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Craig Younkin
Movie Review
I, Robot
By Craig Younkin Published July 18, 2004
US Release: July 16, 2004
Directed by: Alex Proyas
Starring: Will Smith , Bridget Moynahan , Bruce Greenwood , Chi McBride
PG-13
Running Time: 115 minutes
Domestic Box Office: $144,801,023
Directed by: Alex Proyas
Starring: Will Smith , Bridget Moynahan , Bruce Greenwood , Chi McBride
PG-13
Running Time: 115 minutes
Domestic Box Office: $144,801,023
B
There is very little to think about here, but that still doesn't mean you can't have a good time with it.
I, Robot is the latest techno-cautionary action film to hit theaters and despite being completely pointless throughout, it's a really nice showcase for Will Smith and a pretty fun time as well.
Smith plays Detective Dale Spooner, a cop living in the year 2035 who is the only one wary of the changing times. The company USR has put a robot in every home in America. They walk our dogs, clean up waste, save lives, and build things quicker and more efficiently. But are they capable of committing a crime? Spooner thinks so. When a respected scientist at USR dies in an apparent suicide, Spooner suspects some sort of foul play and finds it in the form of a robot named Sonny.
Sonny is the pet project of Dr. Arthur Lanning (James Cromwell). He can think, dream, and show emotions. The USR psychiatrist Dr. Susan Calvin (Bridget Moynihan) just dismisses Sonny's behavior as a little glitch in the system but Spooner's prejudice against robots (dating back to a prior accident) leads him to think otherwise. He believes that Dr. Lanning left him clues to a much larger mystery, and it's important that he figure it out before USR unleashes the largest distribution of robots in history.
I, Robot fashions itself as a mystery, but it really isn't much of one. This is a summer movie based on tons and tons of action, so anyone can see where we're headed with this plot; but nonetheless, this is a really cool looking movie featuring robots gone wild. The robots look great and the special effects department makes them incredibly mobile foes as they climb walls, swing, jump, and in a really exciting scene, leap on to Spooners car in an all-out attack.
Will Smith's performance is also very good. His cynical charm goes a long way here, especially since the rest of the cast is barely called upon to do much of anything. This movie isn't very good at developing characters, but movies like this usually aren't. There is very little to think about here, but that still doesn't mean you can't have a good time with it.
Smith plays Detective Dale Spooner, a cop living in the year 2035 who is the only one wary of the changing times. The company USR has put a robot in every home in America. They walk our dogs, clean up waste, save lives, and build things quicker and more efficiently. But are they capable of committing a crime? Spooner thinks so. When a respected scientist at USR dies in an apparent suicide, Spooner suspects some sort of foul play and finds it in the form of a robot named Sonny.
Sonny is the pet project of Dr. Arthur Lanning (James Cromwell). He can think, dream, and show emotions. The USR psychiatrist Dr. Susan Calvin (Bridget Moynihan) just dismisses Sonny's behavior as a little glitch in the system but Spooner's prejudice against robots (dating back to a prior accident) leads him to think otherwise. He believes that Dr. Lanning left him clues to a much larger mystery, and it's important that he figure it out before USR unleashes the largest distribution of robots in history.
I, Robot fashions itself as a mystery, but it really isn't much of one. This is a summer movie based on tons and tons of action, so anyone can see where we're headed with this plot; but nonetheless, this is a really cool looking movie featuring robots gone wild. The robots look great and the special effects department makes them incredibly mobile foes as they climb walls, swing, jump, and in a really exciting scene, leap on to Spooners car in an all-out attack.
Will Smith's performance is also very good. His cynical charm goes a long way here, especially since the rest of the cast is barely called upon to do much of anything. This movie isn't very good at developing characters, but movies like this usually aren't. There is very little to think about here, but that still doesn't mean you can't have a good time with it.
Craig's Grade: B
Craig's Overall Grading: 340 graded movies
| A | 10.9% | |
| B | 41.8% | |
| C | 31.8% | |
| D | 15.3% | |
| F | 0.3% |
'I, Robot' Articles
- Friday Box Office Analysis (7/16)
July 17, 2004 With the current times teens and young audiences in general are usually hungry for these types of big, fun testosterone flicks, whereas films like Minority Report ask them to do more than just sit back and relax. -- Lee Tistaert
