I'm getting really good feedback on my Sunday Dallas Morning News column about "Wall-E." I've not read much about the movie this past week, but just now I ran across a long and very insightful commentary by Kenneth from the Time Immortal blog. In it, he quotes from an interview with the film's director, Andrew Stanton. I had no idea until reading that piece (from World) that Stanton is a Christian. Excerpt:
WORLD: How does WALL•E represent your singular vision?STANTON: Well, what really interested me was the idea of the most human thing in the universe being a machine because it has more interest in finding out what the point of living is than actual people. The greatest commandment Christ gives us is to love, but that's not always our priority. So I came up with this premise that could demonstrate what I was trying to say--that irrational love defeats the world's programming. You've got these two robots that are trying to go above their basest directives, literally their programming, to experience love.
With the human characters I wanted to show that our programming is the routines and habits that distract us to the point that we're not really making connections to the people next to us. We're not engaging in relationships, which are the point of living--relationship with God and relationship with other people.
WORLD: The depiction of humanity is pretty stark in this movie.
STANTON: Well, when I started outlining humanity in the story, I asked myself: What if everything you needed to survive--health care, food--was taken care of and you had nothing but a perpetual vacation to fill your time? What if the result of all that convenience was that all your relationships became indirect--nobody's reaching out to each other? A lot of people have suggested that I was making a comment on obesity. But that wasn't it, I was trying to make humanity big babies because there was no reason for them to grow up anymore.
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while on the topic of movies - Christians will (and this Buddhist did) find nothing even remotely spiritual in the latest Batman film. Dark and brooding... check. Heath Ledger's Joker being beyond sadistic... check. Unexpected twist at the end... double check. Redemption of the fallen... you'll have to see it for yourself. I suggest waiting until it's in the cheap seats. Better yet, save your money and go see Wall-E (again).
I do believe that if any film contains such story which makes a mark in each and every heart then it should not matter whether it is a animated film or any other and taking the case of "Wall-E." it really can attract any one
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animesh
http://www.addictionrecovery.net/new-mexico
Something that stuck with me about the film was that these humans seemed to have a longing for something; but they knew not what. Yes, they were as "comfortable" as they could be. But there was something about pictures of the Earth that really captured the captain. There was something so right about it. There was something so right about the connection two people had once they realized how disconnected they had been. A longing for something we were designed for. I was wondering if I was reading too much into the symbolism of that. Designed to love. Designed for a new/re-newed earth. We, as the humans in the movie once they got back to the home they were designed for, have a lot of work to do, huh?
Well, at the risk of a sort of reversed Manning's Corollary... I found the movie replete with neo-pagan themes and vindication of the opposition to material consumption and the support for sustainable infrastructure as ways of revering nature. I also found a most telling theme repeating itself throughout: the thing that stands between us and any downfall is the personal ethic of accountability. For me, it wasn't WALL-E and Eve that embodied redemption, it was the captain of the Axiom hanging onto "the buck stops here" tradition of command. Without his efforts, the autopilot would have won out in the end.
:-D
Just saw the movie this weekend. I loved that this spiritual message (and challenge to think about the way we live) was coming to us courtesy of Disney, in an environment where we were collectively sitting on our tushes being entertained. Paradoxes.
I couldn't decide whether the use of the Apple boot-up music chord for Wall-E's recharging was affectionate or a sly commentary on Apple's part in the "entertainment-distraction-disconnection" of our techno life. Perhaps both. Anyway, it gave me a good chuckle.
I did not read all of the earlier commentary so apologize if I'm rehashing, but I appreciated that that Wall-E's development beyond his robot paradigm starts with the simple decision to save things he thinks are worth keeping. Having musical theatre somewhat implanted on my psyche, of course I applauded the use of "Hello Dolly!" and the wondrous "they're dancing!" of the infantilized humans.
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