MOVIE CRITIQUE

Title of the Film: I, Robot

Main Actors: Will Smith, Bridget Moynahan, Bruce Greenwood and others

Director: Alex Proyas

Synopsis: In year 2035, robots became common workers and assistants for their human owners.
Techno-phobic homicide Chicago Police Detective Del Spooner heads the investigation of leading
robotics scientist, Dr. Alfred Lanning which is said to be a suicide case. Spooner’s investigation
into Dr. Lanning’s death leads into the belief of robots that had violated the Three Laws of
Robotics. It reveals a trail of secret and agendas of the USR (United States Robotics). Spooner’s
investigation will uncover a larger threat to humanity.

Reviews: The movie was surprisingly good! Isaac Asimov is a good author which is loved by many
and his ideas about robots was very creative. When I saw the title, my mind filled with curiosity
because it is about the advancement of the technology. I praised the director for giving the best
for the good outcome of the movie. The sequence of the movie is good. It has great special effects
that everyone can look at it as it is real. Because of the advancement in modern technology, the
director and the staffs used it as an advantage to conceive the possibility of this kind of future
occurrence and can leave a philosophy to the audience. The casts portray the character very well
and you wouldn’t believe that they gave justice and effort to make the character believable.

The leading actor in the movie was Del Spooner which is known as Will Smith in real life. His
acting and efforts are the best! Will Smith has a stunning performance as Del Spooner which is a
Chicago Detective that is in charge of the investigation of Dr. Lanning’s suicidal death. He was
very observant and passionate in his job because his character is a type of person that wouldn’t
stop just to solve the problem. He is a believable character tat you end up understanding what is
his situation and he is a type of character that you’ll learn a lot because of his sincere words and
action.

The Robot Scientist is Dr. Alfred Lanning which is known as James Cromwell in real life, who wrote
the Three Laws truly amaze me and filled my thoughts of curiosity. His death really seems to be
mysterious because of the circumstances that could link to a robot. And it helped the movie to
be more interesting to watch.

Bridget Moynahan, as chief robopsychologist, Dr. Susan Calvin, portrayed as one of the
protagonist in I, Robot. Her character was, at first, skeptical and even against Spooner’s method
of solving the death of Lanning. She soon start to come around as the movie progresses as it
became more and more apparent that Spooner was right all along, that robots are not as perfect
and capable as they seemed. I admire her for the intellect she possess. Despite her cold and
indifferent disposition, she was brave and empathetic enough to help Sonny, a robot Lanning
created that possesses free will, escape his death. I was enraged at first, for it seemed like she
truly did execute Sonny, but it was soon revealed that Sonny was alive. I was amazed at her wits
and respected her for choosing Sonny. That twist was enough to stir a lot of emotions from the
audience. From anger, pain and then to relief. Calvin also helped Spooner destroy VIKI and
uncover Lanning’s reason for his suicide.

Another crucial character in the movie was Sonny, one of the newer model of robots called NS-5
Dr. Lanning created. But Sonny was different, he was unique among his own kind. Lanning
programmed him to obey the 3 basic laws of robotics like every other robot, however, he was
also the only robot to possess something similar to human’s free will. Sonny was created to obey
the laws but also had the freedom not to. This is what made Sonny very human-like, which helped
the audience develop attachment and empathy towards the machine. His persistence that
people should address him by his name, Sonny, and his questions like “What am I?” and “Will it
hurt?” was proof that Sonny isn’t simply just “Lights and Clockwork”. I loved how real and
convincing Alan Tudyk’s portrayal of Sonny is. I was truly amazed at how his voice acting was
done perfectly. He did the human-like robot justice. Sonny’s character was really memorable not
only for his role in the movie, but also for how Tudyk portrayed him. Aside from Sonny’s ability
to understand and adapt human behavior, he was also specifically built to be stronger than other
robots. Dr. Lanning provided him with denser alloy, which he was able to make use of for
defeating VIKI. Sonny was also able to dream. His dreams, ability to feel, and the denser alloy was
all for the purpose of defeating VIKI. Sonny was the key for Spooner to move forward in solving
the case, and also for providing a much interesting plot.
I, Robot has been a success, produced for $202 million and earning a total of $346 million
domestically and in foreign markets. However, it received a mix of good and bad ratings from
critics. The movie was mostly praised for its visual effects and acting, but criticized for poor plot
and character development. Wall Street Journal claimed, “Impressive for Patrick Tatopoulous’
production design but depressive for the juiceless story.” The New York Times stating it “Lacks
both intellectual rigor and the soulful sublimity of “A.I.”. This was, however, followed by a positive
feedback from the journal company, “but nonetheless allows some genuine ideas and emotions
to pop up amid the noise and clutter.”. Despite criticism, the general audience seemed to
genuinely enjoy the movie. Given its few goofs and silly dialogs from the characters, the movie
was still fun to watch. I, Robot mostly recieved great reviews. It was even nominated on Oscars
for Best in Visual Effects. I think it was a good movie overall. I wasn’t captivated by the characters
at first, but soon found myself immersed in their world as the movie unfolds. It has an interesting
concept, it makes one wonder and be curious about our future with artificial intelligence. Will
the future hold a promising world with robotics, or will mankind go too far and create something
that will eventually cause destruction to its species? From what we see today, it looks like man is
already in that process, and seems like it is caused by their creation other than A.I.