Wall-E (Blu-ray)

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Elissa Knight gives limited voice to EVE (short for Extraterrestrial Vegetation Evaluator) the love of Wall-E's life, while Jeff Garlin ("Curb Your Enthusiasm") is the Captain, Pixar good-luck charm John Ratzenberger has a cameo as one of the fatties, and Sigourney Weaver is the voice of the computer. Just as there are two animated worlds, there are two worlds of humans in this film, one a cartoon version and the other the world of the past that comes to Wall-E and others through videotapes, involving real humans from "Hello, Dolly!" and BnL (Big and Large) CEO Shelby Forthright (played by Fred Willard) in a PSA. It's another curious aspect that makes "Wall-E" the successful risk that it is. Message-laden or not, "Wall-E" is an artistic triumph which raises the bar yet again for animators who will follow.

Video:
Wow. This is one of the best animated Blu-rays I've seen in terms of how rich the picture looks. In 1080p (AVC/MPEG-4 codec), the level of detail is remarkable, while there's a strange warmth to the apocalyptic terrain that is partly achieved by earth tones and a pleasing 3-dimensionality that gives depth without "popping" the figures out at you as if you were watching a film with those funny cardboard glasses. There is a great amount of detail even in murky edges, and when the film opens up into a broader color palette for the second act we get a real sense of color brilliance. It's a solid picture, easily as good as "Ratatouille," which is presented in 2.35:1 aspect ratio.

Audio:
The featured audio is an English DTS-HD (48kHz/24-bit) that offers full 6.1 Surround. This is the only sound option, so you'd better like it. Fortunately, it's a dynamic track that has bright high notes and deep-textured lows. Even smaller effects like the sighs of a cockroach are picked up as if the entire animated set had hidden microphones placed everywhere. Everything is in great balance, too: the dialogue, the FX, the music, and the ambient sounds.

Extras:
This is the three-disc set, which includes first and foremost a third disc that's a digital copy. The other two discs contain probably as many bonus features as the most recent offering from Pixar, "Ratatouille," and they're are also in Hi-Def.

My kids loved the animated shorts. "Burn-E" is shot as if we were getting a fourth-camera alternate version of what happens to a minor robot character in the film when the action moves away from him. It's an ingenious concept to begin with, and very funny-though not as hilarious as a second cartoon, "Presto," which opened for "Wall-E" in the theaters. This one was a hoot, shot visually in styles that were reminiscent of both old Disney cartoons from the Fifties but with action and gags that recall Warner Brothers cartoons from the Forties.

The big bonus feature for Pixar fans is "The Pixar Story," a 2007 documentary that tells you everything you need to know about this upstart studio, with plenty of recollections from actors like Tom Hanks and Tim Allen, along with appearances from players like George Lucas and former Disney CEO Michael Eisner. And it's all in the family, too, produced by the granddaughter of legendary Disney animator Ub Iwerks.

Pixar commentary tracks have always been wonderful to listen to, and this one is no exception. Stanton does a good job of sustaining a believable energy and interest level through what must be a difficult task, these commentaries, and you can watch this with or without Cine-Explore--a PIP supplement that's playable only with Profile 1.1 machines.

Fans of deleted scenes will find roughly 20 minutes of them here, in various states of completion. There's another visual commentary option that teams character supervisor Bill Wise with story artist Derek Thompson and lead animator Angus McClain, with producer Lindsay Wallace also weighing in. This track isn't as serious as Stanton's, but there's still a lot of information--very little of it overlapping.

Youngsters will go for a four-pack of games. My kids liked "EVE's Bot Blaster" the best, which gives you a chance to develop your own itchy trigger finger. Also included are "Wall-E's Dodge & Dock," "M-O's Mop-up Madness," and "Burn-E's Break-Through," all of which are simple games that are geared for ages 6-12, it would seem.

Then there are a number of small (2-10 minute) features, including a brief look at behind-the-scenes segments on art design, sound design, and (human) character design, along with full versions of three BnL films seen in the movie, a brief montage of Wall-E and his treasures, a virtual promo, and two tours-of-sorts that let you click-on to see various portions of the ship or "the universe." A robot storybook and still gallery rounds out the bonus features.

Bottom Line:
"Wall-E" cleverly offers three things in one: a robot love story, a cautionary fable, and another Pixar demonstration in how to create a richly detailed and textured world that surpasses everything previously done. And if Wall-E isn't the cutest Disney animated hero in the longest time, he's certainly one of them. Somewhere in the "Cars" town of Radiator Springs, I suspect Lightning McQueen is getting jealous!