M-O for being hilarious.

Please watch this one. And if you have already seen it, watch it again. It's gorgeous.