The first Disney film to be included in the Criterion Collection will be WALL-E

Coming in 4K with tons of goodies in November

Criterion announced Thursday that Pixar Animation Studios’ WALL-E will join the Criterion Collection in November, making it the first Disney or Pixar film to get a Criterion release. The Criterion edition will be available on November 22, with pre-orders beginning on October 18.

Criterion, a corporation that saves, repairs, and publishes films with unique cultural influence and value from throughout the world, has nearly no animated films on its portfolio. In the company’s restricted animation selection, WALL-E will join Watership Down, the French sci-fi picture Fantastic Planet, and Wes Anderson’s stop-motion comedy Fantastic Mr. Fox. WALL-E is the sole CG animated feature in the company’s portfolio, in addition to being the company’s first Disney or Pixar picture.

WALL-E was a watershed moment for Pixar. The story of a small trash-compacting robot abandoned on a polluted, abandoned Earth was widely praised upon its 2008 release for its unusual artfulness and confidence, with director Andrew Stanton (also the director of Finding Nemo and Finding Dory, and a writer on all four Toy Story movies) and co-writer Jim Reardon opening the story with 40 nearly dialogue-free minutes, and taking time throughout the increasingly fast-paced story for lyrical visual moments, like

Criterion hopes to reissue the film with a slew of extras, including new commentary tracks, essays, behind-the-scenes films, and more. The following is a comprehensive list of features provided by Criterion:

• Director Andrew Stanton authorized the 4K digital master, which includes a Dolby Atmos soundtrack.
• The film is available on one 4K UHD disc with Dolby Vision HDR and HDR10+ support, as well as two Blu-ray discs including the film and additional features.
• 5.1 surround DTS-HD Master Audio and stereo soundtracks are available as options.
• There are two audio commentaries: one with Stanton and the other with Bill Wise, coproducer Lindsey Collins, narrative artist Derek Thompson, and lead animator Angus MacLane
• New programs on Stanton’s cinematic inspirations and color writing by production designer Ralph Eggleston.
• Stanton gives a tour of the Pixar Living Archive.
• Behind-the-scenes look at the film’s production, featuring footage from early animation reels.
• Leslie Iwerks’ documentary The Pixar Story (2007)
• There are almost a dozen films on the film’s production and robotics.
• Anatomy of a Scene: The Plant, a Stanton masterclass “WALL•E”: A to Z, a new show starring Stanton and coscreenwriter Jim Reardon
• Deleted sequences with Stanton’s commentary
• Stanton’s student film A Story (1987).
• MacLane’s short film BURN•E (2008)
• Trailers
• English deaf and hard of hearing subtitles English descriptive audio
• PLUS: an essay by author Sam Wasson; sketches, screenplay notes, and drawings by Stanton; and artwork from the WALL•E team.