I. Robot

I, Robot

By Todd Karella
July 16, 2004

____

~Same character, different movie~

Am I really that transparent?

Susan Calvin-Bridget Moynahan
Sonny-Alan Tudyk
Del Spooner-Will Smith

Whose line is it??

One of these things is not like the others.

Nobody told us there was going to be a test.

Leather trench coat? How original.

As with any summer blockbuster, it is filled with incredible special effects and a megastar in the lead role.
While films like Men in Black and Independence Day needed an actor like Will Smith in the title role, I, Robot would have been a better film without the typical smart aleck character we've seen in all of his previous movies.
Det. Del Spooner (Smith) is a cop in the year 2035, and is just returning to work after suffering from a traumatic experience. Unfortunately, they don't delve enough into his problems, which

The long anticipated film I, Robot loosely based on the works of science fiction great Isaac Asimov landed on the big screen this weekend.

makes things like sleeping with a loaded gun, and taking a shower

without a shower curtain seem overly strange.
   On his first day back, Spooner gets called to investigate an apparent suicide. Dr. Alfred Lanning (James Cromwell) is the robotics genius who is the creator of all modern robots and the inventor of the *Three Laws of Robotics.
   Not only is his death suspicious, but it comes on the eve of the release of the new NS5 model of robots. This adds to the detective's suspicions and paranoia of robots in general.
   In order to help his investigation he teams up with Susan Calvin (Bridget Moynahan) who works at U.S. Robotics making the newest batch of robots

Rated PG-13

1. A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.

2. A robot must obey orders given it by human beings, except where such orders would conflict with the First Law.

3. A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Law.

-Isaac Asimov's I, Robot

* Three Laws of Robotics:

more human. It's a good thing too, because she helps him sneak into the most private areas of the company.
Evidently, the super genius computer V.I.K.I. (Fiona Hogan) that keeps absolute security and videotapes of every area in the building doesn't care what secure area they walk into.
During their investigation they run into a NS5 model that behaves differently than the rest, appears self aware and calls itself Sonny (Alan Tudyk).

Spooner immediately thinks that the robot murdered the professor, but nobody else will believe him.
The professor's laws of robotics are so well-known that not only has a robot never

broken any of them, but everyone thinks they are incapable of any violent action.
   As Spooner investigates he learns that there is more going on than meets the eye. There seems to be a massive conspiracy going on that involves all of the new NS5 models that are being shipped worldwide.
   While I, Robot is based on some very interesting ideas and has several unexpected plot changes, it falls prey to a number of Hollywood clichés.
   Det. Spooner is the typical smart aleck cop who argues with his superiors and loses his badge for being disobedient.
   There is also a very familiar ending where the hero must defeat the evil V.I.K.I. by sabotaging her systems. Of course, that means they must walk out onto a small platform hundreds of feet above the

ground, while a platoon of robots attack them.
Somehow they manage to hold off the swarm until the last possible second and end up saving humanity.
Even with the predictable ending,

the film has enough unexpected events and stunning special effects that it makes I, Robot a fun and enjoyable movie worth seeing.