I, Robot

From AwardAnnals

Reviews

Amazon.com

As paranoid cop Del Spooner, Will Smith (Independence Day, Men in Black) displays both his trademark quips and some impressive pectoral muscles in I, Robot. Only Spooner suspects that the robots that provide the near future with menial labor are going to turn on mankind—he’s just not sure how. When a leading roboticist dies suspiciously, Spooner pursues a trail that may prove his suspicions. Don’t expect much of a connection to Isaac Asimov’s classic science fiction stories; I, Robot, the action movie, isn’t prepared for any ruminations on the significance of artificial intelligence. This likable, efficient movie won’t break any new ground, but it does have an idea or two to accompany its jolts and thrills, which puts it ahead of most recent action flicks. Also featuring Bridget Moynahan (The Sum of All Fears), Bruce Greenwood (The Sweet Hereafter), and James Cromwell (Babe, LA Confidential). —Bret Fetzer

Barnes and Noble

Having firmly established his sci-fi credentials with Independence Day and Men in Black, Will Smith returns to the genre in this fast-paced, action-packed, but extremely loose adaptation of Isaac Asimov’s influential robot stories. The year is 2035, and technophobe Chicago cop Del Spooner (Smith) is assigned to investigate the supposedly accidental death of a brilliant scientist, Dr. Alfred Lanning (James Cromwell). Del eventually has reason to believe that Lanning was actually murdered by a robot, Sonny (voiced by Alan Tudyk), one of a new line that’s being rolled out all over the world. There’s just one problem with his theory: Robots are programmed to never harm human beings. Or are they? Director Alex Proyas—no sci-fi slouch himself, having helmed the stylish Dark City and The Crow—doesn’t waste too much footage on the scientific aspects of robotics; he develops the story like a classic whodunit at first, allowing Spooner to interact with a beautiful assistant (Bridget Moynahan), his increasingly impatient lieutenant (Chi McBride), and the guilty-looking CEO of the company that makes the robots (Bruce Greenwood). Asimov’s famous Three Laws of Robotics are briefly outlined, but the author’s subtleties regarding ethics don’t make it to the screen. Once certain critical revelations are made, Proyas switches into high gear; the pace picks up and I, Robot turns into a slam-bang action movie that taxes the ingenuity of special-effects wizards already challenged by mingling thousands of computer-generated robots with an equal number of humans. Aside from the fact that Smith seems to be exploiting his already established persona instead of portraying a new character, the film works surprisingly well, even though the “surprise” plot twist is telegraphed well in advance. While Asimov’s stories probably deserved a more cerebral adaptation, the movie doesn’t stint on any of the elements generally thought to make contemporary sci-fi offerings successful with audiences. Ed Hulse