Wall-E is easily the most lovable Disney Pixar character yet. He's a goggle-eyed robot with more expression than most actors, which is quite the feat for a creation that is, essentially, a trash compactor. It is the year 2815 and Earth is abandoned, polluted, covered with trash and turned into an arid desert on which no life remains. Humanity fled to the Axiom space station on the other side of the solar system, while a huge team of Waste Allocation Load-Lifter, Earth-class (Wall-E) units were left behind to clean up the mess.

But something went wrong.

The movie never explains what, or why, but the wreckage of malfunctioned and rusting robots can be seen strewn across the desolate landscape.

Automated billboards spring to life as Wall-E rolls past, promising a better life on board the Axiom space station, while the lone robot works for 700 years to fix the errors of the past.

Wall-E is a fascinating character to watch. Every morning, he wakes up and carries a lunch box to work, despite not needing to eat. He crushes trash into compact cubes, and stacks them to impossible heights. In the evening, he returns to his ramshackle home, where he has collected artifacts that humans left behind, many of which he doesn't understand.

Before going to bed every night, he watches old, live action films. And he dreams -- if robots can dream-- of having a companion, aside from his faithful cockroach friend (who lives in a Twinkie).

His silent, unspoken prayers are answered when a giant rocket ship tears through the atmosphere, lands atop the terrified robot, and releases a small white probe before leaving again for the stars.

The probe, which looks like an egg designed by Apple, is actually Eve, a robot sent from the Axiom space station to see if any life has returned to the dying planet.

To Wall-E, she is the creature of his dreams.

Where Wall-E is boxy and awkward, Eve swoops through the air with ease, scanning objects. The love stricken Wall-E follows, only to discover that his love interest is quite trigger happy, shooting at him every time he comes near.

But he's persistent.

In the entire first half of the movie, there probably isn't a single spoken word. The robots communicate through squeaks and mechanical noises and can, with some effort, sound out their own names.

Everything else is conveyed through body language. That "Wall-E" is well animated is a given, given Pixar's history. But what's most impressive is that they turn such a simple character design -- essentially a pair of binoculars on a box with tank treads -- into an incredible character.

When he gets scared, he folds up like a turtle. When he gets frustrated, he'll kick something as he drives by. When he watches old live action movies of people singing and dancing, he records the song, then holds his hands together longingly.

The courtship of Eve, who starts to accept the poor robot's tireless attempts to woo her, is painfully cut short when the shuttle returns, carting the unwilling Eve back to the station whence she came.

Wall-E, meanwhile, is in hot pursuit.

And it's here that director Andrew Stanton loses it.

The first half of "Wall-E" is full of light laughs and cute moments. We, as an audience, want to see Wall-E succeed in winning Eve's affections over her primary directive.

There's a reason why, when you see previews of this movie, most of the scenes shown are during the Earth segments: Because they are the best. They are memorable. They showcase Wall-E, with his quirks and failures to understand many facets of humanity. So great were their effect on me that I immediately went out and bought a Wall-E action figure, which sits on my desk at home and looks at me all pitiful-like.

The second half of the movie doesn't keep the heart and soul of the first. As soon as Eve and Wall-E arrive at Axiom, they become background characters across the broader palette of "what has become of humanity in the future?"

Also, to those of you who haven't seen it yet, keep this question in mind: Considering the condition of humans on the Axiom, where do the babies come from?

Anyway, we are soon introduced to a pointless villain -- can't have a Disney movie without one of those -- and everything becomes a tireless chase sequence, as Wall-E chases Eve, Eve chases Wall-E, and the ship's captain (Jeff Garlin) struggles with the idea of returning to their homeworld.

During these scenes, it almost seems as though the title character becomes nothing more than background fodder, which is criminal after building up so much audience appreciation for him in the first half.

I get the impression that the writers just didn't know what to do with the characters after the first half, so instead, ramp up the action, throw in some new visuals, present some novel ideas, and, yeah, that'll work.

Except when it doesn't.

But, it goes without saying that "Wall-E" is still well worth seeing. Kids will love it. Adults will enjoy it without rolling their eyes. All will be satisfied. I even got a free Wall-E wrist-watch, which doesn't fit, because it's not designed for someone my age. Pity.

Anyway, back to the point.

Wall-E is easily Pixar's greatest character.

It's just too bad "Wall-E," as a film, comes up a little short.

The reporter can be reached at 583-2425.

(July 4, 2008)