The film “WALL-E” by Andre Stanton from Pixar Animation released in 2008 was an amazing story about the effects of human civilization on our planet. The story follows the titular character of WALL-E, a trash compacting robot whose role it is to clean the earth. After discovering plant life on earth has returned, WALL-E goes on an adventure with EVE, a robot sent from the human settlement in space, to tell humans of the now sustainable planet. Though other robots onboard the ship are attempting to stop the return to earth. The film’s issues highlight many modern day problems. The earth in the film has become a garbage-wasteland, in the real world we are continuously generating waste, with it taking many years to decompose. The character’s goal is the cultivation of the earth to be a hospitable planet again, which means wildlife preservation. Currently, there is a fast consumption of goods due to capitalism that has increased the waste disposal issue, as too many items end up in our landfills. This is reflected in the film, what had originally destroyed the planet was capitalism, and large monopolies that run the country. Though the film takes a more dystopian look at what the future holds. The environmentalism in the movie is what pushes human civilization forward as they had previously regressed due to capitalism. The takeaway of the film is to control consumer culture so as to not harm the environment, and exist in a more sustainable way.
Wikimedia Foundation. (2022, February 25). Wall-E. Wikipedia. Retrieved February 26, 2022, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WALL-E
Applied Plant Ecology Winter 2020 