Over the Christmas / New Year holiday time the New Zealand Herald
newspaper ran this series of articles with journalists giving their
suggestions for New Zealand's favourite family film for The Great
Family Film Poll ...


*Wall-E*
I might seem an odd choice to write about the best
family movie of all time, given that I don't have a
family of my own. But while I may be childless, I still
reckon I qualify given I'm blessed with a fiancee who
refuses to watch any film aimed at anyone aged over 14.

To be fair, Ruth's excuses stack up. As a journalist,
she can spend most of her day buried in the big issues,
so a movie night offers a chance for some light relief.
Who needs to watch a political thriller when you've
spent your day covering the thrills and spills of
[Australian Prime Minister] Tony Abbott and his mates?

Luckily for me, there's Pixar, and luckily for planet
Earth - there's Wall-E. Wall-E trundled on to the
screens in 2007, looking like a cross between Johnny 5
from Short Circuit, and a filing cabinet. He's got more
personality in one eyelid than an entire season of New
Zealand's Got Talent. He's the cutest robot in cinema,
and if you don't fall in love with him in the first few
minutes then your heart is colder than the outdoor loo
at my old Dunedin flat in winter.

Wall-E is a robot tasked with the job of cleaning the
immense mess left behind by us lazy humans after we've
abandoned Earth for a sloth-like existence in space. He
whirrs around with a cockroach as his best mate (as you
do), investigating all the discarded relics and ferrying
the best bits back to his shed to keep as treasures. For
a small robot, it's a lonely life, so the arrival of a
flying, futuristic female-sounding robot sends Wall-E
into a spin.

The first 20 or so minutes of Wall-E is where Pixar
really flex their storytelling muscles. It's basically a
silent film, with a fantastically whimsical soundtrack
that shows us Wall-E is a hopeless romantic in waiting.
Even without dialogue at the start the kids won't get
bored, the silent action draws you in.

Wall-E is a romantic, environmentally conscious comedy
that packs all of the usual Pixar good stuff into its
lead character, who's essentially a glorified dust-pan.
It's one of those films that you can chuck on no matter
who's in the room, and everyone will love. Even
hard-hitting journalists.

- Matt Gibb, TV Presenter
29 December, 2015

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