Our Movie Critic, Josh Sewell
Movie Reviews
Reviews of “WALL∙E” and “Wanted”
Josh M. Sewell
Entertainment options were plentiful last weekend at the box office, with two major new releases offering something for everyone. “WALL∙E” is perfect for children, adults and everyone in between. I know some teenagers like to pretend they’re too cool for cartoons, but come on. They know they melted when they saw the cute little robot on the previews. For the action fans — and/or Angelina Jolie fans — out there, “Wanted” provided one of the best entries in the genre to come along in a while. Here are my thoughts on the two wildly different but very good flicks.
“WALL∙E”
(Rated G.)
I have yet to see a bad Pixar film. Sure, a couple of them have been just okay (“A Bug’s Life,” “Cars”) but none have flat out stunk. That tradition continues with “WALL∙E,” the studio’s best work since “The Incredibles.” As always, that’s thanks to fantastic writers, directors and animators all collaborating to produce the best work possible.
The story, written and directed by Andrew Stanton (“Finding Nemo”), takes place nearly 800 years from now on an Earth so filthy and polluted that humans have abandoned it. Left behind to clean up the mess is WALL∙E (short for Waste Allocation Load Lifter Earth-Class), a robot who has developed a personality.
He spends his days taking care of his pet cockroach and compressing trash into small cubes, which he uses to uses to build enormous garbage skyscrapers. He also keeps items he finds interesting and adds them to his ever-growing collection.
All of that changes when he meets another robot, a sleek little number named EVE. It’s love at first sight for WALL∙E, but the female robot is more focused on her assignment. After a shaky introduction the two become close friends, which is why the infatuated robot follows EVE when she’s whisked back into outer space. He’s not quite sure where she’s going, or what her job is. All WALL∙E knows is that he has to be with her. Who knew a robot romance could be so touching?
I’ve got a feeling that the race for next year’s Best Animated Film Oscar is over. “WALL∙E” is in a completely different league than any other cartoon out there, especially since I forgot I was even watching animation after a while. It feels that authentic. There’s something really special going on when a character can steal the hearts of moviegoers with only a series of beeps, boops and clicks.
Grade: A
“Wanted”
(Rated R for strong bloody violence throughout, pervasive language and some sexuality.)
Very loosely based on the comic book series by Mark Millar and J.G. Jones, this cinematic adaptation outshines the source material in every way. James McAvoy (“Atonement”) plays Wesley Gibson, an office drone who has the worst life imaginable. His evil boss torments him all day, his skanky girlfriend is cheating on him with his best friend and he’s constantly taking medication for his never-ending panic attacks.
That all changes when Wesley meets Fox (Angelina Jolie), a smokin’ hot mystery woman who tells him he’s not the loser he thinks he is. She informs him that his father, who walked out on him when he was a baby, was actually a legendary assassin. Fox is a part of the Fraternity, a group of killers who want Wesley to follow in his dad’s footsteps. Their belief is that by killing certain people, countless others are saved.
Wesley, glad to be rid of his old life, takes her up on the offer and begins to train under the Fraternity, led by the secretive Sloan (Morgan Freeman). After some unbelievably intense training, he’s an unstoppable cold-blooded killer with superhuman abilities. Not too bad for someone who used to have $14 in his checking account.
However, Wesley eventually discovers that his associates haven’t been completely up front with him about their intentions. Now it’s up to him to figure out whether he’s fighting on the side of good or evil, and which side he’ll eventually settle on.
Director Timur Bekmambetov, responsible for some of Russia’s highest-grossing films, has taken the intriguing premise from Millar and Jones’ comic book and turned it into one of the best action flicks of the last few years. His flair for insane visual effects boggles the mind. He’s not going for realism here at all, but that’s not a bad thing. “Wanted” is crazily over-the-top and will have most viewers shaking their heads in amazement.
McAvoy is steadily climbing his way to the top of Hollywood’s food chain. He’s a big hit with the ladies, and his work here will only intensify that. I liked him much more here than I did in “Atonement.” It’s great to see Jolie back in a light, fluffy role. Some of her recent work has been in more heavy-handed stuff, so it’s fun to watch her just kick back and have fun. You can also tell Freeman’s having a blast playing something different than his go-to grandfather figure.
“Wanted” isn’t going to win Jolie or Freeman any more Oscars, but it just might become a genre-defining work like “The Matrix” did a few years back.
Grade: B+
Hear Josh's reviews every Friday at 8:40 with Kim Fitz in the Morning on Kiss 102.7
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