by Sheila Westfall

Created on: July 08, 2008

Pixar has always been a master at creating animated movies that appeal to both kids and adults. Since Buzz Lightyear had a tea party with 'Marie Antoinette and her little sister" they have packed their films with adult friendly references. But with "Wall-E" they push into even more adult territory - social commentary.

Wall-E is just one of a slew of Waste Allocation Load Lifter Earth Class robots left behind after mankind has fled the garbage covered planet. Their job is to clean up the earth to make it habitable again. But after 500 years there is still massive amounts of trash and most of the Wall-Es have run down and ceased to function. Our little hero is a major exception, still spending his days crushing trash while collecting interesting items in a cooler to take home to his hatch collection. At night he watched "Hello Dolly" before folding himself into a little box and storing himself on a shelf. Although Wall-E doesn't talk, his beeps and hums express surprise, joy, and fear quite effectively. And his antics such as putting a bra over his binocular eyes are funny enough to please crowds of all ages.

This first segment of the movie, where a lonely Wall-E goes about his daily routine, provide the first two bits of commentary. The obvious topic is that of man's waste and consumption in our present age of environmental concern and shows a startling potential future. The skyscrapers of trash depict an Earth that most would prefer to believe impossible. The second issue is a little more subtle. Wall-E's endless curiosity about the world around him points to the lack of curiosity in most adults and the willingness to go through our daily routine with little interest in those around us.

Wall-E's world is turned upside down by the arrival of EVE a sexy new robot who is dropped off by a space ship close to his home. Despite her determination to ignore him and her attempts to blast him to oblivion, he falls in love him her subtle curves and (literal) other-worldliness. His persistence pays off and they eventually become friends. He takes her home to show off his collection which she views with little interest. It's not until he shows her his newest acquisition - a plant he discovered growing in a rusting refrigerator - that things get exciting. For EVE is an Extraterrestrial Vegetation Evaluator, sent to Earth to collect plant samples as a sign of planet improvement. She places the specimen within her bowels and immediately shuts down.

Her spaceship returns to take

• 1
• 2
• Next Page >>