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WALL-E opens on planet Earth more than 700 years into the future. Earth has been abandoned and all that remains is the trash that litters the planet and a robot named WALL-E (Waste Allocation Load Lifter - Earth class) who is left behind to clean it up. But a funny thing has happened over that time. WALL-E has developed a personality. He comes home from a day cleaning up the planet, hangs up his wheels, turns on some show tunes and files the items of interest he has collected during his day. But we soon learn that WALL-E has developed something else -- loneliness. He looks to the stars wondering if he's the only one out there. His question is answered when a ship from outer space lands near his home and another robot emerges. Naturally curious, WALL-E makes contact. Her name is EVE (Extraterrestrial Vegetation Evaluator) and her mission is to visit Earth and look for evidence that the planet is ready for repopulation. The two quickly develop a relationship, but when she discovers plant life her programming kicks in and she is launched back into space with a specimen. When WALL-E stows away on her ship in pursuit, he finds himself aboard the Axiom, a luxury space cruiser that is home to the descendents of a group of humans who were launched into space on a "5-year mission" until the planet was safe for their return. But when the ship's Captain begins Operation Recolonize, we find out that the Axiom has other ideas.
I brought my kids to the theater this summer to see this movie and, while I wouldn't say that the kids were blown away, they enjoyed it. At least I think they enjoyed it. For a few hours after, they did their best WALL-E and EVE voices which was fun. But, a couple of days later they forgot all about the movie. I don't know what that says. When I was a kid and I saw Star Wars and Indiana Jones, those were life-altering experiences. I didn't forget about them a couple of days later. Maybe times have changed. Or maybe WALL-E just wasn't the movie for them. Either way, when the WALL-E Blu-ray arrived in the mail, the kids weren't exactly jumping up and down to watch it. Which means I was left watching it by myself. (Now I understand what it was like for WALL-E all those years alone on the planet...) And after watching the movie a 2nd time, I kinda get where the kids are coming from. I liked the movie -- it just didn't blow me away. The animation was brilliant. The story was relevant. But I was never really moved the way I was watching movies like Toy Story or even Finding Nemo. I applaud the technical achievement, but I'll likely forget everything else in a couple of days.
Bonus features on this 3-Disc Blu-ray include:
--Disc 1--
Commentary Track by director Andrew Stanton - An excellent commentary here that covers your typical elements including the story, the animation, the development, the voices, etc. Along with the commentary, we are provided with pop-up images showing some of the art that provided the basis for the final product.
Geek Track: Trash Talk & Trivia - Sitting in on this commentary are Bill Wise (character team supervisor), Lindsey Collins (co-producer), Derek Thompson (story artist) and Angus MacLane (directing animator). This is a very entertaining commentary with the quartet providing a good mix of background information and trivia about the movie. Very fun if you're looking for more than your standard technical commentary.
Presto - This animated short, about a magician named Presto and his hungry rabbit, played before showings of WALL-E during it's theatrical run.
BURN-E - An all-new animated short following the adventures for BURN-E, a robot from the Axiom who has encounters various technical difficulties while trying to repair a light on the ship.
BURN-E with Boards - The same animated short presented with picture-in-picture storyboards.
BD-Live - In addition to the extras mentioned above, Disc One also comes equipped with a variety of Blu-ray Live features allowing viewers to interact with the movie, including "Disney Movie Chat" where you can watch the movie while chatting with friends, "Disney Movie Challenge" where you can compete in games while watching and "Disney Movie Mail" where you can send scene-specific messages to friends. I gotta say that I am less than enthusiastic about my WALL-E BD-Live experience. First, I had a terrible time registering for the service. (I'm from Canada, and there was no option for registering other than from an American mailing address.) Then, for various reasons my email address and user names were rejected. After about 30 minutes of trying, I finally connected. It shouldn't have taken this long. On top of that, all the extras are geared towards interacting with the movie with friends. Since I'm new to the service, I don't have any friends. (I'm somewhat ashamed to admit this.) I don't even know how to find friends. You can search by Username, but that's useless if you don't know that information already. I'm sure things will change as the technology advances, but this time around I was not impressed.
--Disc 2--
WALL-E's Treasures & Trinkets - A collection of videos you may have seen before the movie was released in theaters. These include, WALL-E with a Hula Hoop, a vacuum, a basketball, etc.
"Lots of Bots" Storybook - Included here are 2 options. First, you can listen to and watch the "Lots of Bots" story. Second, you can listen to and watch but also interact with the story.
Axiom Arcade - Using your remote control, viewers can play four basic arcade games including "EVE's Bot Blast", "WALL-E's Dodge & Dock", "M-O's Mop-Up Madness" and "BURN-E's Break Through".
Sneak Peek: WALL-E's Tour of the Universe - Watching this advertisement, viewers are encouraged to visit the official WALL-E website (www.wall-e.com) where you can learn more about outer space. (When you visit the site, look for the WorldWide Telescope link.)
Bot Files - Some mini-biographies of the various robots you'll see watching the movie.
Deleted Scenes - Introduced by Andrew Stanton, there are 4 deleted scenes included here. Each clip comes with an introduction and a reason why it didn't make the final cut of the movie.
Behind the Scenes - Included here are 7 featurettes exploring the look of WALL-E, the sound design, the human characters, the score, the Pixar process, the various robots and relationship between WALL-E and EVE.
BnL Shorts - Five videos brought to us by the good folks at the "Buy n Large" corporation.
3D Set Fly-Throughs - Using these videos, viewers are given tours of the various "sets" from the movie. (Some audio would have been nice here.)
--Disc 3--
Included on the third disc of this set is a Digital Copy of the movie.
Although I didn't fall in love with WALL-E, it's certainly a movie that I would suggest checking out if you haven't already. The story is great and the animation is second to none. As I said earlier, I'm a little on the fence about the long-term re-watchability of the movie, but I'm more than willing to give it another shot a couple of months down the road -- especially if it gets nominated for a Best Picture Oscar, as many are suggesting it should be. Whether I agree or not is inconsequential.
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