Wonder Women: Eve
Thursday, June 1, 2017 at 4:00PM We're talking female movie heroes all week to celebrate Wonder Woman! Here's Chris Feil on a feisty robot...
Wonder Women don’t necessarily have to be human, right? Our cinematic female heroes can range from real people, fantastical creatures, and even artificial intelligence. One such non-human hero for me exists in one of my favorite romances - Eve of Wall-E. In short order Eve saves humankind and her big-eyed beloved, all while having feelings and goals all her own that some flesh and blood female characters seldom get to display in a love story. She’s a hero with a soft side, a curious nature, but it doesn’t mean she has time for your bullshit.
Eve’s physical design was inspired by the iPod, but her emotions are sometimes on shuffle. She arrives on Earth with an eerie mystique, captivating before we even know what her mission is. As her delivery shuttle takes off, her stillness shatters into a great burst of delight at a planet to herself. But at the first whisper of danger, she’s steely and tough - in a few quick beats, we get several of her defining characteristics that the rest of the film only deepens and gives complexity.
She has an adventurous heart and suffers no fools. Imagine a non-human Ripley meets Black Widow with a dash of Powerpuff Girl and you might get something close to Eve. The love story element ultimately provides her an opportunity to show another part of her personality, rather than defining her through it. Eve exists purely on all of her levels.
She’s skeptical of Wall-E initially, visibly frustrated and dismissive to his stuttering charms before the love story really takes off. Wall-E is wanting to connect with another life form, but Eve stands out for also wanting to connect to herself. That soaring arrival on Earth is a moment to herself, showing a deeper longing and mission within herself beyond her function. For a film that’s about the importance of human connection, she symbolizes the need to connect with what is human within ourselves - the driven, the protective, the self-aware.
Even though the film is criminally ignored in regards to the Disney Pixar brand, it's interesting how Eve is not considered among recent animated heroines - particularly when "strong" characters like Elsa and Merida aren't nearly as complex or work past archetype as this intergalactic lady. Is it just because she's not human or do audiences not see past her function in the love story?
It’s worth noting that Wall-E’s gaze on Eve reeks of Manic Pixie Dream Girlness, but the film gives her more opportunities to reveal herself than some cinematic romances between humans. In fact, Eve is a much more complicated character than the titular robot, and she’s also the film’s real hero. While he’s being adorable, she’s the one doing the rescuing - she has her own agency that she gets to define, all while being a badass. Wall-E is the heart, but Eve is the film’s spirit and its will.
Just as Wall-E is more than science fiction, Eve is more than a love interest. And as men turn our planet to uninhabitable polluted trash, what's more heroic than a woman activity working to restore it?
What are your favorite non-human female heroes?
Reader Comments (7)
I don't get how you don't consider Elsa complex. But anyway nice to see animated characters included, maybe you can have Mulan or is that too ovious? Moana since she is recent?
Chinoiserie - Take out "Let It Go" and what've ya got? Not a lot, in my opinion - her sister Anna stands out to me more, but neither are as great as Mulan and Moana :)
I totally (mis)read the headline as "Wonder Woman Eve" (à la Christmas Eve) and thought to myself, all giddy, Yaaaas! This film has been a lo-o-ong-g time coming; how amazing that it's finally in theaters—and with stellar reviews to boot!
Anyway, Eve is awesome. Love Wall-E overall.
I love EVE. She is such a fun character as I liked her arc in the film as her development is so crucial. Especially towards the end when she hums that song from Hello Dolly!.
I luv Wall-Eve!! Sry Slumdog, but Wall-E is my best pic o 2008. I actually cried when Eve tried to restore Wall-E's memory unsuccessfully.
I know we're supposed to be bolstering up Eve for being a (say it with me class) Strong Female Character! but I mostly just love her iPod design compared to Wall-E's junky windows 95 set-up. And the way she says "Wall-E" kills me every time.
Eve is kickass. That's all.