Film Review with Robert Mann – Astro Boy

5th February 2010

Just like 2008’s Speed Racer, Astro Boy is a film that finds its inspirations in a much beloved Japanese manga that went on to spawn several anime television shows. However, unlike that film, which was made by filmmakers who clearly had great passion for the original source material and consequently made a film that was extremely faithful to its origins and that the fans would love – although few others would, as evidenced by the film’s colossal failure at the box office – Astro Boy – produced by the same company that made the 2007 CG animated TMNT (that’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles in case you’re wondering) – is a somewhat less faithful manga adaptation, being a more international take on the concept and, if reports are to believed, betraying the spirit of the original manga. So, probably not a film for the fans then. And, judging by the film’s poor performance at the US box office, perhaps not a film for non fans either – although this could have something to do with the film being one of the few computer animated features of the last year to not be released in 3D and it being based on something too obscure in much the same vein as Speed Racer – although it hopes to do much better over here, being suitably timed for the half term holidays. The real question, though, is whether, with all the family films to choose from while the kids are off school does Astro Boy manage to stand out from the crowd?

Metro City is a futuristic flying city which hovers above the once dying Earth below. There humans live in peaceful tranquillity with their every whim serviced by obedient robots, who are enslaved by the humans and discarded in the world below when they are no longer needed. Dr Tenma (voiced by Nicolas Cage) is the brilliant scientist responsible for the city’s most revolutionary advances in robotics and his only joy besides his work is his super intelligent son Toby. However, when a demonstration of a new robot weapon ordered by the sinister President Stone (voiced by Donald Sutherland) goes horribly wrong and Toby is killed, Tenma finds his entire life thrown in turmoil. Unable to come to terms with the loss of his son, he creates an advanced robot that looks identical to Toby and has all his memories. That robot is Astro Boy (voiced by Freddie Highmore) who has super strength, X-ray vision, unbelievable speed and the ability to fly, not to mention countless other impressive gizmos built into him. When Astro Boy doesn’t turn out as expected, however, and President Stone sets out to capture him for the powerful energy source within him, he finds himself embarking on a journey in search of acceptance in the world below, encountering many colourful characters – including Cora (voiced by Kristen Bell), a girl who has fallen down from Metro City herself and the scheming Ham Egg (voiced by Nathan Lane) – and beginning to learn the joys and pains of being human. But when he discovers that his friends and family are in danger, Astro Boy marshals his awesome super powers and returns to Metro City in a valiant effort to save everything he cares about.

Astro Boy is a film that will probably be viewed differently depending on what demographic you fall into – if you are a fan of the iconic original manga and anime not only are you likely to be disappointed but you might feel a bit cheated too, but if you a child, an accompanying parent or perhaps just a casual cinemagoer, you may be able to enjoy the film as an entertaining, if not overly spectacular, piece of family entertainment. The animation isn’t very textured or detailed but it nonetheless has a very cute and retro look and feel to it with quite charming design of the metropolis of Metro City and the varied human and robot characters that inhabit it. Also, while there are perhaps too few Superman style zooming sequences, the film does feature some very enjoyable action scenes and, even if the film fails to make the most of its futuristic setting, Metro City does provide a great setting for the action to take place in. Only during the middle act, as Astro Boy falls to the world below Metro City, does the film lose its edge but it quickly regains it once again when events move back up to the city in the sky. The writing is nothing special here, the story being pretty simplistic and quite average and the dialogue being rather unmemorable, but it is perfectly sufficient for the purposes of the film, and despite any flaws the tragic opening sequence does manage to be quite moving and Astro Boy’s search for acceptance does win us over. While humour is not the primary focus of the film, there are some decent punch lines and while the humour is very simple and unsophisticated, it is good and harmless and the kids will love it, even if no one else does. The film boasts a very impressive voice cast and, while the actors are not fully utilized, they all do a pretty decent job. In addition to those names aforementioned, the stellar cast also includes Charlize Theron (as the opening narrator), Samuel L. Jackson, Bill Nighy, Eugene Levy, Matt Lucas, Ryan Stiles, Madeline Carroll and Moises Arias. Overall, Astro Boy likely won’t stand up to the inevitable comparisons made by fans to its iconic inspirations but on its own terms it has more than enough action, humour and charm to ensure that kids, parents and even casual moviegoers will enjoy it.

Astro Boy ***½

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Review by Robert Mann BA (Hons)

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