I suppose it's possible that Pixar will make a bad movie one of these days, but it hasn't happened yet. In my opinion, the closest they came to a "miss" was with Cars. Gorgeous animation, but it was a little long, and not as compelling as some of the others. Let me give you my thoughts on WALL·E and I'll close with my top 5 Pixar movies.
I really appreciated the fact that I hadn't seen any trailers for the movie before I saw it. I don't have to with Pixar movies, and with 4 children in the house who I know will want to see it. The thing that sets this movie apart (as with any really good movie) is a compelling story. There's very little dialogue in the first thirty minutes, and it's a very similar feel to I Am Legend: earth is abandoned, save for one cockroach and one robot who is cleaning up the trash. But was I bored by this? Hardly.
We discover that Earth is in the shape she's in because of a giant conglomerate called Buy N Large (a swipe at Costco, perhaps?) which has basically screwed everything up. It could become JUST an anti-big company, eco-friendly movie, but it doesn't. It's actually an eco-friendly, social-commentary, robo-romantic comedy, science-fiction movie. And probably the best one of that genre so far this summer.
Michael Phillips' review in the Tribune says it well: "it's remarkable to see any film, in any genre, blend honest sentiment with genuine wit and a visual landscape unlike any other." You should go see it. It's not perfect, and probably not the best Pixar movie, but it's good. And now for The List:
Top Pixar Movies
1. Finding Nemo (the underwater animation is breath-taking, the story is touching, Ellen DeGeneres is hysterical)
2. Monsters, Inc. (funny, inventive, touching, always keeps you entertained)
3. Toy Story (hard to believe this was Pixar's first full-length movie. Groundbreaking animation, funny, heart-warming, great story, several false endings keep you on the edge of your seat. Great lesson on feeling replaced)
4. The Incredibles (compelling story, cleverly done, great lesson on doing what gives you joy)
5. WALL·E (see comments above)
The final four I'd rank in this order: Ratatouille, Toy Story 2, A Bug's Life, Cars
Honorable mention, non-Pixar category: "Surf's Up". The best non-Pixar movie of the past several years. It's a mockumentary penguin movie, featuring Jeff Bridges as a kind of "The Dude" character from Big Lebowski character, plus Zooey Deschanel, Shia LeBeouf, and Napoleon and Rex from Napoleon Dynamite, playing penguin versions of Napoleon and Rex.
can't wait to see wall-e. love just about everything pixar puts out. i'd put the incredibles at the top for me. and then toy story 2. but i'd give shrek props for the best non-pixar animated film. shrek 2 and 3 were big misses.
Posted by: Ted | July 08, 2008 at 12:43 PM
The Incredibles really shows the value of family togetherness. They really worked well in the final battle of the movie. The angle used here is pretty similar to the X-Men universe that has a population that is against the mutants. Despite that, the mutants (the good ones, at least) still chose to save those people.
Posted by: Michelle Pendlelton | August 23, 2011 at 01:23 PM