Brandy Hill | Tuesday, July 8, 2008, 5:51 pm

I sooo wish I had seen your commentary on the "cartoon" WALL-E before wasting my money and time on seeing it. My friend and I (both mature adults) thought it would be fun to go see WALL-E, since we have both always enjoyed all of PIXAR's films. Part way through I really felt there was an agenda to the film, but thought I was being too critical, when my friend leaned over and whispered, "do you feel a political bias here"? Then I realized I wasn't alone in how I felt. We were also disappointed in the show even putting aside the preaching. We just could not see how it would be entertaining to children. It was slow and drab. The few children in the audience (pretty empty theater) were either running around or on the floor entertaining themselves. When we returned home I mentioned I had just heard of you magazine and that we should check it out on line, and right there was a commentary about WALL-E that mirrored our feelings. It was nice to know we weren't just being "cranks". I have now subscribed and am looking forward to reading your magazine. Best Regards, Brandy Hill

Eric | Tuesday, July 8, 2008, 6:34 pm

Well put.

Nick | Wednesday, July 9, 2008, 12:02 am

I think this cartoon represents a shallow and one-sided interpretation of WALL-E. Like the cartoonist, many of the movie's critics have taken great pleasure in pointing out what they see as hypocrisy; the movie, they say, is an indictment of consumerism put forth by Disney, one of the great bastions of merchandising culture in America. What they fail to see is that, as A. O. Scott noted in his review in the New York Times, it is not an indictment, but rather an acknowledgment of contradiction. These critics talk all about the second half, which depicts consumerism as a dehumanizing force run amok, but neglect to mention the first half, in which consumer items represent the spirit of humanity that persists even on an abandoned earth. I think what the movie is saying is that it is precisely in these items--the pleasure of lighting a Zippo, solving a Rubik's cube, or popping bubble wrap--that genuine human-ness resides. It is not consumerism as such, but rather consumerism drained of meaning, that is such a danger. What is destroying humanity in WALL-E is the fact that consumerism has become not about appreciating the things themselves, but simply about the gratifying the desire to "get," regardless of what you happen to be getting. Consumerism, therefore, can be just as much a wellspring of the human spirit as it is a danger to it. This cartoon is a perfect example of one of the main reasons why the mindset of many people today, both liberals and conservatives, is so problematic: they are unable, or unwilling, to accept contradiction. To them, everything must be either "with us" or "against us," with no room for ambiguity. While intelligent people like the folks at Pixar are trying to create art that articulates the contradictions and uncertainties that make the world such a complicated place, these liberals and conservatives are busy trying to reduce everything to black and white, ignoring the reality that life just isn't that simple. So it's no surprise that many right-wingers have only been able to see WALL-E as "liberal propaganda," a movie with a one-sided political message, instead of what it really is: a brilliant work of art that manages to transcend politics and cut right through to the essence of humanity, which we all share, whether we admit it or not. If we Americans want to fix our country, we all need to let go of our dogmas and admit that some things may be too complicated to just explain away with a sweeping yes or no. You can read A. O. Scott's review of WALL-E here: http://movies.nytimes.com/2008/06/27/movies/27wall.html?ref=movies