Robots

Robots – Branching out to show his latest invention to Bigweld Industries, Rodney Copperbottom leaves his small town for Robot City. Meeting several roguish characters, including the charismatic Fender Pinwheel, Rodney is devastated to be unceremoniously rejected from Bigweld Industries but decides to focus his efforts on helping and fixing outdated robots. Unfortunately, this attracts the attention of Bigweld’s ruthless second-in-command, Phineas T. Ratchet, who wants to scrap old models. It soon becomes clear that Rodney and his friends are in danger but can they defeat Ratchet’s sinister plans?

Robots (2005) – Director: Chris Wedge, Carlos Saldhana

By Source, Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=29294299

Rating: U

Running Length: 91 mins

Starring: Ewan McGregor, Robin Williams, Greg Kinnear

Genre: Animated, Comedy

REVIEW: ROBOTS

Rodney Copperbottom et al inhabit a beautifully realised world of robots. Attention to detail and innovation are clearly at the forefront of the filmmakers minds with so much going on on-screen that it is impossible to catch everything on the first viewing. The futuristic Robot City has a public transport system that will unexpectedly delight kids with its pure over-the-top fun factor. Unfortunately, this surface level ingenuity struggles to compensate for the lack of story.

Rodney (voiced by Ewan McGregor) is nice but bland and Fender’s larger-than-life personality soon grates with Robin Williams’ taking over the screen at every possible opportunity. The threat of a big corporation wanting to destroy a small business isn’t a plotline that will engage kids and will be more likely to cause confusion, especially as the threat is so violent. Added to all this the movie’s preoccupation with large bottoms and breaking wind (something the writers have decided is the best way to get giggles from the youngsters), Robots is a disappointing mess of a film that could have been so much better.

The visuals alone are bound to entertain younger children but older ones who require more substance will struggle to get past the silly jokes and boring plot.

CONTENT: IS ‘ROBOTS’ SUITABLE FOR CHILDREN?

Herb and Lydia want a child which is delivered to them in parts which they have to construct themselves. When they have almost finished, Herb asks ‘You did want a boy, right?’, and produces a mallet, he then says ‘This won’t hurt a bit son!’ The child looks shocked then cries when his father adds his appendage with the mallet. This is done in a comedic way but may cause some young children to question what is being done to the baby.

The family rely on hand-me-down clothes for Rodney and he is given a new top which belonged to a female relative. As this is actually a torso, the ‘top’ gives him a female figure, complete with an ample cleavage.

A homeless robot holds a sign which says ‘Got Screwed’.

Ruthless businessman, Phineas T. Ratchet begins a campaign to make robots to feel bad about themselves so that they’ll be conned into getting unnecessary and costly upgrades.

Ratchet tells a female robot ‘We’ll be working very, very close together’ and she is clearly uncomfortable with this.

A robot who initially seems friendly and helpful towards Rodney soon shows himself to really be mean and sarcastic, making fun of his idealistic nature. He tells Rodney, ‘Get lost, freak!’

A character tells another to ‘Grow some bolts’.

A character asks Fender, ‘When was the last time you got oiled’ to which Fender becomes embarrassed and tells them ‘I can’t answer that with my kid sister there!’

A character urinates oil.

A robot breaks wind loudly, causing others to show disgust. An incidental character gags and chokes, collapsing to the floor. The scene changes from night to day where a chalk outline of the character is now on the ground, indicating that the character has died.

Ratchet implies that he wants a robot killed by saying ‘Take him for a drive and bring back his exact weight in paperclips’.

A newspaper headline states ‘Bad bot busts ball’.

Fender is taken by a car that collects scrap metal. He ends up on a conveyor belt fleeing from saws and blades and he almost lands in a huge furnace.

Toilet signs show a plug for male and a socket for female.

Some characters get into a car and accidentally press a button which causes a bed to emerge and a romantic song to play.

CAN I SEE A CLIP?

VERDICT: IS ‘ROBOTS’ FOR KIDS?

Visually stunning but disappointing overall, Robots struggles to show any depth with its plot or characters. We feel this movie is appropriate for all ages as most inappropriate parts are the ‘over your head’ type, however some parents may be unhappy with the mild but unnecessary innuendo throughout.

• Violence: 1/5 (lots of threats but little actual violence other than slapstick)
• Emotional Distress: 1/5 (Rodney is crushed when he is rejected by Bigweld Industries but soon refocuses on a worthwhile cause)
• Fear Factor: 2/5
• Sexual Content: 1/5 (mild sexual innuendo and references to male and female body parts)
• Bad Language: 1/5 (cursing which has been made ‘child-friendly’ such as ‘Grow some bolts’)
• Dialogue: 2/5
• Other Notes: Deals with themes of ambition, helping the less fortunate, unlikely friendships and fighting against a powerful corporation.

Words by Laura Record