Wall-E Review

The title Wall-E highlights the plot through a robot’s perspective. The viewers are already anticipating the main character and the focus of the film. Some alternate titles might serve to shift the focus of the film. Titles such as "The Axiom" or "Buy’n’Large" would put more emphasis on the human aspect of the film. The argument could be made that shifting the focus in this way would emphasize the responsibility of the humans to act in order to solve the obvious issue in the film. However, the message is almost more powerful throughout the film because it is from an "outside" perspective. Wall-E's purpose is to serve the human race and therefore is severely impacted by their decisions. On the other hand, he is not responsible for their decisions and problems. This gives the viewer a true, unbiased view of the situation.

The first images of the film are of a normal wide shot of Earth and slowly zooms in to expose a desolated and deserted world. Accompanying the opening images is a song from the musical Hello Dolly “Put On Your Sunday Clothes.” Opening with this cheerful song and slowly morphing it to sound defective or broken is an effective tool to highlight the dismal situation. 

The opening credits set the tone as a futuristic film. The font, the same as is used for the name Wall-E, reflects Wall-E’s role on Earth as an advanced technology. This contrasts the reality of the state of the plant along with Wall-E himself, who is in fact beat up and the only one left of his kind. The viewer is also prepped to expect incorporation of impressive technology. This is consistent with the film in that we later journey along with Wall-E and E.V.E to the Axiom and all it's luxuries.

The last images of the film are of the population of the Axiom beginning to farm and revegetate the Earth. This move to action and attempt to better their society seems to be the primary the moral of Wall-E. These shots are eco inspiring because they encourage the viewers to protect the Earth from destruction by human irresponsibility and waste. 

The closing credits outline the reconstruction of Earth to “former glory.” The scenes work through evolution of humanity starting from the status of cavemen to the reintroduction of species such as fish and finally wrapping up with the rediscovery of technology like sailboats. The story that plays out as the reverse of the story within the actual film. The movie Wall-E shows the regression of human progress to a vegetative lifestyle while the closing credits illustrates a rebirth of humanity and a rediscovery of Earth and it’s treasures.

The opening scene reveals a literally trashed Earth. This is horrible, non-livable condition of Earth motivates the viewers to take more eco-friendly actions. The viewers are again shown the importance of care for the Earth during the scene that the captain is talking to the plant. He says, “You just needed someone to look after you that’s all.” This was a major turning point for the captain as he recognized his role in repopulation the Earth now that it is life sustainable. The third scene that argues for the importance of eco-friendly action is the ending scene. The images of farming and talking to the children added a new spin on the argument. The scene argues that teaching the next generation the value of preserving the planet is essential to the Earth's success. 

The eco-friendly message of the film would be lost on elementary school students. They would only retain the humor from the silly cartoons. College students would certainly perceive the message. However, it is doubtful that these students would question or discuss the issues brought up by the film.  Finally, the message would be grasped by parents but not necessarily discussed with their children, who may be too young to comprehend the depth of the film.