I, Robot
Directed by: Alex Proyas
Starring: Will Smith, Bridget Moynahan, Alan Tudyk, James Cromwell
Rated: PG-13 for intense stylized action, and some brief partial nudity.
Parental Notes: This is a PG-13 movie that deserves its rating – the violence, while stylized, is still violence. It’s not gruesome or lascivious by any means, but youngsters may find it too intense. Teens and mature preteens will no doubt love it.
The first thing that anyone who is familiar with Isaac Asimov’s robot books will notice about the film “I, Robot” is that it isn’t really an adaptation any of them. Its central plot, a combination murder mystery and conspiracy thriller, bears little resemblance to the collection of short stories Asimov published under that title. However, “I, Robot” remains true to the feel of Asimov’s work – the mystery, the mixture of logical, scientific approaches with thoroughly human, feeling ones, and the sheer wonder of scientific possibilities are strong in the film.
The film’s protagonist is Del Spooner (Will Smith), a cop whose past has left him with a near-irrational fear and hatred of the robots which are everywhere in daily life in 2035. When the father of modern robotics, Dr. Alfred Lanning (James Cromwell), apparently commits suicide, it seems obvious to Del that the robot on the scene, Sonny (Alan Tudyk), must have killed him. Since Sonny is a version of the new line of robots about to be distributed by Lanning’s corporation, USR, this is more than a little disturbing.
In theory, all robots follow the three Laws of Robotics, which state in clear and logical fashion that no robot may directly or indirectly harm a human being. If Sonny is able to kill, it could mean that all the new robots are dangerous, not “Three Laws Safe” like the company advertises.
Spooner teams up with USR psychologist/roboticist Susan Calvin (Bridget Moynahan) to find out what really happened to Lanning. Calvin is a major proponent of robots, and she and Spooner get along about as well as you’d expect. What’s refreshing is that their relationship doesn’t turn into a classic dumb action movie clich