Pixar delivers once again. If you were to paint a movie target, the inward concentric rings would read "Movies", "Good Movies", "Pixar Movies", and finally "Top Pixar Movies" as the bullseye. WALL-E belongs to the latter category, rivaling what I consider their top films (The Incredibles and Toy Story 2).

By now, most of you have already seen WALL-E, but in the off-chance that you haven't, remedy that. This is a rare treat of a film that every age group can enjoy on the big screen. Lush graphics, wonderful characters, and an epic (although understated) story come together to form the best 98 minutes of animation in years.

Director Andrew Stanton (mastermind of A Bug's Life and Finding Nemo) has given life to some of the most powerful, beautiful, and marketable characters I've ever seen, and he accomplishes it with a minimal amount of dialogue.

The best part is that the principles aren't even children's character stereotypes we're used to. Instead, all of the characters are multifaceted, malleable, and relatable -- which is a big statement when discussing heroic robot explorers.

At the heart is, of course, WALL-E, the titular garbage-compressing, nostalgia-collecting robot that could. He's the kind of protaganist that anybody can get behind: compassionate, selfless, and diligent as can be. He may look like a cubic mix between Johnny Five and the robot from Gyromite, but the little guy can do a lot.

His accomplice is the sleek and determined EVA, an ovular iPod descendant sent to assess the planet's vegetation status. Their interaction starts out as if we were watching a commercial:

EVA: I'm a Mac.
WALL-E: And I'm a PC.
EVA: I'm a powerful and attractive white machine facing an uphill battle.
WALL-E: I'm a modular and seemingly unstoppable machine who builds intricate systems out of garbage.

As time goes on, mutual Robo-Love blossoms in a surprisingly well-done analog to Hello Dolly. Along the way, we get to meet the jolly recently-enlightened captain (voiced by Jeff Garlin), former leader Shelby Forthright (portrayed in archival footage by the inimitable Fred Willard), and a devoted cleaning robot named MO. Side note: I would love to see what would happen if you attached something dirty to his back and set him off in a circle.

The acting is fine in the hands of the capable actors, although none are really given an opportunity to shine. The soundtrack and mixing are wonderful. Likewise, the visual effects are beyond anything I've ever seen. And of course, the story is top-notch; it's well paced, it never drags, and it doesn't talk down to kids.

WALL-E is at once an adventure, a romance, a comedy, and a tragedy. Most of all, it's a poignant warning about humanity's current trajectory. This is a film that deserves to be studied by adults and children alike.

I'll just say this first: I really liked WALL-E. Pixar did its usual amazing job of making everything look real within the movie's universe. The characters had incredible depth, despite (or perhaps assisted by) the lack of verbal communication. I like the basic messages behind it too: don't run from your problems and the environment is a nice thing to have around.

I want to say that it was really cute, but not in the sickeningly sweet way. No pink (well, maybe a tiny bit), no puppies, no glitter, no overly sappy music to force tears. The cuteness comes more from the robots' character traits and the various interactions and subtle motions. I respect the understated cuteness.

WALL-E has been getting some serious flak from quite a few different sides. Most of the arguments being made just sound like people projecting their personal issues onto something which isn't nearly as flame-worthy as they make it out to be. An example, I see the obese folk as victims, not villains. The politics of this movie are however you want to see them.

There were a few science and logic leaps, but really you have to realize they're inevitable. It's a kids' movie, after all. It's not like they're there to explain string theory or anything. Just a side-note. I know we've got some logic-snobs in the audience. :)

What I want to know is, where are the other ships? I mean, here is obviously the "Middle Management" ship populated by telemarketers and the like. Where did the "Great Thinkers" and "Working Class" ships get off to? My guess is they did something useful with the amazing technology they had at that point and found new planets to colonize.

The second comic is up! In it, we explore what lessons kids should learn from WALL-E vs. those that they do learn. Reviews to come later today.