"Real Steel"
Does anyone remember the game Rock'em Sock'em Robots? For those unfamiliar with the popular kids’ toy it involved two plastic robots that each player could manually control. The goal was to have the bots fight each other in a boxing ring, throwing jabs at each other and eventually knocking the opponent's head off. Michael Bay's Transformers and the upcoming Battleship are both based on toys. Even though this film is called Real Steel it very well could have been adapted from Rock'em Sock'em Robots.
Apparently in the not too distant future society has grown weary of the man vs. man boxing matches. The people demanded that the sport be changed thereby upping the entertainment level. Now the masses flock to see their favorite giant robot fighter go head to head with another metallic adversary. Charlie Kenton (Hugh Jackman) used to a one of those flesh and blood boxers. He now has settled for being one of the operators who controls the fighter bots. Charlie's really down on his luck, he owes tons of money on lost fights. To add to his woes Charlie also to act like a father to his eleven year old son Max (Dakota Goyo.) Max's mother died and Charlie hasn't been in his son's life until now.
Charlie isn't exactly father material and he reluctantly agrees to take Max for the summer just until his legal guardians get back from vacationing in Italy. While on the road Max gets a real taste for his dad's line of work. After losing yet another fight and more money, Charlie and Max go rummaging through a junk yard looking for parts. What they end up finding is Atom. Atom is an old sparing robot with built in shadow boxing technology. That means that he is able to mirror the movements of the person who is controlling him. Together Charlie and Max turn Atom into a prize fighter and put everything on the line when they compete in Real Steel.
This movie had the potential to interesting. Instead it relies on clichés and plot devices that we've seen too many times before. This isn't always a bad thing just as long as the performances are strong or the plot retains some aspect of originality. It's when the clichés start to become glaringly noticeable, that’s when we start to lose interest. The whole father son dynamic is a little overdone and tiresome throughout the two hour plus runtime. Multiple times we have to listen to clunky dialogue and are introduced to stock characters that distract us from what the movie should actually be about.
Real Steel was released by Disney. And most of the time it sure feels like it. Although with that being said this film is PG-13 and is far too intense for younger audiences. Much of the plot just feels like filler in between the fight sequences. Jackman and Goyo give it their best but their characters aren't as moving as they could be.
Real Steel is far more pleasing than Transformers. These robots are here for entertainment purposes and no more than that. The characters and plot stay the course and do exactly what they are supposed to do. The result is mildly entertaining but the stakes aren't high enough. After the film is done we are left unaffected but not necessarily unsatisfied. Even though the highlight of the film is the fight sequences, the visual effects come off as cartoony at times. This film could have been better had it not been about a father son relationship. That clearly is supposed to be the heart of the screenplay. The robot fighting is actually more of a side story. Actually any sport could be substituted into the plot and the result would be the same. Real Steel is by no means a bad film but more of a letdown. When it comes to robot fighting, the Ultimate Robot Fighting League in Futurama proves to be more entertaining.
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