Robots

____

By Todd Karella
March 11, 2005

Original Story Synopsis:

Movie-Pix Best Guess:

A young robot wants to make his robot world a better place for all, but finds himself up against a corporate giant.

The first photos of this film do not look that impressive, but as these are the same people who brought us Ice Age and with Robin Williams also in the film it's probably going to be a lot better than you might expect.

Best Guess Results:

The animation and story seem a little stiff, and there really isn't anything that stands out about the film.

When you've got Robin Williams in a film, you need to let him go absolutely nuts with his character, but it didn't happen here.

~In need of repair~

Rated PG

The visual look of the film was unique at first, but wore thin as the novelty of seeing everything made of metal quickly dissipated.
There is a half-hearted attempt to add some emotional value between father and son. The only problem is that the relationship is built at the beginning and virtually ignored until the very end of the film.
The Copperbottoms are a regular family of robots. Mom (Dianne Wiest) takes care of the house, while Dad (Stanley Tucci) is a dishwasher. We're not sure why robots need their dishes washed since

His idol (Bigweld) (Mel Brooks) is the most famous robot in the world and through his daily broadcasts teaches everyone that everyone is special and nobody is worthless, no matter how many used parts they are made of.
With his parents' encouragement and after watching Bigweld's daily television show, Rodney is inspired to become an inventor and decides to head off to the big city to meet his idol.
While television shows one type of reality, Rodney is not prepared for the new world order that he finds. Bigweld has retired and his company has been taken over by a crooked robot named Ratchet (Greg Kinnear).
When Bigweld was in charge, things were run differently. Ratchet believes in making a huge profit, and a company can't make profit if the robots believe they are perfect just the way they are.

they really don't eat that much, but I guess a Robot's got to have a job.
The only thing missing in their lives is a child. So they order one through the mail and put him together like humans might put together a bicycle. They even manage to end up with an extra part.
Rodney Copperbottom (Ewan McGregor) isn't like the other robots. His parents have taught him to follow his dreams and to be all that he can be.

It's been 3 years since 20th Century Fox's last big animated feature Ice Age came out in theatres and the rust is showing.
Maybe it's because having big-named stars playing themselves in animated films is getting old, but this film lacked any real personality. Sure Robin Williams was in it, but he just wasn't his usual zany self. There were some very funny moments, but overall it came across flat and recycled.

The only way to get them to buy new and improved parts is to start a marketing campaign, that makes them feel inferior.
As Rodney will soon find out, there's more going on than meets the eye. Not only is he encouraging robotic upgrades, but those who can't afford it are having their parts discontinued and are being recycled as scrap metal.
Without Bigweld around to save them, Rodney takes on Ratchet with the help of Fender (Robin Williams), a crazy new friend and his

Movie-Pix Hit or Miss

misfit family that are all designated for the scrap heap.
If the robots are going to be scrapped when they break down, then Rodney's going to use his inventing skills and keep them up and running as long as he can, or until Ratchet catches him.
It's a good idea, but he's only one robot and there are so many needing his help. They're going to need a lot more help than they have.
With the help of a corporate insider, Cappy (Halle Berry), they

manage to find Bigweld and convince him to return to the company.
Even with the new ally, the ragtag group finds themselves in more trouble than they can handle. Ratchet isn't playing by any rules and uses all his corporate power to try and destroy them.
It's going to take all they have to stop him, and even that's not enough. What finally stops the evil Ratchet, is the uprising of the entire robot populace as they come to the rescue of the famous Bigweld and Rodney who has helped so many of them survive during Bigweld's absence.
There's a lot of good messages behind the film, but the emotion to push them over the top just isn't there. Using big-named stars in animated films is becoming a distraction as they simply read their lines with little or no emotion.