Sidetracked

 

You know, you just can’t go wrong with Pixar movies.

Everything about them is good — the art, the plots, the casting. In fact, even the worst of the Pixar flicks – “Cars” — is still pretty darn good.

So, of course, I wasn’t disappointed with “Wall-E.” By now you’ve seen all the reviews, so I won’t bore you with the details. But when the movie was done, I found myself comparing “Wall-E” with the other Pixar movies.  Then I figured I might as well make a top ten list, except there have only been nine movies, so, you know . . .

My Top Nine Pixar Movies, starting at the bottom:

9. “Cars.”

It’s kind of hard getting into characters that have wheels.  And for some reason whenever I think of this, I get the plot confused with “Talladega Nights.” But for once I actually liked something with Larry the Cable Guy, who was spot on with Mater.

8. “Ratatouille”

Let’s face it — that rat was awfully cute. The little chef was well designed, and the backgrounds include some of Pixar’s best art work. But I have to say the details are already slipping from this one.

7. “The Incredibles”

First of all, I like the fact that the dad from this movie looks a lot like Jim Thome from the White Sox. Check it out. Here’s Mr. Incredible:

 

And now Jim Thome: 

   

And since we’re already making comparisons, I’ll go ahead and throw in San Luis Obispo council member Paul Brown:

Beyond that, you’ve got to root for an out of shape super hero who’s fallen from grace.

6. “Wall-E”

Critics love this, some of them saying it was the best Pixar movie since “Finding Nemo.” I thought it was great, too — but maybe not as much as some of the critics. For one, it didn’t have the multi-faceted plot that some of the other Pixars feature. And the cast was nowhere near as dynamic. Still, wasn’t Wall-E adorable?

5. “A Bug’s Life”

There’s a lot to like about this one. But I especially love the traveling bug circus. And, of course, Kevin Spacey’s bad ass grasshopper was perfect. (Who would’ve thought grasshoppers were so evil?)

4. “Monsters, Inc.”

This is just a great idea that turns the whole notion of monsters on its ugly, monstrous head: Monsters are, in fact, actually afraid of kids. But they need to scare kids for energy.

Billy Crystal, John Goodman and Steve Buscemi were perfect for their parts. And watching the millions of doors that serve as monster entry points was just amazing.

3. “Toy Story”

The first Pixar feature represented a rollercoaster plot, lots of action and a terrific, star-studded cast (marking the first John Ratzenberger appearance). I especially love how Buzz Lightyear refuses to accept that he’s a toy.

2. “Toy Story 2″

As great as the first “Toy Story” was, the second was even better, largely due to the addition of Joan Cusack, whose Jessie had great interactions with Woody. Other great additions were Wayne Knight (Newman from “Seinfeld”) as the bad guy and Kelsey Grammer and the stubborn prospector.

1. “Finding Nemo”

I’m not a huge Ellen DeGeneres fan or anything, but she was the perfect fit for Dory, a seemingly brain damaged fish with short-term memory. This movie had lots of great dialogue (”Wow. I wish I could speak whale.”), fun characters (including sharks in rehab), and the best cast. The fish from the dentist’s tank were a hoot. And, of course, the seagulls, who bark “mine” were a gas.

Posted on July 7th, 2008 by Pat
Filed under: Movies