After seeing Wall-E yesterday, John Gruber's take on Wall-E justified my seemingly irrational love of the film. With a group of family, we had nine children and four adults. The children and I loved it. The other three adults didn't feel that Wall-E was one of Pixar's finest.
Web sites are chock full of discussion about the "Easter eggs" in the movie. Did you notice the Leopard wallpaper behind Eve? Did you see the scurrying Apple Mice in the trash heap? Did you recognize the music from 2001: A Space Odyssey?
Pixar has created a movie with astounding animation (surpassing every movie they've done before, as usual). But beyond that, they've created a movie unlike any other animated feature before it. Departing from their usual buddy-movie themes, Wall-E is a social commentary that just happens to be animated. It also begins with almost 45 minutes of absolutely no dialogue, and an animated cockroach that apparently didn't receive the memo that almost all Disney characters, no matter their species, speak.
The other adults, however, disagreed. The social commentary was too heavy. The lack of dialogue felt too slow. And they missed nearly every elbow nudge from the Pixar crew right down to the Apple boot FX that was heard every time Wall-E's charge was complete or he rebooted.
Has a digital divide widened the gap between generations even more than assumed? The children recognized many of the in-jokes, even as young as four. And they also agreed it was a great movie. But is this an Oscar contender only for the young and the geeks?
More news, commentary, and predictions from The Industry Standard:
Comments
Sad, sad, sad. This is what I hate about today's society.
This is what you hate about society, "Carlen"? Maybe you are just too dense to get a simple movie like Wall E. As far as the author of this page goes, the same to you. Just because you didn't "get it" or understand the movie doesn't mean it was a bad movie. I am a Technology Manager who has had many debates about the so-called digital divide. It is about as real as man-made global warming (farce x2!). Its a buzzword used to get more Government funding.
Just saw it again today with my girlfriend, who also falls under the "geek" umbrella, and I have to say the movie is full of great references. The ones you listed are among the most overt; everyone noticed those. My personal favorite is the quick peak at a Gemini capsule.
Um, Chris, did you actually read what I said? I loved it. However, the three other adults with me, none of whom are at all involved in tech, did not. They got none of the in-jokes, didn't appreciate the environmental message, and rated it at the bottom of the Pixar films they had seen.
Kevin, I disagree that "everyone noticed" them, because, as I said, the other three adults I was with didn't even get those, much less all the references that were more subtle. That's what prompted my post.
Post new comment