I've more than sure enough that I've said things that will get fans of Japanese animation to hate me forever. Now to piss off fans of American cartoons.
I love Disney. And I love Pixar. But then again, corporations, like people, are not perfect. Now, Pixar has earned a reputation for quality works. This is not entirely unfounded. I've seen all but two of Pixar's full length films. I haven't seen Cars (because I've heard nothing but bad things about it) and I haven't seen Up . . . yet, but I've seen everything else, and everything else, I either liked, or loved. Here's a brief synopsis:
Toy Story 1 and 2: Loved them. Some of the most charming films I've ever seen in my life.
A Bug's Life: Liked it. Not as charming as Toy Story, but still a good movie.
Monster's Inc: Loved it. Cute and hilarious at the same time.
Finding Nemo: Loved it. Hilarious and touching.
The Incredibles: Loved it. Really funny, and also is a good action film too.
Ratatouille: Liked it. Not that funny, but had good characterization.
And now is the part where you're gonna hate me. I have also seen Wall-E. And ya know what? Wall-E is the "worst" film by Pixar I have ever seen. I will now take a moment to duck behind my desk, as to avoid the bullets and rocks that will surely come my way.
*ducks*
Okay, now that you're out of ammo, please note I put "worst" in quotations; Wall-E is not a horrible film by any means. I could think of a number of animated films that I dislike more than Wall-E. However, I'm gonna be honest with you, I do think Wall-E is somewhat overrated.
My primary issue is this. Wall-E is a kid's film. WAIT! That in itself isn't a bad thing! You see, it's a Disney film, it's rated G, and children can understand it. Here's where my problem comes in; Wall-E was obviously made for children, they made it too well for children. I would've liked Wall-E more . . . if I was three years old again. The film is far less substantial than what I would normally expect from Pixar. It's much more basic, much simpler. Simplicity in itself is not a bad thing, but there is a such thing as being too simplistic, and Wall-E is definitely that.
I did like how the film was a commentary on the increasingly sedentary lifestyle of people over the years, and I also liked how the captain of the Axiom was fascinated with the past, and how that inspired him to rise up against the movie's antagonist. However, most of the characters didn't really have much depth to them, and unlike most of Pixar's movies, there wasn't really much humor either. Parts of the film dragged on as well, but my biggest problem is perhaps how cheap one scene in the end was. (MINOR SPOILER!) It looks like Wall-E has "short-circuited" but EVE, his love interest, gives him a sort of kiss. This suddenly brings Wall-E back to life. The other robots cheer. When I saw that, all I could think was, "Too obvious!" I know it's a Disney film, but don't make it so I can predict what will happen based on cliches of the past.
Okay, okay, I'm sounding a little too harsh. It wasn't a terrible film. The lighting effects were top-notch, and as much as the simplicity hurts the film, at the same time, it's really easy to follow. Even when Pixar is at its worst, it's still more watchable than the majority of Dreamworks Interactive's filmography. However, while I wasn't expecting a godsend, I was hoping that Wall-E would be, at the very least, as good as Ratatouille, but alas, that's not the case.
But still, why is everyone acting like this is the best Pixar/Western cartoon/animated film of all time? It's not! It's nowhere close to that! Why is everyone acting like it's a work of brilliance, when it's only slightly above-average? I don't get it! Okay, let me try to end this on a positive note. Wall-E is the "Worst" Pixar I've ever seen, whereas Princess Mononoke is the worst Ghibli film I've ever seen, and Shark Tale is the worst Dreamworks Interactive film I've ever seen. If you forced me to watch one of these movies again, but gave me the choice of which one to watch, I would pick Wall-E, because, even though I don't love it, at the very least, it is not filled with half-assed jokes and an annoying protagonist like Shark Tale, and it's not incredibly confusing and filled entirely with a cast of completely unlikable characters like Princess Mononoke either. That is the best thing I can say about Wall-E.
Now, when's Up coming out on DVD?
