Wall-E, produced by animation studios Pixar, is at heart a sci-fi adventure –– but it is also a funny, heart-warming tale.

We meet our hero, Wall-E (Waste Allocation Load Lifter – Earth-Class) on a toxic, abandoned earth. He has been working for more than 700 years to clear the mounds of rubbish humans left before jetting off into space.

Wall-E's hundreds of years alone (the other robots have since worn out) have seen him develop a few quirks in his programming –– instead of crushing all the rubbish into a cube, he collects some of the most interesting things and has made a home for himself, of sorts.

But we soon learn that the little robot wants more –– and that he does, when the humans send EVE (Extra-terrestrial Vegetation Evaluator) to see if earth can once again sustain life.

The film does an excellent job of keeping the story understandable and interesting –– despite the fact that there's very little dialogue, and none at all for the first half an hour.

The fact that the characters are so expressive, helped by the incredible quality of animation, is what makes them so easy to understand and care for –– think of the mute dog Gromit from Wallace and Gromit.

What really makes the film stand out is that, like all good sci-fi, it paints a picture of the future that is disturbing, quite possible.

Humans have become fat and boring, living pointless existences aboard their spaceship where robots cater for their every need.

But there is no sense that the filmmakers are being preechy –– there is a well thought out message that can only encourage youngsters (and everyone else) to start looking after the planet and being less wasteful.

5/5