Any self-respecting comic book fan also loves animation, an anyone who loves animation knows the genius that is Pixar. Thus, if you are reading this, chances are pretty good that you are as excited as I am for this friday, which will see the theatrical release of Wall-E. The film has a lot going for it, but if, for some odd reason, you don’t want to see it, I’m here to tell you why you should in my typical list format.

Ben Burtt - One of the more unique aspects of Wall-E is that it will have very little dialogue. In fact, the main character doesn’t speak at all. Normally, this would make me more then a little worried. And I was, until I learned who was doing the sound design for the movie: Ben Burtt. Now you may be asking yourself, who is this? Well, Burtt is a legendary sound designer who has created some of the most recognizable sound effects in the history of cinema. Every time you make a ‘thrum’ noise, pretending to swing a lightsaber, Burtt made that. That heavy breathing sound you make when doing your Darth Vader impression, also Burtt. And, the most important part in regards to Wall-E, he was the man responsible for all those beeps and bloops that made R2-D2 such an endearing character. And while it took a total of 800 different sounds to bring R2 to life, Wall-E will use more than 2, 500. Sounds good to me.

The Tone - We all love sci-fi, and what’s great about Wall-E is that it is a fresh take on the genre. As a story about the last robot on Earth who falls in love with a satellite, the tone of Wall-E is decidedly whimsical. But, as it is also a CG animated Pixar movie, it will also look all kinds of awesome. So, really, you get the best of both worlds. A light-hearted cartoon with a healthy dose of sci-fi awesomeness.

It’s Pixar! - Come on now. Finding Nemo. Monsters Inc. The Incredibles. Toy Story. When has Pixar ever let you down? Ok, there was Cars, but even that was ok. Aside from that little snag, the good folks at Pixar have always pulled through, and, from I’ve seen, Wall-E looks to be up with their best. Besides, any film that can be described as ‘R2 D2 the movie’ by its director is all right with me. So go watch it all ready!

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Andrew Webster is a freelance writer based in Toronto who covers comics, movies, videogames, and anything else that will rot out your brain. Check out his personal site to read more of his incoherent ramblings.

This entry was posted on Saturday, June 28th, 2008 at 4:38 pm and is filed under Tales From The Basement. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.