Attack of the summer movies, part 5

This weekend, it's WALL-E. Before I get into what I thought of this movie, I will share my thoughts on Pixar. They have consistently been putting out good movies year after year. I have not disliked a single one of their films. "The Incredibles" is on my top 10 of all time list, and "Toy Story" and "Toy Story 2" are right on the bubble. I appreciate their creative vision, their willingness to come up with new and creative ideas, and their desire to make MOVIES, rather than vehicles to merchandise toys and fast food. Disney made the right decision when they allowed John Lasseter and the higher-ups at Pixar to take creative control of Disney's entire animation department.

So, like I mentioned, I have enjoyed every single one of Pixar's films. The only reason I was a little worried about this movie, is that I was disappointed in "Ratatouille" last year. It was by no means a bad movie, but I couldn't really get into it, and I found it to be kind of boring. I am glad I saw it, but I really have no reason to watch it again. I probably wouldn't have been disappointed had the movie been made by another studio, but Pixar has set the bar so high that I expect to be blown away by every single movie they make, and this just didn't do it.

It turns out I had nothing to be worried about. WALL-E, although not one of Pixar's best, is creative, entertaining, and unbelievable to look at. Once again, they have outdone themselves in terms of animation. Since the movie has very little dialogue, the movie had to depend on visuals to drive it, and the visuals were unbelievable. Earth in 2800 or so is viewed as a dust-covered wasteland, and I found myself just looking at the screen with my mouth open in awe at some of the visuals, kind of like I did with "Cars." Also, like most of Pixar's stuff, this is not a kid's movie per se, but a movie for everyone that kids will enjoy.

This was a tough story to pull off, because the two main characters, both robots, barely speak. It worked overall, and even inserted some relevant social commentary without becoming preachy, but still doesn't top the "Toy Story" movies, "The Incredibles," or even "Finding Nemo" in terms of pure entertainment value. My wife was even more critical, and although she liked the movie overall, she thought it dragged during some parts.

I thought the movie was very good, and will probably end up owning it on DVD, but I still give the edge to "Ironman" as the best movie of the summer (and the year) so far.

As far as box office goes, it is no surprise that Pixar is 9-for-9 going #1 on opening weekend, with WALL-E making a healthy $60 million. What did surprise me is that "Wanted" exceeded predictions with a big $51 million opening despite mixed reviews. A few people I have talked to said it was a lot of fun (see my brother's blog), so I actually want to go see it now.

On a final note, a trailer for "Beverly Hills Chiuhuaua" was shown before WALL-E. Laws should be passed preventing movies like this from being made. Yeah, kids may think talking dogs are funny, but studios have to remember that parents pay for the tickets, and won't pay to see junk like this, no matter what their kids say. More creative, engaging films like WALL-E need to be made, rather than crap like "Beverly Hills Chiuhuaua."