I don't know what it is, but animals in peril onscreen reach my emotions far more directly and uncomplicatedly than people in peril.

StY is ADHD, and as a very young child he failed to be sympathetic towards other children, long after that developmental point should have been reached. He would hit and kick and laugh about it, unable to imagine how it would feel being on the other side of the battle. But an animal on tv in peril? Tears would roll. It was one way I was able to help him learn sympathy for humans.

I liked Wall-E a lot, especially compared with Robots, which left me feeling a niggling sense of ooog. But I did watch both with distracting kids that led me away from any analysis. I'd like to see it again to try to view it critically.

Though I kept thinking my brother's laptops were rebooting throughout the dvd.

Barb, Sophia I've thrown books about fucking brutal genocide across the room for mentions of animal cruelty. It rather embarrasses me, because I find the human-on-human brutality offensive, but I can endure it. Critters-not-of-the-eating? I go nonlinear. And that disturbs me about me. I guess I could claim it a protectorate thingie, but that's a stretch.

I, too, have major issues with movies that mess with animals. I think it's because they don't really have the ability to make choices that would lead them to whatever fate. The deal, as far as domesticated animals are concerned, is that we take care of them, in exchange for them warning off predators, or killing mice, or whatever.

Conversely, the dog jumping to safety in the nick of time ahead of the blazing fireball was the moment that Independence Day made me yell "OH COME ON!" when I'd already suspended enough disbelief to buy alien invaders, Margaret Colin being Jeff Goldblum's ex, and the Air Force ever letting Randy Quaid into a cockpit without a rag and windex to clean the canopy.

I'd have had Fido's flaming skeleton finish his leap into that maintenance tunnel.

I loved Wall-E, but I have a weakness for cute robots. I heard the writer(?) on Fresh Air and he mentioned that the design owed at least a little to one of my favorites, the little machine with the yearning to snow ski from Wallace and Grommit's Grand Day Out.

In Wall-E I could have done without the humans at all and just had it be about the robots. Though, I really loved the escape of the misfit robots.

Though, I really loved the escape of the misfit robots.

Especially the thing that was just arms that beat the crap out of anything in its way with every last bit of its energy.

I'd have had Fido's flaming skeleton finish his leap into that maintenance tunnel.

I'd make the argument that I was also nine months pregnant at the time I saw it, but that would be a huge lie of an excuse. I'd have reacted the same way preggers or not.

I've thrown books about fucking brutal genocide across the room for mentions of animal cruelty. It rather embarrasses me, because I find the human-on-human brutality offensive, but I can endure it. Critters-not-of-the-eating? I go nonlinear.

I'm the same way-- I also react very, very strongly to brutality against young children. I think DebetEsse hit the nail on the head in that we're talking about creatures bi or quadriped, that don't have the ability to make choices. They're trusting the people around them to keep them safe.

Especially the thing that was just arms that beat the crap out of anything in its way with every last bit of its energy.

The masseuse with anger issues! Emmett and I love him.

The masseuse with anger issues! Emmett and I love him.

Especially that brief moment when he's exhausted and just "pants" and droops. Then goes right back to beating the crap out of things. Loved it!

Especially that brief moment when he's exhausted and just "pants" and droops. Then goes right back to beating the crap out of things. Loved it!

Seriously, they should have done a short about him.